Required Courses: The core graduate courses required for Microbiology Graduate students are: MIBO8120 (Foundations of Microbiology) 5 credits MIBO8150 (Seminar in Diversity of microbial Research) 1 credit, repeated each semester MIBO 6010 (Critical Review of Research in Microbiology) 2 credits, repeated each semester MIBO8600 (Fundamental Processes of Prokaryotic Cell Biology) 1-3 credit hours Other Courses: Other courses taken to fulfill a requirement of 20 credit hours of graduate-only course work, including MIBO8900 (Rotations, max 6 CR) and other advanced courses in genetics, biochemistry, cell biology, etc. (decided on by the student in consultation with their advisor and committee). Students who earn extramural fellowships may be required to take an additional course in the ethical conduct of science, such as Genetics 8650 (Responsible Science) As noted below, GRSC7770 is a course requirement associated with teaching, and MIBO 9300 is taken during the process of writing the thesis/dissertation. The program of study must contain at least 5 credit hours of courses in addition to MIBO8600 and MIBO8120 whose primary purpose is to provide scientific content. Courses related to policy (for example GRSC prefixes), seminar courses (for example MIBO8160, MIBO8170), or independent research (MIBO8900 or GRSC8000) do not fulfill this requirement. Eligible courses to fulfill this requirement include but are not limited to: MIBO6030, MIBO6090, MIBO6100, MIBO6120, MIBO6220, MIBO6220S, MIBO6300, MIBO6310, MIBO6320, MIBO6450, MIBO6500, MIBO6600L, MIBO6610, MIBO6620, MIBO6650, MIBO6680, MIBO6700, MIBO6710L, MIBO8110L, MIBO8200, MIBO8260, MIBO8270L, MIBO8520, MIBO8700, MIBO8960, and MIBO8980. Other courses can be used to fulfill this requirement with the permission of the MS mentor, advisory committee and graduate coordinator. Teaching requirement: Teaching is not required for MS students. However, a graduate teaching and career development course (GRSC 7770) is required before the first semester of teaching for all students. In certain instances, GRSC7770 may be taken concurrently with the first semester of teaching. Defense requirement: The final step in graduation is passing a thesis defense: a public seminar followed by oral exam with committee (MS, end of Year 2). Immediately before graduating, students must be enrolled in three credit hours of MIBO7300 (writing thesis). Transitioning from MS to PhD: To move from the Masters to the PhD program, a change of degree should be approved by the student’s Masters committee and then submitted to the GAC for a vote. This form should be filed during the term in which the student expects to submit and defend their written candidacy exam. If approved by a majority vote of the GAC, the student will be admitted to the PhD program and will be expected to continue with their candidacy exam as per PhD program policies.