Applicable only to students admitted during the 2018-2019 academic year.

Biostatistics

School of Public Health

Graduate Degrees

The Department of Biostatistics offers the Master of Science (M.S.) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degrees in Biostatistics.

Admissions Requirements

Master’s Degree

Advising

An adviser is appointed for each new master’s student by the head of the respective department. Student and adviser together agree upon a study list for each academic quarter and any subsequent alterations must be approved by both the adviser and the Associate Dean of Student Affairs. Students are expected to meet with their advisers each quarter. A departmental guidance committee is established when the student has completed approximately half of the program for the master’s degree. Members of the departmental guidance committee are nominated by the department chair after consultation with the student and the student’s adviser.

An adviser is responsible for the student’s academic progress. Progress is evaluated on an ongoing basis. At the end of each quarter, the Associate Dean of Student Affairs reviews academic listings of students and notifies them and the advisers when the cumulative grade-point average is below 3.0. Advisers review each case with their advisees and make recommendations to the Associate Dean of Student Affairs for continuance or dismissal. Students who wish to change advisers must file a petition that must be approved by the new adviser, the department chair, and the Associate Dean for Student Affairs.

Areas of Study

Consult the graduate adviser for the areas of specialization. Typical course plans are listed below.

Foreign Language Requirement

None.

Course Requirements

The M.S. degree requires a minimum of nine graduate and upper division courses, of which at least five must be graduate courses (200 and 500 series). Unless previously taken, the following courses must be included in the degree program: Biostatistics 200A-200B, – 200C, 202A, 202B, 244, 402A, 402B, 596, one 4-unit course in Epidemiology, and one 4-unit course in broad Public Health such as PH 150 or HPM M242; and 24 units of special topics courses from Biostatistics 203A, 203B, 212, 214, M215, Biostatistics 230-241 series, Biostatistics 406, 410, 411 and 413.

No more than one 4-unit course from the 400 series can count towards the degree.  Students wishing to continue to the Ph.D. program are required to take Mathematics 131A, unless previously taken. This math course can be taken any quarter during year 2 and can be substituted for an additional special topics course if student has previously taken Math 131. Students can apply a minimum of one 500-level course (4 units) and a maximum of two 500-level courses (8 units) toward the total graduate course level requirement for the M.S. Other courses in biostatistics or mathematical statistics, or in related areas such as biology, physiology, public health, management, or mathematics, are selected with the adviser’s consent and approved by the chair. A written report and written examination administered at the beginning of the second year of study covering the first year core course work must be passed. A failed examination can be repeated only once.

Teaching Experience

Not required.

Field Experience

Not required.

Capstone Plan

Students are required to pass a written comprehensive examination that covers the content of the required courses. No more than one reexamination after failure is allowed. Students who do not take the reexamination at the time specified by the department forfeit their right to reexamination.

Thesis Plan

None.

Time-to-Degree

From graduate admission to award of the degree (depending upon the program), normative time is six quarters, including quarters enrolled in previous graduate study at a UC campus prior to admission to the School of Public Health. Maximum time allowable from enrollment to graduation is nine quarters (three years).

DEGREE	NORMATIVE TIME TO ATC (Quarters)	NORMATIVE TTD	MAXIMUM TTD
M.S.	5	6	9

Doctoral Degree

Advising

A faculty adviser is appointed for each beginning doctoral student by the department chair. The adviser meets with the student each quarter to discuss academic progress. When the student advances to candidacy, the chair of the dissertation committee becomes the student’s adviser.

Major Fields or Subdisciplines

Consult the graduate adviser.

Foreign Language Requirement

None.

Course Requirements

Students must complete the following courses, unless previously taken: Biostatistics 250A, 250B, 250C, , 255A, 255B, 257, one 4-unit course in Epidemiology course, one 4-unit course in broad Public Health such as PH 150 or HPM M242; six 200 level, 4 unit courses – from Biostatistics 210 and above. Some substitution is accepted from courses in statistics and biomathematics. Students may waive up to three special topic courses based on prior completion of 200 level Biostatistics courses from Biostatistics 210 and above, or other suitable equivalent courses. Students must also enroll in Biostatistics 409 for two consecutive quarters and Biostatistics 245 every quarter and Biostatistics 246 in spring quarter every year of study.

For students who have not completed a master’s degree or equivalent in Biostatistics, the following additional courses must be included in the degree program, unless previously taken: Biostatistics 200A200B200C, 202A, 202B, and six 200level, 4-unit special topics courses from Biostatistics 210 and above.

Teaching Experience

Teaching experience is recommended but not required.

Written and Oral Qualifying Examinations

Academic Senate regulations require all doctoral students to complete and pass university written and oral qualifying examinations prior to doctoral advancement to candidacy. Also, under Senate regulations, the University Oral Qualifying Examination is open only to the student and appointed members of the doctoral committee. In addition to university requirements, some graduate programs have other pre-candidacy examination requirements. What follows in this section is how students are required to fulfill all of these requirements for this doctoral program.

All committee nominations and reconstitutions adhere to the Minimum Standards for Doctoral Committee Constitution.

Before advancement to candidacy, students must pass 2 written examinations (Ph.D. Preliminary Examination and Ph.D. Advanced Qualifying Examination) and the University Oral Qualifying Examination.

Students with a prior master’s degree in Biostatistics normally take the Ph.D. Advanced Qualifying examination in the fall quarter of the second year of study.

Students without a prior master’s degree or equivalent in Biostatistics must take the Ph.D. Preliminary examination by the fall quarter of their second year and normally take the Ph.D. Advanced Qualifying examination in the fall quarter of their third year of study.

The University Oral Qualifying Examination is taken before advancement to candidacy and after successful completion of the 2 written examinations. The examination is administered by the doctoral committee and usually consists of a preliminary defense of the dissertation proposal.

A failed examination may be repeated once. The timing of reexaminations is specified by the department in the case of written examinations or by the student’s committee in the case of the oral examination. Students who do not take the reexaminations at the specified time forfeit their right to reexamination.

Advancement to Candidacy

Students are advanced to candidacy upon successful completion of the written and oral qualifying examinations.

Doctoral Dissertation

Every doctoral degree program requires the completion of an approved dissertation that demonstrates the student’s ability to perform original, independent research and constitutes a distinct contribution to knowledge in the principal field of study.

Final Oral Examination (Defense of the Dissertation)

Required for all students in the program.

Time-to-Degree

It is expected that doctoral students without a master’s degree normally will: complete the written qualifying examinations at the end of the second year of residence (six quarters); advance to candidacy within thirteen quarters; and complete the dissertation and defense within eighteen months of advancement to candidacy. Normative Time-to-Degree is eighteen quarters from graduate admission to award of the degree. The doctoral program is usually shortened by one year if students enter with a master’s degree. Maximum allowable time for the attainment of the degree is twenty-four quarters of enrollment (eight years). This limitation includes quarters enrolled in previous graduate study at a UC campus prior to admission to the doctoral degree program.

DEGREE	NORMATIVE TIME TO ATC (Quarters)	NORMATIVE TTD	MAXIMUM TTD
Ph.D.	13	18	24

Termination of Graduate Study and Appeal of Termination

University Policy

A student who fails to meet the above requirements may be recommended for termination of graduate study. A graduate student may be disqualified from continuing in the graduate program for a variety of reasons. The most common is failure to maintain the minimum cumulative grade point average (3.00) required by the Academic Senate to remain in good standing (some programs require a higher grade point average). Other examples include failure of examinations, lack of timely progress toward the degree and poor performance in core courses. Probationary students (those with cumulative grade point averages below 3.00) are subject to immediate dismissal upon the recommendation of their department. University guidelines governing termination of graduate students, including the appeal procedure, are outlined in Standards and Procedures for Graduate Study at UCLA.

Special Departmental or Program Policy

Master’s

In addition to the standard reasons outlined above, a student may be recommended for termination for failure to complete the required course work within seven quarters of matriculation.

Doctoral

In addition to the standard reasons outlined above, a student may be recommended for termination for failure to maintain a 3.00 grade point average for two consecutive quarters following matriculation into the doctoral program; a second failure of any written qualifying examination in the major or minor fields; a second failure of either oral examination; or exceeding enrollment time limits.

A student may appeal a recommendation for termination first to the departmental chair, then to the Associate Dean of Student Affairs, then to the Associate Dean of Academic Affairs and finally to the dean of the school.

Applicable only to students admitted during the 2019-2020 academic year.

Biostatistics

School of Public Health

Graduate Degrees

The Department of Biostatistics offers the Master of Science (M.S.) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degrees in Biostatistics.

Admissions Requirements

Master’s Degree

Advising

An adviser is appointed for each new master’s student by the department chair. Student and adviser together agree upon a study list for each academic quarter and any subsequent alterations must be approved by both the adviser and the Associate Dean of Student Affairs. Students are expected to meet with their advisers each quarter. A departmental guidance committee is established when the student has completed approximately half of the program for the master’s degree. Members of the departmental guidance committee are nominated by the department chair after consultation with the student and the student’s adviser.

An adviser is responsible for the student’s academic progress. Progress is evaluated on an ongoing basis. At the end of each quarter, the Associate Dean of Student Affairs reviews academic listings of students and notifies them and the advisers when the cumulative grade-point average is below 3.0. Advisers review each case with their advisees and make recommendations to the Associate Dean of Student Affairs for continuance or academic disqualification. Students who wish to change advisers must file a petition that must be approved by the new adviser, the department chair, and the Associate Dean for Student Affairs.

Areas of Study

Consult the graduate adviser for the areas of specialization. Typical course plans are listed below.

Foreign Language Requirement

None.

Course Requirements

The M.S. degree requires 17 graduate and upper division courses (66 units), of which at least five must be graduate courses (200 and 500 series). The following courses are required: Biostatistics 200A-200B, 200C, 202A, 202B, 244, 402A, 402B, 596; one 4-unit course in Epidemiology; one 4-unit course in broad Public Health such as PH 150 or HPM M242; and 24 units of special topics elective courses selected from Biostatistics 203A, 203B, 212, 214, M215, Biostatistics 230-241 series, Biostatistics 406, 410, 411 and 413.

No more than one 4-unit course from the 400 series can count towards the minimum 24 units of electives for the degree. Students can apply a maximum of two 500-level courses (8 units) toward the total graduate course level requirement for the M.S. Other courses in biostatistics or mathematical statistics, or in related areas such as biology, physiology, public health, management, or mathematics, are selected with the adviser’s consent and approved by the chair.

Students may petition the department to substitute any of the above required courses with elective courses, if they have previously taken the course at UCLA or its equivalent at another institution.

Students wishing to continue to the Ph.D. program are required to take Mathematics 131A as a prerequisite, unless previously taken at UCLA or elsewhere. This math course can be taken any quarter during year 2.

Teaching Experience

Not required.

Field Experience

Not required.

Capstone Plan

Students are required to submit a written report and pass a written comprehensive examination administered at the beginning of the second year of study that covers the content of the first year core coursework. No more than one reexamination after failure is allowed. Students who do not take the reexamination at the time specified by the department forfeit their right to reexamination.

Thesis Plan

None.

Time-to-Degree

From graduate admission to award of the degree (depending upon the program), normative time is six quarters, including quarters enrolled in previous graduate study at a UC campus prior to admission to the School of Public Health. Maximum time allowable from enrollment to graduation is nine quarters (three years).

DEGREE	NORMATIVE TIME TO ATC (Quarters)	NORMATIVE TTD	MAXIMUM TTD
M.S.	5	6	9

Doctoral Degree

Advising

A faculty adviser is appointed for each beginning doctoral student by the department chair. The adviser meets with the student each quarter to discuss academic progress. When the student advances to candidacy, the chair of the dissertation committee becomes the student’s adviser.

Major Fields or Subdisciplines

Consult the graduate adviser.

Foreign Language Requirement

None.

Course Requirements

Students must complete the following courses: Biostatistics 250A, 250B, 250C, 257, one 4-unit course in Epidemiology course; one 4-unit course in broad Public Health such as PH 150 or HPM M242; and six 200-level, 4-unit special topic elective courses from Biostatistics 210 and above. To fulfill the six elective courses, students may formally petition to enroll in courses in Statistics and Biomathematics. Students who entered the doctoral program with an M.S. in Biostatistics from UCLA may waive up to three special topic elective courses (12 units) based on prior completion of 200 level Biostatistics courses from Biostatistics 210 and above, or other suitable equivalent courses. Students must also enroll in Biostatistics 409 for two consecutive quarters, Biostatistics 245 every quarter, and Biostatistics 246 in spring quarter every year of study.

For students who have not completed a master’s degree or equivalent in Biostatistics, the following additional courses must be included in the degree program: Biostatistics 200A-200B-200C, 202A, 202B, and six 200 level, 4-unit special topics courses from Biostatistics 210 and above.

Teaching Experience

Teaching experience is recommended but not required.

Written and Oral Qualifying Examinations

Academic Senate regulations require all doctoral students to complete and pass university written and oral qualifying examinations prior to doctoral advancement to candidacy. Also, under Senate regulations, the University Oral Qualifying Examination is open only to the student and appointed members of the doctoral committee. In addition to university requirements, some graduate programs have other pre-candidacy examination requirements. What follows in this section is how students are required to fulfill all of these requirements for this doctoral program.

All committee nominations and reconstitutions adhere to the Minimum Standards for Doctoral Committee Constitution.

Before advancement to candidacy, students must pass two written examinations (Ph.D. Preliminary Examination and Ph.D. Advanced Qualifying Examination) and the University Oral Qualifying Examination.

Students without a prior master’s degree or equivalent in Biostatistics must take the Ph.D. Preliminary Examination by the fall quarter of their second year and normally take the Ph.D. Advanced Qualifying Examination in the fall quarter of their third year of study.

Students with a prior master’s degree in Biostatistics from UCLA are exempt from taking the Ph.D. Preliminary Examination, as it was taken during their MS study.  Students with a prior master’s degree in Biostatistics from UCLA normally take the Ph.D. Advanced Qualifying Examination in the fall quarter of the second year of study.

The University Oral Qualifying Examination is taken after successful completion of the two written examinations. The Oral Qualifying Examination is administered by the doctoral committee and usually consists of a preliminary defense of the dissertation proposal.

A failed examination may be repeated once. The timing of reexaminations is specified by the department in the case of written examinations or by the student’s committee in the case of the oral examination. Students who do not take the reexaminations at the specified time forfeit their right to reexamination.

Advancement to Candidacy

Students are advanced to candidacy upon successful completion of the written and oral qualifying examinations.

Doctoral Dissertation

Every doctoral degree program requires the completion of an approved dissertation that demonstrates the student’s ability to perform original, independent research and constitutes a distinct contribution to knowledge in the principal field of study.

Final Oral Examination (Defense of the Dissertation)

Required for all students in the program.

Time-to-Degree

It is expected that doctoral students entering the program without a master’s degree normally will complete the Ph.D. Preliminary Examination by the fall quarter of their second year (four quarters) and the Ph.D. Advanced Qualifying Examination in the fall quarter of their third year of study (seven quarters); advance to candidacy within thirteen quarters; and complete the dissertation and defense within five quarters of advancement to candidacy. Normative Time-to-Degree is eighteen quarters from graduate admission to award of the degree. The doctoral program is usually shortened by one year if students enter with a master’s degree. Maximum allowable time for the attainment of the degree is twenty-four quarters of enrollment (eight years). This limitation includes quarters enrolled in previous graduate study at a UC campus prior to admission to the doctoral degree program.

DEGREE	NORMATIVE TIME TO ATC (Quarters)	NORMATIVE TTD	MAXIMUM TTD
Ph.D.	13	18	24

Termination of Graduate Study and Appeal of Termination

University Policy

A student who fails to meet the above requirements may be recommended for termination of graduate study. A graduate student may be disqualified from continuing in the graduate program for a variety of reasons. The most common is failure to maintain the minimum cumulative grade point average (3.00) required by the Academic Senate to remain in good standing (some programs require a higher grade point average). Other examples include failure of examinations, lack of timely progress toward the degree and poor performance in core courses. Probationary students (those with cumulative grade point averages below 3.00) are subject to immediate dismissal upon the recommendation of their department. University guidelines governing termination of graduate students, including the appeal procedure, are outlined in Standards and Procedures for Graduate Study at UCLA.

Special Departmental or Program Policy

Master’s
In addition to the standard reasons outlined above, a student may be recommended for academic disqualification for failure to complete the required course work within seven quarters of matriculation.

Doctoral
In addition to the standard reasons outlined above, a student may be recommended for academic disqualification for failure to maintain a 3.0 grade point average for two consecutive quarters following matriculation into the doctoral program; a second failure of any written qualifying examination; a second failure of either oral examination; or exceeding enrollment time limits.

A student may appeal a recommendation for academic disqualification first to the departmental chair, then to the Associate Dean of Student Affairs, then to the Associate Dean of Academic Affairs and finally to the dean of the school.

Applicable only to students admitted during the 2020-2021 academic year.

Biostatistics

School of Public Health

Graduate Degrees

The Department of Biostatistics offers the Master of Science (M.S.) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degrees in Biostatistics.

Admissions Requirements

Master’s Degree

Advising

An adviser is appointed for each new master’s student by the department chair. Student and adviser together agree upon a study list for each academic quarter and any subsequent alterations must be approved by both the adviser and the Associate Dean of Student Affairs. Students are expected to meet with their advisers each quarter. A departmental guidance committee is established when the student has completed approximately half of the program for the master’s degree. Members of the departmental guidance committee are nominated by the department chair after consultation with the student and the student’s adviser.

An adviser is responsible for the student’s academic progress. Progress is evaluated on an ongoing basis. At the end of each quarter, the Associate Dean of Student Affairs reviews academic listings of students and notifies them and the advisers when the cumulative grade-point average is below 3.0. Advisers review each case with their advisees and make recommendations to the Associate Dean of Student Affairs for continuance or academic disqualification. Students who wish to change advisers must file a petition that must be approved by the new adviser, the department chair, and the Associate Dean for Student Affairs.

Areas of Study

Consult the graduate adviser for the areas of specialization. Typical course plans are listed below.

Foreign Language Requirement

None.

Course Requirements

The M.S. degree requires 18 graduate and upper division courses (70 units), of which at least five must be graduate courses (200 and 500 series). The following courses are required: Biostatistics 200A, 200B, 200C, 202A, 202B, 216, 244, 402A, 402B, 596; one 4-unit course in Epidemiology; one 4-unit course in broad Public Health such as PH 150/PH201 or HPM M242; and 24 units of special topics elective courses selected from Biostatistics 202C, 203A, 203B, 212, 214, M215, Biostatistics 230-241 series, Biostatistics 406, 410, 411 and 413.

No more than one 4-unit course from the 400 series can count towards the minimum 24 units of electives for the degree. Students can apply a maximum of two 500-level courses (8 units) toward the total graduate course level requirement for the M.S. Other courses in biostatistics or mathematical statistics, or in related areas such as biology, physiology, public health, management, or mathematics, are selected with the adviser’s consent and approved by the chair.

Students may petition the department to substitute any of the above required courses with elective courses, if they have previously taken the course at UCLA or its equivalent at another institution.

Students wishing to continue to the Ph.D. program are required to take Mathematics 131A as a prerequisite, unless previously taken at UCLA or elsewhere. This math course can be taken any quarter during year 2.

Teaching Experience

Not required.

Field Experience

Not required.

Capstone Plan

Students are required to submit a written report and pass a written comprehensive examination administered at the beginning of the second year of study that covers the content of the first year core coursework. No more than one reexamination after failure is allowed. Students who do not take the reexamination at the time specified by the department forfeit their right to reexamination.

Thesis Plan

None.

Time-to-Degree

From graduate admission to award of the degree (depending upon the program), normative time is six quarters, including quarters enrolled in previous graduate study at a UC campus prior to admission to the School of Public Health. Maximum time allowable from enrollment to graduation is nine quarters (three years).

DEGREE	NORMATIVE TIME TO ATC (Quarters)	NORMATIVE TTD	MAXIMUM TTD
M.S.	5	6	9

Doctoral Degree

Advising

A faculty adviser is appointed for each beginning doctoral student by the department chair. The adviser meets with the student each quarter to discuss academic progress. When the student advances to candidacy, the chair of the dissertation committee becomes the student’s adviser.

Major Fields or Subdisciplines

Consult the graduate adviser.

Foreign Language Requirement

None.

Course Requirements

Students must complete the following courses: Biostatistics 216, 250A, 250B, 250C, 257, one 4-unit course in Epidemiology course; one 4-unit course in broad Public Health such as PH 150/PH201 or HPM M242; and six 200-level, 4-unit special topic elective courses from Biostatistics 202C, 210 and above. To fulfill the six elective courses, students may formally petition to enroll in courses in Statistics and Biomathematics. Students who entered the doctoral program with an M.S. in Biostatistics from UCLA may waive up to three special topic elective courses (12 units) based on prior completion of 200 level Biostatistics courses from Biostatistics 210 and above, or other suitable equivalent courses. Students must also enroll in Biostatistics 409 for two consecutive quarters, Biostatistics 245 every quarter, and Biostatistics 246 in spring quarter every year of study.

For students who have not completed a master’s degree or equivalent in Biostatistics, the following additional courses must be included in the degree program: Biostatistics 200A-200B-200C, 202A, 202B.

Teaching Experience

Teaching experience is recommended but not required.

Written and Oral Qualifying Examinations

Academic Senate regulations require all doctoral students to complete and pass university written and oral qualifying examinations prior to doctoral advancement to candidacy. Also, under Senate regulations, the University Oral Qualifying Examination is open only to the student and appointed members of the doctoral committee. In addition to university requirements, some graduate programs have other pre-candidacy examination requirements. What follows in this section is how students are required to fulfill all of these requirements for this doctoral program.

All committee nominations and reconstitutions adhere to the Minimum Standards for Doctoral Committee Constitution.

Before advancement to candidacy, students must pass two written examinations (Ph.D. Preliminary Examination and Ph.D. Advanced Qualifying Examination) and the University Oral Qualifying Examination.

Students without a prior master’s degree or equivalent in Biostatistics must take the Ph.D. Preliminary Examination by the fall quarter of their second year and normally take the Ph.D. Advanced Qualifying Examination in the fall quarter of their third year of study.

Students with a prior master’s degree in Biostatistics from UCLA are exempt from taking the Ph.D. Preliminary Examination, as it was taken during their MS study.  Students with a prior master’s degree in Biostatistics from UCLA normally take the Ph.D. Advanced Qualifying Examination in the fall quarter of the second year of study.

The University Oral Qualifying Examination is taken after successful completion of the two written examinations. The Oral Qualifying Examination is administered by the doctoral committee and usually consists of a preliminary defense of the dissertation proposal.

A failed examination may be repeated once. The timing of reexaminations is specified by the department in the case of written examinations or by the student’s committee in the case of the oral examination. Students who do not take the reexaminations at the specified time forfeit their right to reexamination.

Advancement to Candidacy

Students are advanced to candidacy upon successful completion of the written and oral qualifying examinations.

Doctoral Dissertation

Every doctoral degree program requires the completion of an approved dissertation that demonstrates the student’s ability to perform original, independent research and constitutes a distinct contribution to knowledge in the principal field of study.

Final Oral Examination (Defense of the Dissertation)

Required for all students in the program.

Time-to-Degree

It is expected that doctoral students entering the program without a master’s degree normally will complete the Ph.D. Preliminary Examination by the fall quarter of their second year (four quarters) and the Ph.D. Advanced Qualifying Examination in the fall quarter of their third year of study (seven quarters); advance to candidacy within thirteen quarters; and complete the dissertation and defense within five quarters of advancement to candidacy. Normative Time-to-Degree is eighteen quarters from graduate admission to award of the degree. The doctoral program is usually shortened by one year if students enter with a master’s degree. Maximum allowable time for the attainment of the degree is twenty-four quarters of enrollment (eight years). This limitation includes quarters enrolled in previous graduate study at a UC campus prior to admission to the doctoral degree program.

DEGREE	NORMATIVE TIME TO ATC (Quarters)	NORMATIVE TTD	MAXIMUM TTD
Ph.D.	13	18	24

Academic Disqualification and Appeal of Disqualification

University Policy

A student who fails to meet the above requirements may be recommended for academic disqualification from graduate study. A graduate student may be disqualified from continuing in the graduate program for a variety of reasons. The most common is failure to maintain the minimum cumulative grade point average (3.00) required by the Academic Senate to remain in good standing (some programs require a higher grade point average). Other examples include failure of examinations, lack of timely progress toward the degree and poor performance in core courses. Probationary students (those with cumulative grade point averages below 3.00) are subject to immediate dismissal upon the recommendation of their department. University guidelines governing academic disqualification of graduate students, including the appeal procedure, are outlined in Standards and Procedures for Graduate Study at UCLA.

Special Departmental or Program Policy

Master’s
In addition to the standard reasons outlined above, a student may be recommended for academic disqualification for failure to complete the required course work within seven quarters of matriculation.

Doctoral
In addition to the standard reasons outlined above, a student may be recommended for academic disqualification for failure to maintain a 3.0 grade point average for two consecutive quarters following matriculation into the doctoral program; a second failure of any written qualifying examination; a second failure of either oral examination; or exceeding enrollment time limits.

A student may appeal a recommendation for academic disqualification first to the departmental chair, then to the Associate Dean of Student Affairs, then to the Associate Dean of Academic Affairs and finally to the dean of the school.

Applicable only to students admitted during the 2021-2022 academic year.

Biostatistics

School of Public Health

Graduate Degrees

The Department of Biostatistics offers the Master of Science (M.S.) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degrees in Biostatistics.

Admissions Requirements

Master’s Degree

Advising

An adviser is appointed for each new master’s student by the department chair. Student and adviser together agree upon a study list for each academic quarter and any subsequent alterations must be approved by both the adviser and the Associate Dean of Student Affairs. Students are expected to meet with their advisers each quarter. A departmental guidance committee is established when the student has completed approximately half of the program for the master’s degree. Members of the departmental guidance committee are nominated by the department chair after consultation with the student and the student’s adviser.

An adviser is responsible for the student’s academic progress. Progress is evaluated on an ongoing basis. At the end of each quarter, the Associate Dean of Student Affairs reviews academic listings of students and notifies them and the advisers when the cumulative grade-point average is below 3.0. Advisers review each case with their advisees and make recommendations to the Associate Dean of Student Affairs for continuance or academic disqualification. Students who wish to change advisers must file a petition that must be approved by the new adviser, the department chair, and the Associate Dean for Student Affairs.

Areas of Study

Consult the graduate adviser for the areas of specialization. Typical course plans are listed below.

Foreign Language Requirement

None.

Course Requirements

The M.S. degree requires 18 graduate and upper division courses (70 units), of which at least five must be graduate courses (200 and 500 series). The following courses are required: Biostatistics 200A, 200B, 200C, 202A, 202B, 216, 244, 402A, 402B, 596; one 4-unit course in Epidemiology; one 4-unit course in broad Public Health such as PH 150/PH201 or HPM M242; and 24 units of special topics elective courses selected from Biostatistics 202C, 203A, 203B, 212, 214, M215, Biostatistics 230-241 series, Biostatistics 406, 410, 411 and 413.

No more than one 4-unit course from the 400 series can count towards the minimum 24 units of electives for the degree. Students can apply a maximum of two 500-level courses (8 units) toward the total graduate course level requirement for the M.S. Other courses in biostatistics or mathematical statistics, or in related areas such as biology, physiology, public health, management, or mathematics, are selected with the adviser’s consent and approved by the chair.

Students may petition the department to substitute any of the above required courses with elective courses, if they have previously taken the course at UCLA or its equivalent at another institution.

Students wishing to continue to the Ph.D. program are required to take Mathematics 131A as a prerequisite, unless previously taken at UCLA or elsewhere. This math course can be taken any quarter during year 2.

Teaching Experience

Not required.

Field Experience

Not required.

Capstone Plan

Students are required to submit a written report and pass a written comprehensive examination administered at the beginning of the second year of study that covers the content of the first year core coursework. No more than one reexamination after failure is allowed. Failure to secure a passing grade in at most two attempts in the
MS Comprehensive exam will result in the department recommending the student to the Graduate Division for Academic Disqualification. Students who do not take the reexamination at the time specified by the department forfeit their right to reexamination.

Thesis Plan

None.

Time-to-Degree

From graduate admission to award of the degree (depending upon the program), normative time is six quarters, including quarters enrolled in previous graduate study at a UC campus prior to admission to the School of Public Health. Maximum time allowable from enrollment to graduation is nine quarters (three years).

DEGREE	NORMATIVE TIME TO ATC (Quarters)	NORMATIVE TTD	MAXIMUM TTD
M.S.	5	6	9

Doctoral Degree

Advising

A faculty adviser is appointed for each beginning doctoral student by the department chair. The adviser meets with the student each quarter to discuss academic progress. When the student advances to candidacy, the chair of the dissertation committee becomes the student’s adviser.

Major Fields or Subdisciplines

Consult the graduate adviser.

Foreign Language Requirement

None.

Course Requirements

Students must complete the following courses: Biostatistics 216, 250A, 250B, 250C, 257, one 4-unit course in Epidemiology course; one 4-unit course in broad Public Health such as PH 150/PH201 or HPM M242; and six 200-level, 4-unit special topic elective courses from Biostatistics 202C, 210 and above. To fulfill the six elective courses, students may formally petition to enroll in courses in Statistics and Biomathematics. Students who entered the doctoral program with an M.S. in Biostatistics from UCLA may waive up to three special topic elective courses (12 units) based on prior completion of 200 level Biostatistics courses from Biostatistics 210 and above, or other suitable equivalent courses. Students must also enroll in Biostatistics 409 for two consecutive quarters, Biostatistics 245 every quarter, and Biostatistics 246 in spring quarter every year of study.

For students who have not completed a master’s degree or equivalent in Biostatistics, the following additional courses must be included in the degree program: Biostatistics 200A-200B-200C, 202A, 202B.

Teaching Experience

Teaching experience is recommended but not required.

Written and Oral Qualifying Examinations

Academic Senate regulations require all doctoral students to complete and pass university written and oral qualifying examinations prior to doctoral advancement to candidacy. Also, under Senate regulations, the University Oral Qualifying Examination is open only to the student and appointed members of the doctoral committee. In addition to university requirements, some graduate programs have other pre-candidacy examination requirements. What follows in this section is how students are required to fulfill all of these requirements for this doctoral program.

All committee nominations and reconstitutions adhere to the Minimum Standards for Doctoral Committee Constitution.

Before advancement to candidacy, students must pass two written examinations (Ph.D. Preliminary Examination and Ph.D. Advanced Qualifying Examination) and the University Oral Qualifying Examination.

Students without a prior master’s degree or equivalent in Biostatistics must take the Ph.D. Preliminary Examination by the fall quarter of their second year and normally take the Ph.D. Advanced Qualifying Examination in the fall quarter of their third year of study. Failure to secure a passing grade in at most two attempts in the Ph.D. Preliminary Exam and in at most two attempts in the Ph.D. Written Advanced Qualifying Exam will result in the department recommending the student to the graduate division for academic disqualification.

Students with a prior master’s degree in Biostatistics from UCLA are exempt from taking the Ph.D. Preliminary Examination, as it was taken during their MS study.  Students with a prior master’s degree in Biostatistics from UCLA normally take the Ph.D. Advanced Qualifying Examination in the fall quarter of the second year of study.

The University Oral Qualifying Examination is taken after successful completion of the two written examinations. The Oral Qualifying Examination is administered by the doctoral committee and usually consists of a preliminary defense of the dissertation proposal.

A failed examination may be repeated once. The timing of reexaminations is specified by the department in the case of written examinations or by the student’s committee in the case of the oral examination. Students who do not take the reexaminations at the specified time forfeit their right to reexamination.

Advancement to Candidacy

Students are advanced to candidacy upon successful completion of the written and oral qualifying examinations.

Doctoral Dissertation

Every doctoral degree program requires the completion of an approved dissertation that demonstrates the student’s ability to perform original, independent research and constitutes a distinct contribution to knowledge in the principal field of study.

Final Oral Examination (Defense of the Dissertation)

Required for all students in the program.

Time-to-Degree

It is expected that doctoral students entering the program without a master’s degree normally will complete the Ph.D. Preliminary Examination by the fall quarter of their second year (four quarters) and the Ph.D. Advanced Qualifying Examination in the fall quarter of their third year of study (seven quarters); advance to candidacy within thirteen quarters; and complete the dissertation and defense within five quarters of advancement to candidacy. Normative Time-to-Degree is eighteen quarters from graduate admission to award of the degree. The doctoral program is usually shortened by one year if students enter with a master’s degree. Maximum allowable time for the attainment of the degree is twenty-four quarters of enrollment (eight years). This limitation includes quarters enrolled in previous graduate study at a UC campus prior to admission to the doctoral degree program.

DEGREE	NORMATIVE TIME TO ATC (Quarters)	NORMATIVE TTD	MAXIMUM TTD
Ph.D.	13	18	24

Academic Disqualification and Appeal of Disqualification

University Policy

A student who fails to meet the above requirements may be recommended for academic disqualification from graduate study. A graduate student may be disqualified from continuing in the graduate program for a variety of reasons. The most common is failure to maintain the minimum cumulative grade point average (3.00) required by the Academic Senate to remain in good standing (some programs require a higher grade point average). Other examples include failure of examinations, lack of timely progress toward the degree and poor performance in core courses. Probationary students (those with cumulative grade point averages below 3.00) are subject to immediate dismissal upon the recommendation of their department. University guidelines governing academic disqualification of graduate students, including the appeal procedure, are outlined in Standards and Procedures for Graduate Study at UCLA.

Special Departmental or Program Policy

Master’s
In addition to the standard reasons outlined above, a student may be recommended for academic disqualification for failure to complete the required course work within seven quarters of matriculation.

Doctoral
In addition to the standard reasons outlined above, a student may be recommended for academic disqualification for failure to maintain a 3.0 grade point average for two consecutive quarters following matriculation into the doctoral program; a second failure of any written qualifying examination; a second failure of either oral examination; or exceeding enrollment time limits.

A student may appeal a recommendation for academic disqualification first to the departmental chair, then to the Associate Dean of Student Affairs, then to the Associate Dean of Academic Affairs and finally to the dean of the school.

Applicable only to students admitted during the 2022-2023 academic year.

Biostatistics

School of Public Health

Graduate Degrees

The Department of Biostatistics offers the Master of Science (M.S.) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degrees in Biostatistics.

Admissions Requirements

Master’s Degree

Advising

An adviser is appointed for each new master’s student by the department chair. Student and adviser together agree upon a study list for each academic quarter and any subsequent alterations must be approved by both the adviser and the Associate Dean of Student Affairs. Students are expected to meet with their advisers each quarter. A departmental guidance committee is established when the student has completed approximately half of the program for the master’s degree. Members of the departmental guidance committee are nominated by the department chair after consultation with the student and the student’s adviser.

An adviser is responsible for the student’s academic progress. Progress is evaluated on an ongoing basis. At the end of each quarter, the Associate Dean of Student Affairs reviews academic listings of students and notifies them and the advisers when the cumulative grade-point average is below 3.0. Advisers review each case with their advisees and make recommendations to the Associate Dean of Student Affairs for continuance or academic disqualification. Students who wish to change advisers must file a petition that must be approved by the new adviser, the department chair, and the Associate Dean for Student Affairs.

Areas of Study

Consult the graduate adviser for the areas of specialization. Typical course plans are listed below.

Foreign Language Requirement

None.

Course Requirements

The M.S. degree requires 18 graduate and upper division courses (70 units), of which at least five must be graduate courses (200 and 500 series). The following courses are required: Biostatistics 200A, 200B, 200C, 202A, 202B, 216, 244, 402A, 402B, 596; one 4-unit course in Epidemiology; one 4-unit course in broad Public Health such as PH 150/PH201 or HPM M242; and 24 units of special topics elective courses selected from Biostatistics 202C, 203A, 203B, 212, 214, M215, Biostatistics 230-241 series, Biostatistics 406, 410, 411 and 413.

No more than one 4-unit course from the 400 series can count towards the minimum 24 units of electives for the degree. Students can apply a maximum of two 500-level courses (8 units) toward the total graduate course level requirement for the M.S. Other courses in biostatistics or mathematical statistics, or in related areas such as biology, physiology, public health, management, or mathematics, are selected with the adviser’s consent and approved by the chair.

Students may petition the department to substitute any of the above required courses with elective courses, if they have previously taken the course at UCLA or its equivalent at another institution.

Students wishing to continue to the Ph.D. program are required to take Mathematics 131A as a prerequisite, unless previously taken at UCLA or elsewhere. This math course can be taken any quarter during year 2.

Teaching Experience

Not required.

Field Experience

Not required.

Capstone Plan

Students are required to submit a written report and pass a written comprehensive examination administered at the beginning of the second year of study that covers the content of the first year core coursework. No more than one reexamination after failure is allowed. Failure to secure a passing grade in at most two attempts in the
MS Comprehensive exam will result in the department recommending the student to the Graduate Division for Academic Disqualification. Students who do not take the reexamination at the time specified by the department forfeit their right to reexamination.

Thesis Plan

None.

Time-to-Degree

From graduate admission to award of the degree (depending upon the program), normative time is six quarters, including quarters enrolled in previous graduate study at a UC campus prior to admission to the School of Public Health. Maximum time allowable from enrollment to graduation is nine quarters (three years).

DEGREE	NORMATIVE TIME TO ATC (Quarters)	NORMATIVE TTD	MAXIMUM TTD
M.S.	5	6	9

Doctoral Degree

Advising

A faculty adviser is appointed for each beginning doctoral student by the department chair. The adviser meets with the student each quarter to discuss academic progress. When the student advances to candidacy, the chair of the dissertation committee becomes the student’s adviser.

Major Fields or Subdisciplines

Consult the graduate adviser.

Foreign Language Requirement

None.

Course Requirements

Students must complete the following courses: Biostatistics 216, 250A, 250B, 250C, 257, one 4-unit course in Epidemiology course; one 4-unit course in broad Public Health such as PH 150/PH201 or HPM M242; and six 200-level, 4-unit special topic elective courses from Biostatistics 202C, 210 and above. To fulfill the six elective courses, students may formally petition to enroll in courses in Statistics and Biomathematics. Students who entered the doctoral program with an M.S. in Biostatistics from UCLA may waive up to three special topic elective courses (12 units) based on prior completion of 200 level Biostatistics courses from Biostatistics 210 and above, or other suitable equivalent courses. Students must also enroll in Biostatistics 409 for two consecutive quarters, Biostatistics 245 every quarter, and Biostatistics 246 in spring quarter every year of study.

For students who have not completed a master’s degree or equivalent in Biostatistics, the following additional courses must be included in the degree program: Biostatistics 200A-200B-200C, 202A, 202B.

Teaching Experience

Teaching experience is recommended but not required.

Written and Oral Qualifying Examinations

Academic Senate regulations require all doctoral students to complete and pass university written and oral qualifying examinations prior to doctoral advancement to candidacy. Also, under Senate regulations, the University Oral Qualifying Examination is open only to the student and appointed members of the doctoral committee. In addition to university requirements, some graduate programs have other pre-candidacy examination requirements. What follows in this section is how students are required to fulfill all of these requirements for this doctoral program.

All committee nominations and reconstitutions adhere to the Minimum Standards for Doctoral Committee Constitution.

Before advancement to candidacy, students must pass two written examinations (Ph.D. Preliminary Examination and Ph.D. Advanced Qualifying Examination) and the University Oral Qualifying Examination.

Students without a prior master’s degree or equivalent in Biostatistics must take the Ph.D. Preliminary Examination by the fall quarter of their second year and normally take the Ph.D. Advanced Qualifying Examination in the fall quarter of their third year of study. Failure to secure a passing grade in at most two attempts in the Ph.D. Preliminary Exam and in at most two attempts in the Ph.D. Written Advanced Qualifying Exam will result in the department recommending the student to the graduate division for academic disqualification.

Students with a prior master’s degree in Biostatistics from UCLA are exempt from taking the Ph.D. Preliminary Examination, as it was taken during their MS study.  Students with a prior master’s degree in Biostatistics from UCLA normally take the Ph.D. Advanced Qualifying Examination in the fall quarter of the second year of study.

The University Oral Qualifying Examination is taken after successful completion of the two written examinations. The Oral Qualifying Examination is administered by the doctoral committee and usually consists of a preliminary defense of the dissertation proposal.

A failed examination may be repeated once. The timing of reexaminations is specified by the department in the case of written examinations or by the student’s committee in the case of the oral examination. Students who do not take the reexaminations at the specified time forfeit their right to reexamination.

Advancement to Candidacy

Students are advanced to candidacy upon successful completion of the written and oral qualifying examinations.

Doctoral Dissertation

Every doctoral degree program requires the completion of an approved dissertation that demonstrates the student’s ability to perform original, independent research and constitutes a distinct contribution to knowledge in the principal field of study.

Final Oral Examination (Defense of the Dissertation)

Required for all students in the program.

Time-to-Degree

It is expected that doctoral students entering the program without a master’s degree normally will complete the Ph.D. Preliminary Examination by the fall quarter of their second year (four quarters) and the Ph.D. Advanced Qualifying Examination in the fall quarter of their third year of study (seven quarters); advance to candidacy within thirteen quarters; and complete the dissertation and defense within five quarters of advancement to candidacy. Normative Time-to-Degree is eighteen quarters from graduate admission to award of the degree. The doctoral program is usually shortened by one year if students enter with a master’s degree. Maximum allowable time for the attainment of the degree is twenty-four quarters of enrollment (eight years). This limitation includes quarters enrolled in previous graduate study at a UC campus prior to admission to the doctoral degree program.

DEGREE	NORMATIVE TIME TO ATC (Quarters)	NORMATIVE TTD	MAXIMUM TTD
Ph.D.	13	18	24

Academic Disqualification and Appeal of Disqualification

University Policy

A student who fails to meet the above requirements may be recommended for academic disqualification from graduate study. A graduate student may be disqualified from continuing in the graduate program for a variety of reasons. The most common is failure to maintain the minimum cumulative grade point average (3.00) required by the Academic Senate to remain in good standing (some programs require a higher grade point average). Other examples include failure of examinations, lack of timely progress toward the degree and poor performance in core courses. Probationary students (those with cumulative grade point averages below 3.00) are subject to immediate dismissal upon the recommendation of their department. University guidelines governing academic disqualification of graduate students, including the appeal procedure, are outlined in Standards and Procedures for Graduate Study at UCLA.

Special Departmental or Program Policy

Master’s
In addition to the standard reasons outlined above, a student may be recommended for academic disqualification for failure to complete the required course work within seven quarters of matriculation.

Doctoral
In addition to the standard reasons outlined above, a student may be recommended for academic disqualification for failure to maintain a 3.0 grade point average for two consecutive quarters following matriculation into the doctoral program; a second failure of any written qualifying examination; a second failure of either oral examination; or exceeding enrollment time limits.

A student may appeal a recommendation for academic disqualification first to the departmental chair, then to the Associate Dean of Student Affairs, then to the Associate Dean of Academic Affairs and finally to the dean of the school.

Applicable only to students admitted during the 2023-2024 academic year.

Biostatistics

School of Public Health

Graduate Degrees

The Department of Biostatistics offers the Master of Science (M.S.) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degrees in Biostatistics.

Admissions Requirements

Master’s Degree

Advising

An adviser is appointed for each new master’s student by the department chair. Student and adviser together agree upon a study list for each academic quarter and any subsequent alterations must be approved by both the adviser and the Associate Dean of Student Affairs. Students are expected to meet with their advisers each quarter. A departmental guidance committee is established when the student has completed approximately half of the program for the master’s degree. Members of the departmental guidance committee are nominated by the department chair after consultation with the student and the student’s adviser.

An adviser is responsible for the student’s academic progress. Progress is evaluated on an ongoing basis. At the end of each quarter, the Associate Dean of Student Affairs reviews academic listings of students and notifies them and the advisers when the cumulative grade-point average is below 3.0. Advisers review each case with their advisees and make recommendations to the Associate Dean of Student Affairs for continuance or academic disqualification. Students who wish to change advisers must file a petition that must be approved by the new adviser, the department chair, and the Associate Dean for Student Affairs.

Areas of Study

Consult the graduate adviser for the areas of specialization. Typical course plans are listed below.

Foreign Language Requirement

None.

Course Requirements

The M.S. degree requires 18 graduate and upper division courses (70 units), of which at least five must be graduate courses (200 and 500 series). The following courses are required: Biostatistics 200A, 200B, 200C, 202A, 202B, 216, 244, 402A, 402B, 596; one 4-unit course in Epidemiology; one 4-unit course in broad Public Health such as PH 150/PH201 or HPM M242; and 24 units of special topics elective courses selected from Biostatistics 202C, 203A, 203B, 212, 214, M215, Biostatistics 230-241 series, Biostatistics 406, 410, 411 and 413.

No more than one 4-unit course from the 400 series can count towards the minimum 24 units of electives for the degree. Students can apply a maximum of two 500-level courses (8 units) toward the total graduate course level requirement for the M.S. Other courses in biostatistics or mathematical statistics, or in related areas such as biology, physiology, public health, management, or mathematics, are selected with the adviser’s consent and approved by the chair.

Students may petition the department to substitute any of the above required courses with elective courses, if they have previously taken the course at UCLA or its equivalent at another institution.

Students wishing to continue to the Ph.D. program are required to take Mathematics 131A as a prerequisite, unless previously taken at UCLA or elsewhere. This math course can be taken any quarter during year 2.

Teaching Experience

Not required.

Field Experience

Not required.

Capstone Plan

Students are required to submit a written report and pass a written comprehensive examination administered at the beginning of the second year of study that covers the content of the first year core coursework. No more than one reexamination after failure is allowed. Failure to secure a passing grade in at most two attempts in the
MS Comprehensive exam will result in the department recommending the student to the Graduate Division for Academic Disqualification. Students who do not take the reexamination at the time specified by the department forfeit their right to reexamination.

Thesis Plan

None.

Time-to-Degree

From graduate admission to award of the degree (depending upon the program), normative time is six quarters, including quarters enrolled in previous graduate study at a UC campus prior to admission to the School of Public Health. Maximum time allowable from enrollment to graduation is nine quarters (three years).

DEGREE	NORMATIVE TIME TO ATC (Quarters)	NORMATIVE TTD	MAXIMUM TTD
M.S.	5	6	9

Doctoral Degree

Advising

A faculty adviser is appointed for each beginning doctoral student by the department chair. The adviser meets with the student each quarter to discuss academic progress. When the student advances to candidacy, the chair of the dissertation committee becomes the student’s adviser.

Major Fields or Subdisciplines

Consult the graduate adviser.

Foreign Language Requirement

None.

Course Requirements

Students must complete the following courses: Biostatistics 216, 250A, 250B, 250C, M257, one 4-unit course in Epidemiology course; one 4-unit course in broad Public Health such as PH 150/PH201 or HPM M242; and six 200-level, 4-unit special topic elective courses from Biostatistics 202C, 210 and above. To fulfill the six elective courses, students may formally petition to enroll in courses in Statistics and Biomathematics. Students who entered the doctoral program with an M.S. in Biostatistics from UCLA may waive up to three special topic elective courses (12 units) based on prior completion of 200 level Biostatistics courses from Biostatistics 210 and above, or other suitable equivalent courses. Students must enroll in Biostatistics 409 for two consecutive quarters and Biostatistics 245 every quarter Students must also enroll in two quarters of Biostatistics 246 in their second and third year.

For students who have not completed a master’s degree or equivalent in Biostatistics, the following additional courses must be included in the degree program: Biostatistics 200A-200B-200C, 202A, 202B.

Teaching Experience

Teaching experience is recommended but not required.

Written and Oral Qualifying Examinations

Academic Senate regulations require all doctoral students to complete and pass university written and oral qualifying examinations prior to doctoral advancement to candidacy. Also, under Senate regulations, the University Oral Qualifying Examination is open only to the student and appointed members of the doctoral committee. In addition to university requirements, some graduate programs have other pre-candidacy examination requirements. What follows in this section is how students are required to fulfill all of these requirements for this doctoral program.

All committee nominations and reconstitutions adhere to the Minimum Standards for Doctoral Committee Constitution.

Before advancement to candidacy, students must pass two written examinations (Ph.D. Preliminary Examination and Ph.D. Advanced Qualifying Examination) and the University Oral Qualifying Examination.

Students without a prior master’s degree or equivalent in Biostatistics must take the Ph.D. Preliminary Examination by the fall quarter of their second year and normally take the Ph.D. Advanced Qualifying Examination in the fall quarter of their third year of study. Failure to secure a passing grade in at most two attempts in the Ph.D. Preliminary Exam and in at most two attempts in the Ph.D. Written Advanced Qualifying Exam will result in the department recommending the student to the graduate division for academic disqualification.

Students with a prior master’s degree in Biostatistics from UCLA are exempt from taking the Ph.D. Preliminary Examination, as it was taken during their MS study.  Students with a prior master’s degree in Biostatistics from UCLA normally take the Ph.D. Advanced Qualifying Examination in the fall quarter of the second year of study.

The University Oral Qualifying Examination is taken after successful completion of the two written examinations. The Oral Qualifying Examination is administered by the doctoral committee and usually consists of a preliminary defense of the dissertation proposal.

A failed examination may be repeated once. The timing of reexaminations is specified by the department in the case of written examinations or by the student’s committee in the case of the oral examination. Students who do not take the reexaminations at the specified time forfeit their right to reexamination.

Advancement to Candidacy

Students are advanced to candidacy upon successful completion of the written and oral qualifying examinations.

Doctoral Dissertation

Every doctoral degree program requires the completion of an approved dissertation that demonstrates the student’s ability to perform original, independent research and constitutes a distinct contribution to knowledge in the principal field of study.

Final Oral Examination (Defense of the Dissertation)

Required for all students in the program.

Time-to-Degree

It is expected that doctoral students entering the program without a master’s degree normally will complete the Ph.D. Preliminary Examination by the fall quarter of their second year (four quarters) and the Ph.D. Advanced Qualifying Examination in the fall quarter of their third year of study (seven quarters); advance to candidacy within thirteen quarters; and complete the dissertation and defense within five quarters of advancement to candidacy. Normative Time-to-Degree is eighteen quarters from graduate admission to award of the degree. The doctoral program is usually shortened by one year if students enter with a master’s degree. Maximum allowable time for the attainment of the degree is twenty-four quarters of enrollment (eight years). This limitation includes quarters enrolled in previous graduate study at a UC campus prior to admission to the doctoral degree program.

DEGREE	NORMATIVE TIME TO ATC (Quarters)	NORMATIVE TTD	MAXIMUM TTD
Ph.D.	13	18	24

Academic Disqualification and Appeal of Disqualification

University Policy

A student who fails to meet the above requirements may be recommended for academic disqualification from graduate study. A graduate student may be disqualified from continuing in the graduate program for a variety of reasons. The most common is failure to maintain the minimum cumulative grade point average (3.00) required by the Academic Senate to remain in good standing (some programs require a higher grade point average). Other examples include failure of examinations, lack of timely progress toward the degree and poor performance in core courses. Probationary students (those with cumulative grade point averages below 3.00) are subject to immediate dismissal upon the recommendation of their department. University guidelines governing academic disqualification of graduate students, including the appeal procedure, are outlined in Standards and Procedures for Graduate Study at UCLA.

Special Departmental or Program Policy

Master’s
In addition to the standard reasons outlined above, a student may be recommended for academic disqualification for failure to complete the required course work within seven quarters of matriculation.

Doctoral
In addition to the standard reasons outlined above, a student may be recommended for academic disqualification for failure to maintain a 3.0 grade point average for two consecutive quarters following matriculation into the doctoral program; a second failure of any written qualifying examination; a second failure of either oral examination; or exceeding enrollment time limits.

A student may appeal a recommendation for academic disqualification first to the departmental chair, then to the Associate Dean of Student Affairs, then to the Associate Dean of Academic Affairs and finally to the dean of the school.

Applicable only to students admitted during the 2024-2025 academic year.

Biostatistics

School of Public Health

Graduate Degrees

The Department of Biostatistics offers the Master of Science (M.S.) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degrees in Biostatistics.

Admissions Requirements

Master’s Degree

Advising

An adviser is appointed for each new master’s student by the department chair. Student and adviser together agree upon a study list for each academic quarter and any subsequent alterations must be approved by both the adviser and the Associate Dean of Student Affairs. Students are expected to meet with their advisers each quarter. A departmental guidance committee is established when the student has completed approximately half of the program for the master’s degree. Members of the departmental guidance committee are nominated by the department chair after consultation with the student and the student’s adviser.

An adviser is responsible for the student’s academic progress. Progress is evaluated on an ongoing basis. At the end of each quarter, the Associate Dean of Student Affairs reviews academic listings of students and notifies them and the advisers when the cumulative grade-point average is below 3.0. Advisers review each case with their advisees and make recommendations to the Associate Dean of Student Affairs for continuance or academic disqualification. Students who wish to change advisers must file a petition that must be approved by the new adviser, the department chair, and the Associate Dean for Student Affairs.

Areas of Study

Consult the graduate adviser for the areas of specialization. Typical course plans are listed below.

Foreign Language Requirement

None.

Course Requirements

The M.S. degree requires 18 graduate and upper division courses (70 units), of which at least five must be graduate courses (200 and 500 series). The following courses are required: Biostatistics 200A, 200B, 200C, 202A, 202B, 216, 244, 402A, 402B, 596; one 4-unit course in Epidemiology; one 4-unit course in broad Public Health such as PH 150/PH201 or HPM M242; and 24 units of special topics elective courses selected from Biostatistics 202C, 203A, 203B, 212, 213, 214, M215, Biostatistics 230-241 series, Biostatistics 406, 410, 411 and 413.

No more than one 4-unit course from the 400 series can count towards the minimum 24 units of electives for the degree. Students can apply a maximum of two 500-level courses (8 units) toward the total graduate course level requirement for the M.S. Other courses in biostatistics or mathematical statistics, or in related areas such as biology, physiology, public health, management, or mathematics, are selected with the adviser’s consent and approved by the chair.

Students may petition the department to substitute any of the above required courses with elective courses, if they have previously taken the course at UCLA or its equivalent at another institution.

Students wishing to continue to the Ph.D. program are required to take Mathematics 131A as a prerequisite, unless previously taken at UCLA or elsewhere. This math course can be taken any quarter during year 2.

Teaching Experience

Not required.

Field Experience

Not required.

Capstone Plan

Students are required to submit a written report and pass a written comprehensive examination administered at the beginning of the second year of study that covers the content of the first year core coursework. No more than one reexamination after failure is allowed. Failure to secure a passing grade in at most two attempts in the MS Comprehensive examination will result in the department recommending the student to the Division of Graduate Education for Academic Disqualification. Students who do not take the reexamination at the time specified by the department forfeit their right to reexamination.

Thesis Plan

None.

Time-to-Degree

From graduate admission to award of the degree (depending upon the program), normative time is six quarters, including quarters enrolled in previous graduate study at a UC campus prior to admission to the School of Public Health. Maximum time allowable from enrollment to graduation is nine quarters (three years).

DEGREE	NORMATIVE TIME TO ATC (Quarters)	NORMATIVE TTD	MAXIMUM TTD
M.S.	5	6	9

Doctoral Degree

Advising

A faculty adviser is appointed for each beginning doctoral student by the department chair. The adviser meets with the student each quarter to discuss academic progress. When the student advances to candidacy, the chair of the dissertation committee becomes the student’s adviser.

Major Fields or Subdisciplines

Consult the graduate adviser.

Foreign Language Requirement

None.

Course Requirements

Students must complete the following courses: Biostatistics 216, 250A, 250B, 250C, M257, one 4-unit course in Epidemiology course; one 4-unit course in broad Public Health such as PH 150/PH201 or HPM M242; and six 200-level, 4-unit special topic elective courses from Biostatistics 202C, 210 and above. To fulfill the six elective courses, students may formally petition to enroll in courses in Statistics and Biomathematics. Students who entered the doctoral program with an M.S. in Biostatistics from UCLA may waive up to three special topic elective courses (12 units) based on prior completion of 200 level. Biostatistics courses from Biostatistics 210 and above, or other suitable equivalent courses. Students must enroll in Biostatistics 409 for two consecutive quarters and Biostatistics 245 every quarter Students must also enroll in two quarters of Biostatistics 246 in their second and third year.

For students who have not completed a master’s degree or equivalent in Biostatistics, the following additional courses must be included in the degree program: Biostatistics 200A-200B-200C, 202A, 202B.

Teaching Experience

Teaching experience is recommended but not required.

Written and Oral Qualifying Examinations

Academic Senate regulations require all doctoral students to complete and pass university written and oral qualifying examinations prior to doctoral advancement to candidacy. Also, under Senate regulations, the University Oral Qualifying Examination is open only to the student and appointed members of the doctoral committee. In addition to university requirements, some graduate programs have other pre-candidacy examination requirements. What follows in this section is how students are required to fulfill all of these requirements for this doctoral program.

All committee nominations and reconstitutions adhere to the Minimum Standards for Doctoral Committee Constitution.

Before advancement to candidacy, students must pass one written examination (Ph.D. Preliminary Examination) and the University Oral Qualifying Examination.

Students without a prior master’s degree or equivalent in Biostatistics must take the Ph.D. Preliminary Examination by the fall quarter of their second year. Failure to secure a passing grade in at most two attempts in the Ph.D. Preliminary Examination will result in the department recommending the student to the Division of Graduate Education for academic disqualification.

Students with a prior master’s degree in Biostatistics from UCLA are exempt from taking the Ph.D. Preliminary Examination, as it was taken during their MS study.

The University Oral Qualifying Examination is taken after successful completion of the Ph.D. Preliminary written examination. The Oral Qualifying Examination is administered by the doctoral committee and usually consists of a preliminary defense of the dissertation proposal. Passing of this examination is required for students to officially advance to candidacy.

Students without a prior master’s degree or equivalent in Biostatistics are expected to take Oral Qualifying Examination within the first three years of the PhD study.

Students with a prior master’s degree in Biostatistics from UCLA are expected to take the Oral Qualifying Examination within the first two years of their PhD study.

A failed examination (written or oral) may be repeated once. The timing of the reexamination is specified by the department in the case of the written examination or by the student’s committee in the case of the oral examination. It is recommended that the oral examination is repeated within a year of a failed attempt. Students who do not take the reexaminations at the specified time forfeit their right to reexamination.

Advancement to Candidacy

Students are advanced to candidacy upon successful completion of the Ph.D. Preliminary Written Examination and Ph.D. Oral Qualifying Examination.

Doctoral Dissertation

Every doctoral degree program requires the completion of an approved dissertation that demonstrates the student’s ability to perform original, independent research and constitutes a distinct contribution to knowledge in the principal field of study.

Final Oral Examination (Defense of the Dissertation)

Required for all students in the program.

Time-to-Degree

It is expected that doctoral students entering the program without a master’s degree normally will complete the Ph.D. Preliminary Examination by the fall quarter of their second year (four quarters); advance to candidacy within nine quarters; and complete the dissertation and defense within six quarters of advancement to candidacy. Normative Time-to-Degree is fifteen quarters from graduate admission to award of the degree. The doctoral program is usually shortened by one year if students enter with a master’s degree. Maximum allowable time for the attainment of the degree is twenty-four quarters of enrollment (eight years). This limitation includes quarters enrolled in previous graduate study at a UC campus prior to admission to the doctoral degree program.

DEGREE	NORMATIVE TIME TO ATC (Quarters)	NORMATIVE TTD	MAXIMUM TTD
Ph.D.	9	15	24

Academic Disqualification and Appeal of Disqualification

University Policy

A student who fails to meet the above requirements may be recommended for academic disqualification from graduate study. A graduate student may be disqualified from continuing in the graduate program for a variety of reasons. The most common is failure to maintain the minimum cumulative grade point average (3.00) required by the Academic Senate to remain in good standing (some programs require a higher grade point average). Other examples include failure of examinations, lack of timely progress toward the degree and poor performance in core courses. Probationary students (those with cumulative grade point averages below 3.00) are subject to immediate dismissal upon the recommendation of their department. University guidelines governing academic disqualification of graduate students, including the appeal procedure, are outlined in Standards and Procedures for Graduate Study at UCLA.

Special Departmental or Program Policy

Master’s
In addition to the standard reasons outlined above, a student may be recommended for academic disqualification for failure to complete the required course work within seven quarters of matriculation.

Doctoral
In addition to the standard reasons outlined above, a student may be recommended for academic disqualification for failure to maintain a 3.0 grade point average for two consecutive quarters following matriculation into the doctoral program; a second failure ofthe written qualifying examination; a second failure of either oral examination; or exceeding enrollment time limits.

A student may appeal a recommendation for academic disqualification first to the departmental chair, then to the Associate Dean of Student Affairs, then to the Associate Dean of Academic Affairs and finally to the dean of the school.

Applicable only to students admitted during the 2025-2026 academic year.

Biostatistics

School of Public Health

Graduate Degrees

The Department of Biostatistics offers the Master of Science (M.S.) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degrees in Biostatistics.

Admissions Requirements

Master’s Degree

Advising

An adviser is appointed for each new master’s student by the department chair. Student and adviser together agree upon a study list for each academic quarter and any subsequent alterations must be approved by both the adviser and the Associate Dean of Student Affairs. Students are expected to meet with their advisers each quarter. A departmental guidance committee is established when the student has completed approximately half of the program for the master’s degree. Members of the departmental guidance committee are nominated by the department chair after consultation with the student and the student’s adviser.

An adviser is responsible for the student’s academic progress. Progress is evaluated on an ongoing basis. At the end of each quarter, the Associate Dean of Student Affairs reviews academic listings of students and notifies them and the advisers when the cumulative grade-point average is below 3.0. Advisers review each case with their advisees and make recommendations to the Associate Dean of Student Affairs for continuance or academic disqualification. Students who wish to change advisers must file a petition that must be approved by the new adviser, the department chair, and the Associate Dean for Student Affairs.

Areas of Study

Consult the graduate adviser for the areas of specialization. Typical course plans are listed below.

Foreign Language Requirement

None.

Course Requirements

The M.S. degree requires 18 graduate and upper division courses (70 units), of which at least five must be graduate courses (200 and 500 series). The following courses are required: Biostatistics 200A, 200B, 200C, 202A, 202B, 216, 244, 402A, 402B, 596; one 4-unit course in Epidemiology; one 4-unit course in broad Public Health such as PH 150/PH201 or HPM M242; and 24 units of special topics elective courses selected from Biostatistics 202C, 203A, 203B, 212, 213, 214, M215, Biostatistics 230-241 series, Biostatistics 406, 410, 411 and 413.

No more than one 4-unit course from the 400 series can count towards the minimum 24 units of electives for the degree. Students can apply a maximum of two 500-level courses (8 units) toward the total graduate course level requirement for the M.S. Other courses in biostatistics or mathematical statistics, or in related areas such as biology, physiology, public health, management, or mathematics, are selected with the adviser’s consent and approved by the chair.

Students may petition the department to substitute any of the above required courses with elective courses, if they have previously taken the course at UCLA or its equivalent at another institution.

Students wishing to continue to the Ph.D. program are required to take Mathematics 131A as a prerequisite, unless previously taken at UCLA or elsewhere. This math course can be taken any quarter during year 2.

Teaching Experience

Not required.

Field Experience

Not required.

Capstone Plan

Students are required to submit a written report and pass a written comprehensive examination administered at the beginning of the second year of study that covers the content of the first year core coursework. No more than one reexamination after failure is allowed. Failure to secure a passing grade in at most two attempts in the MS Comprehensive examination will result in the department recommending the student to the Division of Graduate Education for Academic Disqualification. Students who do not take the reexamination at the time specified by the department forfeit their right to reexamination.

Thesis Plan

None.

Time-to-Degree

From graduate admission to award of the degree (depending upon the program), normative time is six quarters, including quarters enrolled in previous graduate study at a UC campus prior to admission to the School of Public Health. Maximum time allowable from enrollment to graduation is nine quarters (three years).

DEGREE	NORMATIVE TIME TO ATC (Quarters)	NORMATIVE TTD	MAXIMUM TTD
M.S.	5	6	9

Doctoral Degree

Advising

A faculty adviser is appointed for each beginning doctoral student by the department chair. The adviser meets with the student each quarter to discuss academic progress. When the student advances to candidacy, the chair of the dissertation committee becomes the student’s adviser.

Major Fields or Subdisciplines

Consult the graduate adviser.

Foreign Language Requirement

None.

Course Requirements

Students must complete the following courses: Biostatistics 216, 250A, 250B, 250C, M257, one 4-unit course in Epidemiology course; one 4-unit course in broad Public Health such as PH 150/PH201 or HPM M242; and six 200-level, 4-unit special topic elective courses from Biostatistics 202C, 210 and above. To fulfill the six elective courses, students may formally petition to enroll in courses in Statistics and Biomathematics. Students who entered the doctoral program with an M.S. in Biostatistics from UCLA may waive up to three special topic elective courses (12 units) based on prior completion of 200 level. Biostatistics courses from Biostatistics 210 and above, or other suitable equivalent courses. Students must enroll in Biostatistics 409 for two consecutive quarters and Biostatistics 245 every quarter Students must also enroll in two quarters of Biostatistics 246 in their second and third year.

For students who have not completed a master’s degree or equivalent in Biostatistics, the following additional courses must be included in the degree program: Biostatistics 200A-200B-200C, 202A, 202B.

Teaching Experience

Teaching experience is recommended but not required.

Written and Oral Qualifying Examinations

Academic Senate regulations require all doctoral students to complete and pass university written and oral qualifying examinations prior to doctoral advancement to candidacy. Also, under Senate regulations, the University Oral Qualifying Examination is open only to the student and appointed members of the doctoral committee. In addition to university requirements, some graduate programs have other pre-candidacy examination requirements. What follows in this section is how students are required to fulfill all of these requirements for this doctoral program.

All committee nominations and reconstitutions adhere to the Minimum Standards for Doctoral Committee Constitution.

Before advancement to candidacy, students must pass one written examination (Ph.D. Preliminary Examination) and the University Oral Qualifying Examination.

Students without a prior master’s degree or equivalent in Biostatistics must take the Ph.D. Preliminary Examination by the fall quarter of their second year. Failure to secure a passing grade in at most two attempts in the Ph.D. Preliminary Examination will result in the department recommending the student to the Division of Graduate Education for academic disqualification.

Students with a prior master’s degree in Biostatistics from UCLA are exempt from taking the Ph.D. Preliminary Examination, as it was taken during their MS study.

The University Oral Qualifying Examination is taken after successful completion of the Ph.D. Preliminary written examination. The Oral Qualifying Examination is administered by the doctoral committee and usually consists of a preliminary defense of the dissertation proposal. Passing of this examination is required for students to officially advance to candidacy.

Students without a prior master’s degree or equivalent in Biostatistics are expected to take Oral Qualifying Examination within the first three years of the PhD study.

Students with a prior master’s degree in Biostatistics from UCLA are expected to take the Oral Qualifying Examination within the first two years of their PhD study.

A failed examination (written or oral) may be repeated once. The timing of the reexamination is specified by the department in the case of the written examination or by the student’s committee in the case of the oral examination. It is recommended that the oral examination is repeated within a year of a failed attempt. Students who do not take the reexaminations at the specified time forfeit their right to reexamination.

Advancement to Candidacy

Students are advanced to candidacy upon successful completion of the Ph.D. Preliminary Written Examination and Ph.D. Oral Qualifying Examination.

Doctoral Dissertation

Every doctoral degree program requires the completion of an approved dissertation that demonstrates the student’s ability to perform original, independent research and constitutes a distinct contribution to knowledge in the principal field of study.

Final Oral Examination (Defense of the Dissertation)

Required for all students in the program.

Time-to-Degree

It is expected that doctoral students entering the program without a master’s degree normally will complete the Ph.D. Preliminary Examination by the fall quarter of their second year (four quarters); advance to candidacy within nine quarters; and complete the dissertation and defense within six quarters of advancement to candidacy. Normative Time-to-Degree is fifteen quarters from graduate admission to award of the degree. The doctoral program is usually shortened by one year if students enter with a master’s degree. Maximum allowable time for the attainment of the degree is twenty-four quarters of enrollment (eight years). This limitation includes quarters enrolled in previous graduate study at a UC campus prior to admission to the doctoral degree program.

DEGREE	NORMATIVE TIME TO ATC (Quarters)	NORMATIVE TTD	MAXIMUM TTD
Ph.D.	9	15	24

Academic Disqualification and Appeal of Disqualification

University Policy

A student who fails to meet the above requirements may be recommended for academic disqualification from graduate study. A graduate student may be disqualified from continuing in the graduate program for a variety of reasons. The most common is failure to maintain the minimum cumulative grade point average (3.00) required by the Academic Senate to remain in good standing (some programs require a higher grade point average). Other examples include failure of examinations, lack of timely progress toward the degree and poor performance in core courses. Probationary students (those with cumulative grade point averages below 3.00) are subject to immediate dismissal upon the recommendation of their department. University guidelines governing academic disqualification of graduate students, including the appeal procedure, are outlined in Standards and Procedures for Graduate Study at UCLA.

Special Departmental or Program Policy

Master’s
In addition to the standard reasons outlined above, a student may be recommended for academic disqualification for failure to complete the required course work within seven quarters of matriculation.

Doctoral
In addition to the standard reasons outlined above, a student may be recommended for academic disqualification for failure to maintain a 3.0 grade point average for two consecutive quarters following matriculation into the doctoral program; a second failure ofthe written qualifying examination; a second failure of either oral examination; or exceeding enrollment time limits.

A student may appeal a recommendation for academic disqualification first to the departmental chair, then to the Associate Dean of Student Affairs, then to the Associate Dean of Academic Affairs and finally to the dean of the school.

Applicable only to students admitted during the 2021-2022 academic year.

Computational Medicine

School of Medicine

Graduate Degrees

The Department of Computational Medicine offers the Master of Science (M.S.) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degrees in Biomathematics, and the Master of Science (M.S.) degree in Clinical Research.

Biomathematics

Admissions Requirements

Master’s Degree

The MS in Biomathematics is used primarily as a step to further graduate work in Biomathematics. Direct admission to the MS in Biomathematics program is only offered under special circumstances.

Advising

The admissions committee confers with incoming students about their goals and prior preparation. Students are assigned a major provisional adviser and possibly additional special advisers to assist with specific aspects of training. Students can change their adviser by notifying the Department Chair. Students meet with their adviser at least once a quarter. For students who advance to the doctoral program, doctoral committees replace the previous advisers as soon as the committee is formed. Doctoral committee membership must be approved by the advising committee chair and department before it is sent to the Graduate Division for appointment.

The adviser(s) will provide the faculty with assessments of a student’s progress, considering grades, research, performance on the written comprehensive examinations, effort and ability.

In addition to the formal advising process, all faculty are available to students for individual instruction and informal counseling.

Areas of Study

Individualized programs permit students to select graduate courses in applied mathematics, biomathematics, and statistics appropriate to their area of research and to choose among diverse biomedical specialties.

Foreign Language Requirement

None.

Course Requirements

Master’s degree candidates must complete five graduate-level courses in biomathematics, three of which must be chosen from Biomathematics 201, 202, 203, 204, 205, 208, 210 and 226. If any of these five courses were completed as an undergraduate, the student may petition the department to count them in fulfillment of this requirement of specific background in biomathematics; however, in accord with Academic Senate regulations, they cannot be applied toward the minimum requirements stated below for the master’s degree.

The master’s degree candidate must complete the university minimum requirement of nine (36 units) of graduate and upper division courses taken in graduate standing, five (20 units) of which must be graduate courses. No more than two 596 courses may be applied toward the required nine courses, and none may be applied toward the graduate course requirement.

Teaching Experience

Not required.

Field Experience

Not required.

Capstone Plan

As the capstone option to the master’s degree, students take comprehensive examinations. The written comprehensive examinations cover material presented in coursework. They are administered by a committee consisting of at least three faculty members appointed by the chair. Usually, the examinations will be given during the summer.

Thesis Plan

Every master’s degree thesis plan requires the completion of an approved thesis that demonstrates the student’s ability to perform original, independent research.

Permission to undertake the thesis option must be given by the student’s adviser. In consultation with the adviser, the Department Chair must approve the thesis committee and plans for the thesis.

Time-to-Degree

The normative time to degree is 7 quarters. Exceptional students can complete the program in as few as four full-time quarters.

DEGREE	NORMATIVE TIME TO ATC (Quarters)	NORMATIVE TTD	MAXIMUM TTD
M.S.	7	7	12

Doctoral Degree

Advising

The admissions and advising committees confer with incoming students about their goals and prior preparation. Students are assigned a major provisional adviser, and possibly additional special advisers to assist with specific aspects of training. Students meet with their provisional adviser(s) at least once a quarter. Students are required, as part of their degree requirements, to find a faculty member who agrees to serve as their dissertation research adviser. Students are urged to discuss permanent sponsorship and dissertation research with faculty at the earliest opportunity and to pick a dissertation adviser by the end of their second year. Students should bear in mind the normative time to advance to candidacy (ATC) listed below. Doctoral committees replace the previous advisers as soon as the committee is formed. Doctoral committee membership must be approved by the Department before it is sent to the Graduate Division for appointment.

The advisor(s) or dissertation committee will provide the faculty with assessments of a student’s progress, considering grades, research, performance on the written comprehensive examinations, effort and ability.

In addition to the formal advising process, all faculty are available to students for individual instruction and informal counseling.

Major Fields or Subdisciplines

Students must complete the requirements for a field of special emphasis in biology (see details under course requirements).

Foreign Language Requirements

None.

Course Requirements

Biomathematics. Students must complete at least four of the core methodology courses (Biomathematics 201, 202, 203, 204, 205, 208, 210, and 226) with a grade of B or better. Students must also complete at least two graduate courses in the application of modeling in biomedicine, again with a grade of B or better. Courses satisfying this latter requirement include Biomathematics 206, 207, 211, 213, and 220. Students must petition the curriculum committee for approval of the use of other courses to satisfy the applied modeling coursework requirement.

Biology. Students must complete 24 units of graduate or upper division courses in biomedical sciences. At least 16 units of this course work must be graduate-level. No more than four units of seminars graded on a Pass/No Pass or Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory basis may be counted toward the requirements. A letter-graded course must be completed with a grade of B or better to be counted toward the requirements.

Students confer with their advisers to develop a coherent plan for biomedical training appropriate to their research area. Students must petition the curriculum committee for approval of their biological training program. Students who enter the program with previous upper division or graduate training in biology or biomedicine may petition to reduce the 24-unit requirement. Students who hold a master’s degree in a biological science are expected to take one additional graduate course. Completion of the first two years of medical school will generally be accepted in satisfaction of the requirements.

Applied Mathematics. Students must complete 24 units of graduate or upper division courses in applied mathematics or statistics with a grade of B or better. At least 16 units of this coursework must be graduate-level.

Courses in engineering, mathematics, physics, theoretical computer science, and theoretical or computational statistics that are relevant to biomathematics may satisfy this requirement. Students confer with their advisers to develop a coherent plan for mathematical training appropriate to their research area. Students must petition the curriculum committee for approval of courses to satisfy this requirement. Students who enter with considerable preparation in applied mathematics may petition to reduce the 24-unit requirement. Students who hold a master’s degree in mathematics are expected to take one additional graduate course.

Independent Research. During the first two years, students are required to take at least four units of Biomathematics 596 with a member of the department or a mentor from an affiliated training program. As students progress through the program, there is an increasing emphasis on research and encouragement to publish.

Teaching Experience

One teaching preceptorship (Biomathematics 596) is required. Students participate fully in the planning and delivery of a significant portion of one course in Biomathematics or a related subject. The emphasis is on training in all aspects of preparing for and offering a course; this is not a service-oriented teaching assistantship.

The preceptorship requirement can also be satisfied with prior departmental approval through: (1) service as a teaching assistant for one quarter at UCLA, (2) presenting a short course, or (3) completing a UCLA course in scientific writing/communication.

Written and Oral Qualifying Examinations

Academic Senate regulations require all doctoral students to complete and pass university written and oral qualifying examinations prior to doctoral advancement to candidacy. Also, under Senate regulations, the University Oral Qualifying Examination is open only to the student and appointed members of the doctoral committee. In addition to university requirements, some graduate programs have other pre-candidacy examination requirements. What follows in this section is how students are required to fulfill all of these requirements for this doctoral program.

All committee nominations and reconstitutions adhere to the Minimum Standards for Doctoral Committee Constitution.

In addition to the UCLA minimum standards, all Biomathematics Doctoral Committees must contain a minimum of two members, including the Committee Chair or a Co-Chair, from the Department of Computational Medicine. A maximum of one member may be from outside UCLA.

In the summer, the department offers written qualifying (comprehensive) examinations to test competence in the core methodology of biomathematics. Full-time students must take these examinations by the end of two academic years of study and part-time students by the end of three years. Students must pass the written qualifying (comprehensive) examinations at the doctoral level to make satisfactory progress toward their degree. Students are only allowed two attempts to pass these exams at the doctoral level.

Details about the qualifying exams are available in the departmental document, Policies for the Written Comprehensive Examinations for the Doctorate in Biomathematics.

The written qualifying examinations must be successfully completed before students proceed to the University Oral Qualifying Examination. To better integrate course work and dissertation research, students can take their University Oral Qualifying Examination after the completion of six Biomathematics, four Mathematics and four Biology courses (or their equivalents taken elsewhere as approved by the curriculum committee). The remaining four courses can then be completed by the end of year four with exception to this time limit permitted by petition.

The University Oral Qualifying Examination, administered by the doctoral committee appointed by the Graduate Division, critically probes the quality, scope, and feasibility of the student’s proposed dissertation work. The examination also explores the strength and integration of the student’s biomathematical, mathematical, and biological research knowledge in the intended area of research.

Advancement to Candidacy

Students are advanced to candidacy upon successful completion of the written and oral qualifying examinations.

Doctoral Dissertation

Every doctoral degree program requires the completion of an approved dissertation that demonstrates the student’s ability to perform original, independent research and constitutes a distinct contribution to knowledge in the principal field of study.

Final Oral Examination (Defense of Dissertation)

Required for all students in the program.

Time-to-Degree

Full-time students with no deficiencies upon admission and sufficient prior upper division training in biology and mathematics should be able to complete the program in five years (15 academic quarters plus research and/or individual instruction during the summers). Such students can complete the departmental written qualifying (comprehensive) examinations in the summer after their first year, identify their research field and mentor by the end of their second year, and complete all formal course requirements no later than the beginning of the fourth year.

DEGREE	NORMATIVE TIME TO ATC (Quarters)	NORMATIVE TTD	MAXIMUM TTD
Ph.D.	12	15	27

Academic Disqualification and Appeal of Disqualification

University Policy

A student who fails to meet the above requirements may be recommended for academic disqualification from graduate study. A graduate student may be disqualified from continuing in the graduate program for a variety of reasons. The most common is failure to maintain the minimum cumulative grade point average (3.00) required by the Academic Senate to remain in good standing (some programs require a higher grade point average). Other examples include failure of examinations, lack of timely progress toward the degree and poor performance in core courses. Probationary students (those with cumulative grade point averages below 3.00) are subject to immediate dismissal upon the recommendation of their department. University guidelines governing academic disqualification of graduate students, including the appeal procedure, are outlined in Standards and Procedures for Graduate Study at UCLA.

Special Departmental or Program Policy

In addition to the standard reasons noted above, a student may be recommended for academic disqualification for:

A student may appeal a recommendation for termination from an ad hoc committee to the Department Chair within two weeks of being notified by the Chair. The Chair then initiates a faculty review of the recommendation. Factors considered in the review are biomathematical research aptitude, progress toward completion of degree requirements, performance on the required examinations, and course grades.

Applicable only to students admitted during the 2024-2025 academic year.

Computational Medicine

School of Medicine

Graduate Degrees

The Department of Computational Medicine offers the Master of Science (M.S.) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degrees in Biomathematics, and the Master of Science (M.S.) degree in Clinical Research.

Biomathematics

Admissions Requirements

Master’s Degree

The MS in Biomathematics is used primarily as a step to further graduate work in Biomathematics. Direct admission to the MS in Biomathematics program is only offered under special circumstances.

Advising

The admissions committee confers with incoming students about their goals and prior preparation. Students are assigned a major provisional adviser and possibly additional special advisers to assist with specific aspects of training. Students can change their adviser by notifying the Department Chair. Students meet with their adviser at least once a quarter. For students who advance to the doctoral program, doctoral committees replace the previous advisers as soon as the committee is formed. Doctoral committee membership must be approved by the advising committee chair and department before it is sent to the Graduate Division for appointment.

The adviser(s) will provide the faculty with assessments of a student’s progress, considering grades, research, performance on the written comprehensive examinations, effort and ability.

In addition to the formal advising process, all faculty are available to students for individual instruction and informal counseling.

Areas of Study

Individualized programs permit students to select graduate courses in applied mathematics, biomathematics, and statistics appropriate to their area of research and to choose among diverse biomedical specialties.

Foreign Language Requirement

None.

Course Requirements

Master’s degree candidates must complete five graduate-level courses in biomathematics, three of which must be chosen from Biomathematics 201, 202, 203, 204, 205, 208, 210 and 226. If any of these five courses were completed as an undergraduate, the student may petition the department to count them in fulfillment of this requirement of specific background in biomathematics; however, in accord with Academic Senate regulations, they cannot be applied toward the minimum requirements stated below for the master’s degree.

The master’s degree candidate must complete the university minimum requirement of nine (36 units) of graduate and upper division courses taken in graduate standing, five (20 units) of which must be graduate courses. No more than two 596 courses may be applied toward the required nine courses, and none may be applied toward the graduate course requirement.

Teaching Experience

Not required.

Field Experience

Not required.

Capstone Plan

As the capstone option to the master’s degree, students take comprehensive examinations. The written comprehensive examinations cover material presented in coursework. They are administered by a committee consisting of at least three faculty members appointed by the chair. Usually, the examinations will be given during the summer.

Thesis Plan

Every master’s degree thesis plan requires the completion of an approved thesis that demonstrates the student’s ability to perform original, independent research.

Permission to undertake the thesis option must be given by the student’s adviser. In consultation with the adviser, the Department Chair must approve the thesis committee and plans for the thesis.

Time-to-Degree

The normative time to degree is 7 quarters. Exceptional students can complete the program in as few as four full-time quarters.

DEGREE	NORMATIVE TIME TO ATC (Quarters)	NORMATIVE TTD	MAXIMUM TTD
M.S.	7	7	12

Doctoral Degree

Advising

The admissions and advising committees confer with incoming students about their goals and prior preparation. Students are assigned a major provisional adviser, and possibly additional special advisers to assist with specific aspects of training. Students meet with their provisional adviser(s) at least once a quarter. Students are required, as part of their degree requirements, to find a faculty member who agrees to serve as their dissertation research adviser. Students are urged to discuss permanent sponsorship and dissertation research with faculty at the earliest opportunity and to pick a dissertation adviser by the end of their second year. Students should bear in mind the normative time to advance to candidacy (ATC) listed below. Doctoral committees replace the previous advisers as soon as the committee is formed. Doctoral committee membership must be approved by the Department before it is sent to the Graduate Division for appointment.

The advisor(s) or dissertation committee will provide the faculty with assessments of a student’s progress, considering grades, research, performance on the written comprehensive examinations, effort and ability.

In addition to the formal advising process, all faculty are available to students for individual instruction and informal counseling.

Major Fields or Subdisciplines

Students must complete the requirements for a field of special emphasis in biology (see details under course requirements).

Foreign Language Requirements

None.

Course Requirements

Biomathematics. Students must complete at least four of the core methodology courses (Biomathematics 201, 202, 203, 204, 205, 208, 210, and 226) with a grade of B or better. Students must also complete at least two graduate courses in the application of modeling in biomedicine, again with a grade of B or better. Courses satisfying this latter requirement include Biomathematics 206, 207, 211, 213, and 220. Students must petition the curriculum committee for approval of the use of other courses to satisfy the applied modeling coursework requirement.

Biology. The goal of this requirement is to assure that students are sufficiently trained in the non-quantitative aspects of their biomedical domain of interest to collaborate fluently with their domain expert colleagues. Students confer with their advisors to develop a coherent plan for biomedical training appropriate to their research area. Advisors are provided for each broad area of research interest. Once a student joins a faculty member’s group, that primary mentor becomes the central source of advice on relevant coursework.

Students must complete 24 units of biomedical science courses that emphasize non-quantitative aspects of the subject matter. At most 8 units of this coursework may be lower division courses (i.e., courses designed for the first two years of undergraduate study, which at UCLA have course numbers under 100). At least 8 units of this coursework must be graduate-level (which at UCLA have course numbers 200 or above). No more than four units of seminars without letter grades may be counted toward the biological course requirement. A letter-graded course must be completed with a grade of B or better to be counted toward the requirement.

Students who enter the program with previous training in biomedicine substantially similar to some of the coursework of this requirement may petition to reduce the 24-unit requirement. If a student serves as a Teaching Assistant in a biomedical course, and that assistantship is not used to satisfy our program’s Teaching Experience requirement, then the student may petition to have that course’s units counted towards the biological requirement. (This TA add-on can only be used once.) Students who hold an MS degree in a biomedical science are expected to take at least one additional biological graduate course. Completion of the first two years of medical school will generally be accepted in satisfaction of the biological course requirement.

The final decision on whether a student’s biomedical coursework has satisfied the requirement lies with the Department Chair and Vice Chair for Education, who may be queried at any time for advice on whether individual courses fit within this requirement’s goals.

Applied Mathematics. Students must complete 24 units of graduate or upper division courses in applied mathematics or statistics with a grade of B or better. At least 16 units of this coursework must be graduate-level.

Courses in engineering, mathematics, physics, theoretical computer science, and theoretical or computational statistics that are relevant to biomathematics may satisfy this requirement. Students confer with their advisers to develop a coherent plan for mathematical training appropriate to their research area. Students must petition the curriculum committee for approval of courses to satisfy this requirement. Students who enter with considerable preparation in applied mathematics may petition to reduce the 24-unit requirement. Students who hold a master’s degree in mathematics are expected to take one additional graduate course.

Independent Research. During the first two years, students are required to take at least four units of Biomathematics 596 with a member of the department or a mentor from an affiliated training program. As students progress through the program, there is an increasing emphasis on research and encouragement to publish.

Teaching Experience

One teaching preceptorship (Biomathematics 596) is required. Students participate fully in the planning and delivery of a significant portion of one course in Biomathematics or a related subject. The emphasis is on training in all aspects of preparing for and offering a course; this is not a service-oriented teaching assistantship.

The preceptorship requirement can also be satisfied with prior departmental approval through: (1) service as a teaching assistant for one quarter at UCLA, (2) presenting a short course, or (3) completing a UCLA course in scientific writing/communication.

Written and Oral Qualifying Examinations

Academic Senate regulations require all doctoral students to complete and pass university written and oral qualifying examinations prior to doctoral advancement to candidacy. Also, under Senate regulations, the University Oral Qualifying Examination is open only to the student and appointed members of the doctoral committee. In addition to university requirements, some graduate programs have other pre-candidacy examination requirements. What follows in this section is how students are required to fulfill all of these requirements for this doctoral program.

All committee nominations and reconstitutions adhere to the Minimum Standards for Doctoral Committee Constitution.

In addition to the UCLA minimum standards, all Biomathematics Doctoral Committees must contain a minimum of two members, including the Committee Chair or a Co-Chair, from the Department of Computational Medicine. A maximum of one member may be from outside UCLA.

In the summer, the department offers written qualifying (comprehensive) examinations to test competence in the core methodology of biomathematics. Full-time students must take these examinations by the end of two academic years of study and part-time students by the end of three years. Students must pass the written qualifying (comprehensive) examinations at the doctoral level to make satisfactory progress toward their degree. Students are only allowed two attempts to pass these exams at the doctoral level.

Details about the qualifying exams are available in the departmental document, Policies for the Written Comprehensive Examinations for the Doctorate in Biomathematics.

The written qualifying examinations must be successfully completed before students proceed to the University Oral Qualifying Examination. To better integrate course work and dissertation research, students can take their University Oral Qualifying Examination after the completion of six Biomathematics, four Mathematics and four Biology courses (or their equivalents taken elsewhere as approved by the curriculum committee). The remaining four courses can then be completed by the end of year four with exception to this time limit permitted by petition.

The University Oral Qualifying Examination, administered by the doctoral committee appointed by the Graduate Division, critically probes the quality, scope, and feasibility of the student’s proposed dissertation work. The examination also explores the strength and integration of the student’s biomathematical, mathematical, and biological research knowledge in the intended area of research.

Advancement to Candidacy

Students are advanced to candidacy upon successful completion of the written and oral qualifying examinations. After advancing to candidacy, each student is required, until their Dissertation Defense, to have annual Doctoral Committee meetings that discuss the student’s progress. The student is expected to schedule this meeting each academic year. (Quarterly emailed updates are encouraged but not required.)

Doctoral Dissertation

Every doctoral degree program requires the completion of an approved dissertation that demonstrates the student’s ability to perform original, independent research and constitutes a distinct contribution to knowledge in the principal field of study.

Final Oral Examination (Defense of Dissertation)

Required for all students in the program.

Time-to-Degree

Full-time students with no deficiencies upon admission and sufficient prior upper division training in biology and mathematics should be able to complete the program in five years (15 academic quarters plus research and/or individual instruction during the summers). Such students can complete the departmental written qualifying (comprehensive) examinations in the summer after their first year, identify their research field and mentor by the end of their second year, and complete all formal course requirements no later than the beginning of the fourth year.

DEGREE	NORMATIVE TIME TO ATC (Quarters)	NORMATIVE TTD	MAXIMUM TTD
Ph.D.	12	15	27

Academic Disqualification and Appeal of Disqualification

University Policy

A student who fails to meet the above requirements may be recommended for academic disqualification from graduate study. A graduate student may be disqualified from continuing in the graduate program for a variety of reasons. The most common is failure to maintain the minimum cumulative grade point average (3.00) required by the Academic Senate to remain in good standing (some programs require a higher grade point average). Other examples include failure of examinations, lack of timely progress toward the degree and poor performance in core courses. Probationary students (those with cumulative grade point averages below 3.00) are subject to immediate dismissal upon the recommendation of their department. University guidelines governing academic disqualification of graduate students, including the appeal procedure, are outlined in Standards and Procedures for Graduate Study at UCLA.

Special Departmental or Program Policy

In addition to the standard reasons noted above, a student may be recommended for academic disqualification for:

A student may appeal a recommendation for termination from an ad hoc committee to the Department Chair within two weeks of being notified by the Chair. The Chair then initiates a faculty review of the recommendation. Factors considered in the review are biomathematical research aptitude, progress toward completion of degree requirements, performance on the required examinations, and course grades.