GBCB is a Ph.D. program only, it does not offer a Master's degree. The Ph.D. degree requires a minimum of 90 total credit hours beyond the baccalaureate. Additionally, a dissertation must be written and defended before a 4-person committee. The Ph.D. plan of study is due by the end of the fourth semester of study.

The distribution of the 90 required hours can be:
30-63 credit hours of research (7994 level only)
27-60 graded coursework (graduate level)

For the purposes of this program and to insure that students have a breadth of exposure, four specialty tracks are defined: LIFE SCIENCES, COMPUTER SCIENCE, STATISTICS, and MATHEMATICS

A student will select one of the specialty tracks as his/her primary track, which will typically be consistent with the student's undergraduate training. The other tracks will be denoted as secondary tracks. Requirements will differ among the specialty tracks, with some requiring more coursework, and with correspondingly fewer credit hours of Research and Dissertation.

In addition, a core curriculum that is common to all students has been defined:
GBCB 5874 Problem Solving(3 credits)
STS 5444 Issues in Bioethics(3 credits)
GBCB 5004 Seminar (4 credits)

A sample plan of study will include the following:
Primary Track: At least 9 credit hours must be from the primary track. For students whose primary track is the Life Science track, 3 of these credit hrs must be a genomics course. Several genomics courses are offered through different departments. (e.g., CSES/GBCB 5844 - Plant Genomics)

Secondary Tracks: At least 12 credit hours must be taken, with the courses coming from at least two of the three secondary tracks. For students whose primary track is not in Life Sciences, at least 6 of these credit hrs must be in the life sciences track. 
Students in the Statistics primary track must take a genomics course.

General Electives: Choice of at least 6 credit hrs of electives 
Research & Dissertation: Sufficient to accumulate 90 total credit hours, minimum of 30 hours required.

Examinations: All GBCB students must pass a preliminary and a final exam.

The preliminary exam, oral and written, is conducted by the student's advisory committee. Between the third and fourth years, each student must prepare a dissertation research plan and give an oral defense of that plan and the scientific foundations on which it is based. The dissertation research plan is expected to be a refinement of the initial research plan presented presented by the student to his committee at the end of the second year. The proposal is to be prepared in an NIH-style format and should provide a clearly defined description of the research the student plans to complete.The oral defense of the plan will include questions both directly related to the proposal as well as more general questions that examine the student's knowledge of fundamental principles.

The student may be tested on any aspect of his proposal, the philosophy of science, and research methodology. It is recommended that the student meet with his/her advisory committee prior to preparing for the exam to discuss the nature of the exam and evaluation procedures.

The final exam, oral and written, is primarily a defense of the dissertation, but other areas of science may be included.