Graduate Advisory Committee

The Graduate Advisory Committee is charged with guiding the student through all matters pertaining to graduate study, and will evaluate and vote on many matters relevant to the student's progress through the program. For many matters (such as, General Examination, Dissertation proposal, and the final Dissertation defense) the vote must be unanimous among the Committee for passage. Each doctoral student in the Department of Animal Science should select and assemble their Graduate Advisory Committee, in consultation with their major advisor, before they complete 12 credits of degree program coursework. The committee must be headed by a major advisor who is a member of both the Department of Animal Science (including jointly appointed faculty) and a member of the Graduate Faculty. The committee must also include at least two associate advisors whose expertise complements the area of anticipated research. In addition to the three or more members, another member, ordinarily a member of the Graduate Faculty outside the student’s field of study but in a related field may be appointed by the Dean. A current graduate student may not serve as a member of another graduate student’s advisory committee. If deemed appropriate by a graduate student’s major advisor, the major advisor may request that a suitably qualified external associate advisor be appointed to the student’s advisory committee by writing to The Graduate School. The request should be accompanied by a curriculum vitae for the individual being recommended for appointment. Such appointments are made on the basis of advanced training and significant experience in the field of study. Ordinarily, not more than one external associate advisor is appointed to any doctoral student’s advisory committee. Students are encouraged to schedule annual committee meetings to discuss their research and academic progress.

Plan of Study

An approved Plan of Study form must be submitted to the Graduate School within the first or second year of matriculation prior to completion of eighteen (18) academic credits. The Animal Science department is diverse, with a large variety of student and faculty interests. As a result, each student's program is quite flexible, and is shaped by the student in consultation with their major advisor and Graduate Advisory Committee. Students should obtain a basic understanding of Animal Science, but may specialize in courses offered in other departments such as Nutrition, Pathobiology, Physiology and Neurobiology, or Molecular and Cell Biology. Plans of study will consist largely of courses at the 5000 level or above. A limited number of credits at the 3000 or 4000 level (not more than six [6]) may be accepted as determined by the Graduate Advisory Committee. Final approval of the Plan of Study form must be obtained before permission to take the General Examination will be granted.

Typical Curriculum Examples:

• Animal Genetics and Regenerative Biology
• Food Microbiology and Safety
• Physiology (Growth, Lactation, Environmental)

Each PhD plan of study must include thirty (30) credits of course work beyond the baccalaureate degree or its equivalent, or at least fifteen (15) credits beyond the master’s degree or other advanced degree in the same or a closely related field of study. All PhD students must complete one credit of ANSC 5693 (Graduate Presentation Skills) and two credits of ANSC 5694 (Seminar). Students who have previously completed one credit of ANSC 5693 are exempt from that requirement. In addition to these course credit requirements, students must complete coursework necessary to satisfy the foreign language or related area requirements as prescribed by the Graduate School. In addition to this coursework, satisfactory completion of at least fifteen (15) credits of GRAD 6950 – Doctoral Dissertation Research or Grad 6960 – Full-Time Doctoral Dissertation Research is required.

All PhD students who receive assistantship support are required to assist with one course per year of enrollment as part of their professional development. The ANSC Graduate Studies Committee is responsible for assigning courses.

• University Academic Regulations – Standards and Degree Requirements

Coursework Requirements

Each PhD plan of study must include thirty (30) credits of course work beyond the baccalaureate degree or its equivalent, or at least fifteen (15) credits beyond the master’s degree or other advanced degree in the same or a closely related field of study. Students must successfully complete the Animal Science Seminar (ANSC 5694) twice, and Graduate Presentation Skills (ANSC 5693) once. Students who have previously completed one credit of ANSC 5693 are exempt from the Presentation Skills (ANSC 5693) requirement. In addition to this coursework, satisfactory completion of at least fifteen (15) credits of GRAD 6950 – Doctoral Dissertation Research or GRAD 6960 – Full-Time Doctoral Dissertation Research is required.

General Exam

The doctoral General Examination is usually undertaken when the student has completed at least 75% of the content coursework listed on the approved plan of study. Not fewer than five (5) faculty members, including all members of the student’s Graduate Advisory Committee, must participate in the examination. All examiners are invited to submit questions and to evaluate answers, but the final decision as to whether or not the student has passed the examination shall rest solely with the Graduate Advisory Committee. The major advisor serves as chair of the exam committee and will solicit written or oral questions from the examination committee. The exam can consist of a “closed book,” take-home and/or oral examination covering the student’s didactic course work (as delineated in the Plan of Study form). Additionally, questions examining the student’s ability to read and critique the scientific literature, or develop research ideas are appropriate. Students are encouraged to consult with committee members in advance of the exam to discuss its scope. After discussing the responses on written and/or oral portions of the General Exam, the committee members will vote (pass/conditional pass/fail). Conditional passage of the exam may be given when the student demonstrates sufficient strength in all but one or two areas. Often the submission of a research paper or satisfactory completion of an additional course in the area of weakness is sufficient remedial action, but this decision is made by the Graduate Advisory Committee. After the examination, the Report on the General Examination, indicating the result of the entire examination and the names of all faculty members participating, must be signed by the members of the Graduate Advisory Committee and submitted to the Office of the Registrar no later than the date of the submission of the Dissertation Proposal (see below).

Dissertation Proposal

The Dissertation Proposal should be prepared in consultation with members of the Graduate Advisory Committee before the research is well underway. Its format will be determined by the Graduate Advisory Committee, but should consist of a detailed, hypothesis-based proposal in the format of an NIH, NSF or USDA grant application. Students should discuss these requirements with their major advisor before preparing the proposal. The proposal should be no more than ten (10) pages in length (single-spaced) and should include:

• Specific aims stating the purpose of the proposed research, hypotheses to be tested and specific questions to be asked.
• Background and significance. Briefly describe the background and significance of the research proposal. Discuss how the specific aims of the proposal, relate to the broader, long-term research objectives.
• Research and design methods. Provide an outline of the experimental design and the procedures to be used to accomplish the specific aims. A tentative sequence of investigations, statistical procedures by which the data will be analyzed, significance of the anticipated results, and a discussion of the handling of any hazardous materials should be included.
• Animals in research. Explain the use of animals if they are part of the research procedure. Provide rationale for the choice of the experimental animals and procedures that will be used following the IACUC guidelines.
• Literature cited (exclusive of the 10-page limit).

Final Exam - Dissertation Defense

Students must defend their dissertation at a well- advertised, public seminar. The dissertation defense may not be scheduled to coincide with an ANSC 5694 presentation. Advertising shall include posting flyers in conspicuous areas of relevant buildings, and by contacting the ANSC departmental main office for email distribution. The oral defense of the dissertation must be announced publicly by means of the University’s online Events Calendar at least two (2) weeks prior to the date of the defense. The student must also submit a final "draft" of the dissertation to the Graduate Advisory Committee members at least two (2) weeks in advance of the defense date. Not fewer than five (5) members of the faculty, including all members of the candidate’s Graduate Advisory Committee, must participate in the final examination, unless written approval for a lesser number has been secured in advance from the Dean of the Graduate School. After the public presentation, attendees will remain for in-depth discussion, followed by the committee alone. Following the presentation, the Graduate Advisory Committee will administer a final examination. The format of this examination is at the discretion of the major advisor and Graduate Advisory Committee, and its purpose is to assess the student’s understanding of the area that they have emphasized, their research, and their dissertation. After discussion, the committee will vote on the outcome of the exam. The student is required to make all suggested revisions to the dissertation, in consultation with their major advisor, prior to final acceptance. Following the dissertation defense, the major advisor communicates the results to the student and verifies that the official report has been completed and signed for submission to the Office of the Registrar.

Publication

Students must submit at least one (1) first-author, full-length primary manuscript for peer-reviewed publication to their major advisor before defending their final dissertation defense.

Assistantships

Partial or full assistantship support may be offered to students based upon the availability of funding. Funding typically comes from independent research grants, Hatch projects (Capacity grants), or departmentally funded projects through an annual competition. As part of their professional training, all students are required to assist with teaching a lecture and/or laboratory course at least one course per year as required by the Department. Course assignments are arranged by the Graduate Studies Committee before the beginning of the academic year with a mid-year review and are communicated by email. Students should not assist with the same course more than twice. Students will be given instructions regarding their duties and responsibilities before the first day of class by the instructors. All Ph.D. students are required to submit a Graduate Student Annual Report at the end of each academic year unless they are not enrolled in coursework the following semester. If a student's performance is judged to be unsatisfactory by the course instructor and/or the major advisor, renewal of assistantship support may be impacted (at the discretion of the Graduate Studies Committee, in consultation with the Department Head). Students in the Ph.D. program may be limited to Departmental assistantship support to 3 years (or 4 if both the Master's and Ph.D. degrees are obtained within the Department). [These requirements were adopted by faculty vote on 10/15/97 and 9/22/00].

Exceptions

Requests for exceptions to the above rules must be submitted to the Graduate Studies Committee in writing by the faculty advisor. Requests for exceptions cannot override University of Connecticut graduate education regulations. In general, exceptions to departmental regulations are considered only in cases of extenuating circumstances.

Application Process

If you are considering applying to the Animal Science MS or PhD programs, please visit the links below for detailed instructions. Our graduate programs depend heavily on the appropriate linkage of student and faculty interests. This also applies to the availability of assistantship support (in essence, stipend and tuition remission). There is no separate application for assistantships. The department strongly encourages that applicants visit ANSC faculty bio and research pages and identify a faculty advisor(s) based on the advisor’s research area. Please contact your preferred advisor(s) to discuss the possibility of research prior to applying to be sure they are currently accepting graduate students and if assistantship support is potentially available. Applications that fail to indicate a preferred advisor will not be reviewed. Information regarding English Proficiency and other University requirements and application policies can be found at the Graduate School website by following the link below. Applicants are not required to take or submit test scores for the General Test of the Graduate Record Examinations (GRE).

• • Applying to the ANSC Grad Program Workflow
  • List of Requirements- Graduate School & Department of Animal Science
  • Graduate Catalog
  • Forms - Prospective & Current Graduate Students
  • ANSC Faculty Bio and Research Interests
  • Financial Aid
  • International Student and Scholar Services (ISSS)
  • International Applicant FAQs
  • ANSC Facilities