Training Program Requirements

Academic Requirements: Courses

Course Requirements For Ph.D. or M.S. Degree

All students must take a minimum of nine medical school coursesa divided into two general categories (see below) and register for exactly 10 units each quarter (including summer). Students must earn a minimum grade of B- in all nine courses and maintain at least a B average for continuation in the program. Courses that can be taken for a letter grade, but not,  do not count toward the total of nine courses. 

Core Requirements

  • GENE 200 (Training Camp)
  • BIOS 200 (Foundations in Experimental Biology)
  • GENE 205 (Advanced Genetics, Win)
  • GENE 211 (Genome Biology, Win)
  • GENE 215 (Frontiers, Fall & Spr) – must register for twice
  • MED 255 (The Responsible Conduct of Research, Aut, Win, Spr) – register early, fills up fast
  • bHRP 258 (Introduction to Probability and Statistics for Clinical Research, Spring) Or
  • bSTAT 141 (Biostatistics, Fall)
    Or
    bSTATS 366 (Computational Statistics, Genetics & Microbiology, Spr)


Other Electives (at least 2 required) such as

  • GENE 214 (Representations and Algorithms for Computational Molecular Biology, Spr)
  • GENE 244 (Introduction to Statistical Genetics, Aut, alternate years)
  • GENE 245 (Computational Algorithms for Statistical Genetics, Spr, alternate years)
  • GENE 206 (Epigenetics, Win, not every year)
  • GENE 218 (Computational Analysis of Biological Information: Intro to Python for Biologist, Smr, alt yrs)
  • BIO 244 (Molecular Evolution, Spr)
  • GENE 210 (Personalized Medicine, Spr)
  • GENE 235 (C. elegans Genetics, Win, alternate years)
  • BIO 222, BIO 237, BIO 258, CBIO 275, CS 278, PATH 210, DBIO 201, DB 210, GENE 221, GENE 234, IMM 230, STAT 202

aCourses outside the medical school (e.g., CS, STAT) are encouraged and can be applied to the minimum requirement of nine courses.

bThe statistics requirement counts towards the minimum of nine courses. Students may petition the Graduate Program Director to receive approval for any courses, including statistics, that have been completed elsewhere and that may substitute for required Genetics courses. All such petitions must be submitted no later than Friday of the second week of classes during the quarter in which the course that is the subject of the petition is taught.
 

Example first year curriculum

Fall – 10 units

  • GENE 200 – Training Camp
  • BIOS 200 – Foundations in Exp. Bio
  • GENE 215 – Frontiers in Biology Rotation

 

Winter – 10 units

  • Genetics 211 – Genomics
  • GENE 205 – Advanced Genetics
  • GENE/MED 255 – The Responsible Conduct of Rotation

 

Spring – 10 units

  • GENE 215 – Frontiers in Biology
  • HRP 258
  • Rotation and other electives