The qualifying exam, or prelim, occurs during spring of the second year. The student prepares a written research proposal, in the form of a grant proposal, and defends the proposal in an oral presentation to a committe of faculty members. The proposal is not related to the anticipated dissertation research proposal. After passing the prelim, the student writes and defends a second research proposal based on the planned dissertation research. The majority of effort is devoted to the dissertation research project.
Students also participate in seminar classes, journal clubs, and lab meetings.
As the end of the dissertation research approaches, students are encouraged to make plans for the future. Postdoctoral positions in many labs are very competitive, and often must be arranged a year or more in advance. Once the dissertation research is completed, the dissertation is written, presented in a public seminar, and defended before the dissertation committee.