SACS Reaffirmation
| Objective | Assessment Of Success | |
| Qualitative assessments of how well our graduate programs have successfully transitioned graduate students to Ph.D programs or the workforce will be solicited through questionnaires distrubuted in our annual newsletter. Associated Goals: Goal 1--Student Excellence |
| Indicator | Alumni Survey This questionnaire will be included, for the first time, in the fall 2007 Department of Biological Sciences newsletter. |
| Criteria | Alumni Survey Any deficiencies in our curriculum or graduate student preparation noted by at least three or more respondents in a given year will be evaluated by the Department''s Graduate Committee. |
| Finding | Survey Findings Questionnaire data not yet accumulated. |
| Action | Alumni Action Departmental Assessment Committee will gather data and analyze. |
| Objective | Instruction | |
| Provide rigorous instruction in our graduate courses allowing students to develop competence in their area of specialization. Associated Goals: Goal 1--Student Excellence |
| Indicator | Course Offerings Increase the number of graduate courses offered each semester. |
| Criteria | Course Offerings Encourage new tenure-track faculty to submit curriculum requests for graduate courses in their area of specialty. |
| Finding | Graduate Courses No new faculty joined this academic year, however one new graduate course (Advanced Genetics) was added in Spring 2008, which also serves the Masters in Forensic Science program. In Fall 2007, four graduate courses were offered, with 6 offered in Spring 2008. |
| Indicator | Mastery Of Knowledge All graduate students will demonstrate mastery of graduate course content through a graduate comprehensive exam. |
| Criteria | Success at Oral Exam Ninety percent of graduate students should pass their oral exam on their first attempt |
| Finding | Oral Exam Results 6 of 8 students (75%) passed the comprehensive exam on the first try. One of the remaining 2 passed on the second attempt, the other is in progress. |
| Indicator | Primary Literature Component Include a primary literature component in all graduate syllabi |
| Criteria | Primary Literature Component All graduate course syllabi should have a current literature component. |
| Finding | Scientific Literature All graduate courses include analysis of the primary scientific literature. In addition, in the required BIO520 Professional Aspects of Science course, all graduate students are taught how to retrieve and evaluate literature. |
| Action | Instruction In progress. |
| Action | Literature Component No further action needed. |
| Objective | Scientific Literacy And Critical Thinking Skills | |
| Build scientific literacy, enhance critical thinking and communication skills by involving graduate students in the scientific process from proposal development through publication in peer review journals. Associated Goals: Goal 1--Student Excellence |
| Indicator | Research Engagement And Academic Progress Graduate students should taken an active role in their own adacemic progress and should actively engage in research early in their graduate program. |
| Criteria | Annual Meeting Graduate students should meet regularly with their academic advisor and at least annually with their thesis advisory committee to discuss academic and research progress. |
| Finding | Annual Meeting Annual committee meetings are required of all graduate students, and a progress report is filed with the Program Coordinator. |
| Criteria | Completion of Research Prospectus Graduate students must have a competed research prospectus filed with the graduate committee by the end of their second semester. |
| Finding | Research Thesis Plans Students turn in a research prospectus, accompanied by the appropriate signed form, to the Departmental Graduate Committee by the end of their second semester. |
| Criteria | Formation of Advisory Committee Graduate students must have formed their thesis advisory committee by the end of their first year. |
| Finding | Advisory Committee All recent students have formed a thesis advisory committee by the end of their first year, documented by a form in their file. |
| Criteria | Orientation All incoming graduate students will attend an orientation session early in their first semester. In this meeting they will be given the Department of Biological Sciences Graduate Student Handbook. This document contains all departmental policies, forms and deadlines pertaining to the graduate program |
| Finding | Welcome Orientation Every Fall semester, an orientation session is held for all graduate students, when they are given the Handbook. This meeting also serves to introduce all faculty and current students to the new students. |
| Criteria | Selection of Research Advisor Graduate students seeking the MS degree will select a faculty research advisor by the end of their first semester after entering the graduate program. |
| Finding | Major Advisor All new students selected a research advisor by the end of their first semester. |
| Indicator | Student Scientific Presentations Support graduate students presenting their research result at scientific venues. |
| Criteria | Number of Presentations One half of the department''s graduate students should annually present research results at state, regional, national, or international conferences. |
| Finding | Presentations Four graduate students (25%) gave 6 presentations at 5 meetings. |
| Indicator | Student Scientific Publications Graduate students will submit their research findings from their MS thesis for review and publication in a peer reviewed journal prior to, or soon after, graduating and leaving the graduate program. |
| Criteria | Mentor Guidance Graduate advisors routinely meet with and mentor their graduate students to ensure that they are progressing toward communication of their research findings through presentation and publication. |
| Finding | Publications Data collection in progress. |
| Action | Scientific Literacy Continue progress, led by the Graduate Studies Committee and Program Coordinator. |
| Objective | External Funding For Research | |
| Build support for our research programs through increases external funding. Associated Goals: Goal 2--Faculty Excellence |
| Indicator | External Funding For Research All faculty are expected to seek external funding. |
| Criteria | External Grant Expectations Each faculty member should, in any given year, have one or more projects supported by external funding or should submit a grant to seek such support. |
| Finding | Research Funding Half of current faculty have active external research funds this period. Additional funds to support graduate students will be investigated. |
| Action | Research Funding In progress. |
| Objective | Faculty Research Activity | |
| Encourage a more active research program and increase research excellence, involving the graduate students. Associated Goals: Goal 2--Faculty Excellence |
| Indicator | Faculty Research See the Departmental assessment for details of faculty research activity. |
| Criteria | Publication Rate Faculty should publish above the national average for comparable institutions, and each present annually at least at one conference. |
| Finding | Research Productivity Faculty publication rate was more than twice the national average for PUIs, and faculty presented on average 2-3 times over the academic year. |
| Action | Research Activity No action needed. |