All first-year students must take a combination of IBiS graduate courses and elective classes. The courses described below are graduate-level courses that provide a broad foundation of life science research. All students are required to take at least three and up to six of the IBiS graduate courses. Students are required to earn a B grade or better in each of the courses, and to complete the selected courses by the end of the first academic year. Any variation from these requirements, or others described below, requires the approval of the Graduate Advisory Committee.

Current Course Schedule

IBIS 401 Molecular Biophysics
Protein structure; nucleic acids structure; forces that determine macromolecular structure; transport and diffusion; macromolecular assemblies; molecular machines and single molecule studies; x-ray crystallography; electron microscopy and image reconstruction; nuclear magnetic resonance; spectroscopy

IBIS 402 Eukaryotic Molecular Biology
Genome and gene structure and organization; transcription and its control, aspects of signaling and developmental control of gene expression; RNA processing, translation and their regulation; DNA replication and its control; molecular analysis of disease; applications of molecular biology in biotechnology.

IBIS 404 Principles and Methods of Animal Development
Major concepts of embryogenesis in model animals; axis formation; cell-to-cell signaling; tissue patterning; stem cells. Emphasis on experimental principles.

IBIS 405 Chemistry and Biology of Molecular Machines
(Advanced Biochemistry)
The mechanism of protein synthesis will be used to illustrate how chemistry, structural biology, molecular genetics and enzymology are combined to describe a complex molecular machine.

IBIS 406 Cell Biology
Biology of cell organelles including translocation of proteins through membranes, protein secretion, organelle inheritance during mitosis, membrane trafficking etc.

IBIS 407 Genome Scale Science
Contemporary large scale approaches to biological research problems, including whole-genome transcriptional profiling, proteomic analysis, and high-throughput phenotypic screening.

IBIS 410 Quantitative Biology
Quantitative nature of a modern molecular understanding of basis of biology and the proper analysis of data. The course will have two parts, first an introduction to statistics and data analysis, and second an introduction to biophysics.

Students can tailor their curriculum to their specific interests by substituting up to three of the IBiS graduate courses with electives from Biological Sciences, Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, or other departments. These courses should be 300-level or 400-level courses.

Graduate Advisory Committee approval of the student’s selections is required. Each student will be assigned a Graduate Advisor, and must meet with his/her assigned advisor prior to registration for each quarter to select appropriate elective courses.

Special topics seminar courses are offered regularly for small groups of graduate students. Completion of two such courses is required before the end of the spring quarter of the third academic year. The teaching faculty and topics change each quarter. Examples of recent special topics courses include:

Mammalian Reproduction
Eukaryotic Cell Cycle
Physical Biology of Gene Regulation
RNA-mediated Gene Regulation
Mechanisms of Cell Polarity
Single-Molecule Biophysics
Evolution of Developmental Mechanisms
Extreme RNA

In addition to formal course work, first-year students complete three rotations in different laboratories to define their research interests. Many research areas are represented among our faculty including biochemistry, biophysics, cell biology, developmental biology, environmental biology, remediation, evolutionary genetics, genetics, immunology, microbial evolution, microbiology, molecular biology, neurobiology, reproductive biology tissue engineering, and virology.

At the end of the three rotations, students choose a laboratory and a faculty advisor and initiate a research project that will form the basis of their Ph.D. dissertation. Throughout the doctoral training, informal laboratory meetings allow students to present their research results and gain insight into current research problems.

The noncredit seminar series IBIS 462 Program Seminar is an important part of the program of study. Students register for the seminar series each quarter prior to formal admission to candidacy for the Ph.D. and are expected to continue participation in individual departmental seminars following the admission to candidacy.

Seminars are held on both Northwestern campuses, giving students the opportunity to interact with graduate students in many other life sciences programs. Departments participating in IBiS and the federal training grants sponsor weekly seminars in which prominent national and international scientists discuss their research. An inter-campus shuttle bus service is available for transport between the Chicago and Evanston campuses.

In addition, seminars sponsored by the training programs in cell and molecular biology, molecular biophysics, and reproductive biology and by the Northwestern Center for Biotechnology are held with the Medical School and Evanston Hospital. Every fall the Schweppe Colloquium, a major symposium on current biological issues, is sponsored by the University and its Lurie Cancer Center at the Medical School. The Center for Reproductive Sciences sponsors a mini-symposium each fall with a prominent scientist as the keynote speaker, and poster and platform presentations by graduate students and post-doctoral trainees.

During the first academic year, students meet weekly with one or two of the IBiS program faculty for an informal research seminar during the lunch hour. These meetings expose students to the scientific interests of the faculty.

To foster the career development of graduate students training in the life sciences at Northwestern University, the IBiS Graduate Program co-sponsors several Career Development Programs which include BioSurvivals, BioOpportunities, and Pathway to the Professoriate. BioSurvivals are a series of workshops on topics such as presentation skilsl, grant and CV writing, and job hunting. The BioOpportunities program regularly invites alumni and other professionals to talk about the diversity of careers available to the PhD student. Pathway to the Professoriate touches on issues important for successful academic careers including lab management, startup package negotiations, and the tenure-track process. IBiS students also have access to Northwestern University’s Searle Center for Teaching Excellence which is a valuable resource for students interested in improving their teaching skills in preparation for an academic career, and resources through Northwestern University’s Graduate School on the professoriate. More information can be obtained at the following sites:

http://www.biochem.northwestern.edu/career-dev.html
http://www.tgs.northwestern.edu/research/futurefaculty/tgs564/
http://teach.northwestern.edu/graduate_newta.html

Since many doctoral students aim to pursue academic careers, experience as a teacher is a valuable part of a graduate training program. Beginning in the second year, students participate in teaching undergraduate courses for a total of two quarters. IBiS students have the opportunity to improve their teaching skills through Northwestern University’s Searle Center for Teaching Excellence in preparation for an academic career.

http://teach.northwestern.edu/graduate_newta.html