Undergraduate Preparation

For admission to the program, candidates are expected to have had preparation in general and organic chemistry, calculus, statistics, introductory genetics, biochemistry, and basic biology. Deficiencies in one or more of these areas may be rectified by taking appropriate graduate or undergraduate courses for collateral credit. Because entering doctoral students have heterogeneous academic backgrounds, most students are required to complete a series of three graduate-level courses in genetics and molecular biology in their first year in order to acquire a common base of knowledge.