BME PHD STUDENT HANDBOOK

DISSERTATION RESEARCH

Purpose

The purpose of the Ph.D. dissertation research is to provide research training. This training is very different from that obtained through coursework, and individual students show varying aptitudes for it. Dissertation research provides you an opportunity to collaborate closely with a faculty member or faculty members and to learn the facts, the thought processes, and the technical skills of a research field. This training will provide the momentum which will ensure the beginning of a successful career.

Finding a dissertation preceptor

Some students come to Hopkins to work with a particular faculty member. Most decide on a preceptor once they have been here for a year or so. The faculty wants to make the search for a preceptor as smooth as possible, and the Program has instituted a variety of methods to assist the student. However, the burden of finding a preceptor is on the student, and this endeavor should be pursued aggressively from the moment you are accepted into the Program. The Program provides the following structured assistance in this process:

Advisory Committees -- A student chooses his/her advisory committee to represent their "best guess" as to research interests. Therefore, this committee is probably the best place to start looking for a preceptor (see section on Advisory Committees). Students should discuss their advisors' research with them and ask them about other faculty members' research. Advisors will be glad to refer students to other faculty members whose research interests are more appropriate.

Resources

"Topics in Biomedical Engineering" -- This course, offered to first year students, introduces students to a wide range of potential dissertation preceptors. Each week, students meet with a potential preceptor for an informal discussion of research interests. The faculty includes members of the Biomedical Engineering Department and of several other departments.

Biomedical Engineering Seminar -- The Department of Biomedical Engineering holds a weekly seminar on Friday at 1:00 p.m. during the academic year. Attendance at this seminar is required of all Ph.D. students whose schedules permit them to attend. Visitors as well as faculty members from Biomedical Engineering and other Johns Hopkins Departments discuss their research at these seminars. In addition, students present thesis proposals and progress reports. These seminars are a good way to broaden one's outlook on biomedical engineering research, and they provide many examples of ongoing research, both here and elsewhere.

Student Suppers -- Each year, informal student suppers are organized. These suppers help the first year students get to know their colleagues, and they provide an opportunity for students to discuss, candidly, research opportunities and potential dissertation preceptors.

Graduate Student Summer Seminars -- Each summer, the graduate students organize their own seminar series to which faculty members are specifically not invited. Each week, a student discusses his/her research. In addition to allowing students to practice their presentation skills and providing feedback on dissertation research, these seminars are an excellent opportunity for first year students to see what their colleagues have chosen for their research.

Rotations -- The Committee considers laboratory rotations an excellent opportunity for a student to broaden his/her scientific horizons and to find a dissertation topic. Incoming students usually do one or two laboratory rotations during the first year. The laboratories in which these rotations will be taken will be negotiated with the student and the directors of the laboratories in question (see Lab Rotations section of this manual). One of the best times to begin laboratory work is during the summer after a student is accepted to the Program. The Program can begin paying a stipend on July 1, and, sometimes, individual laboratories can provide a stipend even earlier. The Committee encourages each student to arrive at Hopkins by 1 August of the first summer. If he/she arrives early enough, as many as two rotations can be completed before the beginning of courses in September.

Program Graduate Dissertations -- Students beginning to look for a dissertation topic might want to look at the dissertations of the program's graduates, which are available in the Talbot Library.