INTRODUCTION

The Microbiology

Graduate Student Handbook

2022-2023

www.micrograd.iastate.edu

microbiology@iastate.edu

Table of Contents

Introduction

Message from the Chair 4

Mission of the Interdepartmental Microbiology Program 4

The Microbiology Major 4

Administration 5

Upon Arrival at Iowa State 6

Getting Started—Your First Year

Graduate Student Orientation 8

Assignment of a Temporary Graduate Advisor 8

Research Rotations – MICRO 697 8

Choosing a Major Professor 9

Degree Requirements

Degrees Offered 11

Admissions to a Degree Program 11

Required Courses 11

Course Requirements for Doctoral Degree 12

Course Requirements for Master of Science Degree 12

Requirements for Minors in Microbiology 13

“Testing Out” of Required Courses 13

Transferability of Credits from Other Institution 13

Substitute Core Courses 13

Approved List of Courses in the Microbiological Sciences 14

Annual Report of Student Activities 17

Progressing Through Your Degree Program

Program of Study Committee Appointment 18

Program of Study (POS) 18

POS Meeting 19

Preliminary Examination 19

Writing Your Thesis 20

Preparing for Graduation 21

Final Research Seminar 21

Final Examination (Defense) 21

Exit Interview 21

Staying in Touch 21

Additional Academic Activities

Microbiology Graduate Student Organization (MGSO) 22

The Graduate Student Senate (GSS) 22

Student meetings with the Chair 22

Prospective Student Recruitment 22

Meeting with Visiting Scientists 22

Training in Grant Writing 22

Preparing Future Faculty Program 23

Preparing Material for Research Presentations 23

Computer Short Courses 23

AccessPlus 23

Surviving it All 24

Checklist for completion of Graduate Requirements in IM 25

Checklist for completion of Course & Training Requirements 26

Financial Matters

Your Appointment 27

Grants for Research 27

Grants for Professional Travel 27

Benefits

ISU Student Health Insurance Program 28

Prescription Drug Benefit Program 29

Health Service 29

Vacation and Sick Leave 29

Injuries and Injury Reports 30

Student Counseling 30

Crisis Services through Student Counseling Services 30

Dean of Student Office and Student Assistance Services 31

Administrative Matters

Administrative Assistance 32

Office and Home Addresses 32

Communication 32

Transportation 33

Appendices 34

Annual Report of Student Activities 35

Faculty in the IM Program 37

Summary of Administrative Forms 39

Professional Ethics 41

Laboratory Safety Training 42

Interdepartmental Microbiology Governance Document 43

Dismissal Criteria 47

Nondiscrimination and Sexual Harassment Policies 49

Diversity at Iowa State University 50

Fellowship Opportunity 51

INTRODUCTION

Message from the Chair

As a graduate student in the Interdepartmental Microbiology (IM) program, you have access to a

wide range of opportunities to build your career as a microbiologist. I encourage you to take

advantage of these opportunities. Challenge yourself, your fellow students and the faculty to push

beyond the boundaries of our current knowledge! Do this in all avenues of your education – in

courses, in the lab, at journal clubs, workshops, seminars, and professional meetings - and you will

find your graduate experience to be richly rewarding. The faculty in the IM program endeavor to

provide the range of opportunities necessary for scientific development, but your initiative in actively

and creatively pursuing knowledge is the key to your education.

This handbook is designed to provide guidance on the policies and procedures of the IM program.

Like our scientific knowledge, graduate programs evolve and change and these changes are driven by

the efforts and ingenuity of people. I encourage you to talk with your major professor to keep abreast

of policy changes that have been instituted since the printing of this handbook, as well as to provide

your ideas for program improvement to the Chair and members of the Supervisory Committee of

Microbiology at any time.

Mission of the IM Program

Microbiology is integral to global well-being through its central role in agricultural productivity,

human health, environmental quality and restoration, industrial processes, and food production and

safety, as well as its contribution to a basic understanding of all living systems. The mission of the

Graduate Program at Iowa State University is to advance scientific discovery in microbiology by

providing education and research opportunities for future microbiologists.

The Microbiology Major

The Graduate Major in Microbiology is an interdepartmental training program at Iowa State

University that offers the degrees of Master of Science and Doctor of Philosophy in Microbiology, and

a minor to students majoring in other programs. The IM program offers a broad range of research

opportunities, including in prokaryotic and eukaryotic microbiology, virology, microbe interactions

with animals, plants and arthropods, and the responses of those hosts to the microbes. Microbiology

training is offered through approximately 69 faculty housed in eighteen departments: Agricultural

and Biosystems Engineering; Agronomy; Animal Science; Biochemistry, Biophysics and Molecular

Biology; Chemical and Biological Engineering; Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering;

Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology; Entomology; Food Science and Human Nutrition;

Genetics, Developmental and Cell Biology; Geological & Atmospheric Sciences; Kinesiology; Natural

Resource Ecology and Management; Plant Pathology and Microbiology; Veterinary Diagnostic and

Production Animal Medicine; Veterinary Microbiology and Preventive Medicine; and Veterinary

Pathology, with some of these faculty having appointments at the National Animal Disease Center or

the National Laboratory for Agriculture and the Environment. Currently, faculty and students are

pursuing research in many areas of microbiology, including microbial biochemistry, ecology, genetics

and molecular biology; biogeochemistry; food safety and security; microbe-host interactions;

bacteriology; immunology; metabolic engineering; mycology; parasitology; virology; and microbial

genomics.

A major strength of the Graduate Major in Microbiology lies in the combined expertise of its diverse

faculty. The large number of IM faculty in diverse areas of microbiology provides students with

flexibility when choosing a research project and major professor, as well as with a spectrum of course

offerings in microbiology and related disciplines. Activities, including seminars, journal clubs, and the

Microbiology Graduate Student Organization (MGSO), provide opportunities for scientific and social

interactions. These interactions are central to the program goal of providing broad and robust

training while stimulating excellence in Microbiology research.

Administration

The activities of the Interdepartmental Microbiology Graduate Program are administered by a Chair,

a Supervisory Committee, and a Program Coordinator. Please feel free to contact them if you have

any questions about the program. For the 2020-2021 academic year, these positions are held by the

following people:

Chair: Melha Mellata, Food Science and Human Nutrition

3346 Food Sciences, 536 Farm House Ln., 515-294-9220

[email protected]

Associate Chair: Nick Peters, Plant Pathology, Entomology and Microbiology

382 Science Hall I, 2237 Osborn Dr., 515-520-2885

ntpeters@iastate.edu

Supervisory Committee:

Admissions: David Verhoeven, Vet Microbiology & Preventive Medicine

Curriculum: Kaoru Ikuma

Recruitment: TBD

Associate Chair: Nick Peters, Plant Pathology, Entomology and Microbiology

Ex-Officio Chair: Stephan Schmitz-Esser, Animal Science

Program Coordinator: Dai Nguyen Plant Pathology and Microbiology

207 Science I, 2237 Osborn Dr., 515-294-9052,

[email protected]

UPON ARRIVAL AT IOWA STATE

When you first arrive, you may find yourself overwhelmed by the number of things you must do. Here

is a list of some of the most important.

1. Visit the Interdepartmental Microbiology Program Office in 207 Science I and introduce yourself

to Dai Nguyen, the Program Coordinator. Dai can help you find your way around the University

administrative offices and answer questions you have about the IM program.

2. Please e-mail Dr. Melha Mellata (mmellata@iastate.edu), IM Chair, to make an appointment if

you have any questions about courses or rotations.

3. Read this HANDBOOK. It is especially important to read the section on Administrative Matters

during your first few days. This handbook is available on-line at: www.micrograd.iastate.edu

4. Register for e-mail at Durham Hall and plan to check it regularly (at least daily). E-mail is the

most common means of communication at Iowa State University.

5. Obtain the following references and examine them carefully. These documents contain all the

University regulations and requirements for graduation.

Graduate College Handbook

Graduate College Thesis Manual

They are available on the Web through the ISU Graduate College Homepage at:

http://www.grad-college.iastate.edu/publications/gchandbook/homepage.html

http://www.grad-college.iastate.edu/current/thesis/

Iowa State Graduate College forms are available on the Internet at:

https://www.grad-college.iastate.edu/student/forms/

6. Other references you may wish to obtain at the ISU bookstore or on the web include:

General Catalog:

http://catalog.iastate.edu/

Schedule of Classes:

http://classes.iastate.edu/

Iowa State University phone/e-mail directory (contains two-year calendar of academic dates

and deadlines):

http://info.iastate.edu/

Other References available on the web can be located through the Iowa State University

Homepage: http://www.iastate.edu. Note the alphabet at the top of this page; you can click

through to many subject headings.

7. Other web sites of interest

Iowa State University forms are available on the Internet at:

http://www.ats.iastate.edu/forms.html

ISU University-wide POLICY LIBRARY: http://policy.iastate.edu/

GETTING STARTED - YOUR FIRST YEAR

Graduate Student Orientation

For new graduate students, the academic year begins with an orientation period which is designed to

ease the transition to graduate study at Iowa State. It is a time to become acquainted with the

Interdepartmental Microbiology program and its members and to prepare for registration and the

start of classes. Along with this handbook, you should have received a schedule of important

orientation activities from the IM program and from the Graduate College. Please refer to them for

information about your responsibilities during orientation.

Which of the following sections that you need to read is determined by how you are being funded.

Students may enter Interdepartmental Microbiology by either of two routes: direct admission into IM

followed by the selection of a major professor, or direct admission into the laboratory of their major

professor. Students entering directly into the IM program are usually supported for their first year on

a Microbiology Research Assistantship and spend their first semester (M.S.) or first year (Ph.D) doing

rotations and choosing a major professor. They should read the entire handbook. Students entering

directly into the laboratory of their major professor must be accepted by the department of their

major professor, hereafter called their “home department”, and must arrange for support through

their major professor and home department. The latter students may skip sections dealing with

temporary advisors, research rotations, and choosing a major professor.

Assignment of a Temporary Graduate Advisor

If you have entered the Interdepartmental Microbiology program directly, by the time of your arrival

for the orientation program, the Chair will act as your Temporary Graduate Advisor. The

responsibilities of your advisor are to guide you in selecting courses during your first year, to discuss

with you the research opportunities in IM, and to suggest laboratories for visits and rotations.

During the first week of the orientation period, you will meet with your advisor for counseling and

preparation of your schedule for the fall semester. If it is necessary to add or drop a course, or change

sections of a course or the number of credits, use an Add/Drop Slip available from the IM Office in

207 Science I.

Research Rotations – Micro 697

First year students who enter the Interdepartmental Microbiology program directly as Research

Assistants are required to do laboratory rotations (MICRO 697) to help them choose their major

professor. First-year students who have entered directly into the laboratory of their major professor

are not required to take MICRO 697 or do rotations. Rotation among laboratories within the home

department is encouraged, but such policies are determined by the department. In addition to

helping you choose a major professor, these research rotations provide an interdisciplinary research

experience, give an opportunity to actively participate in the research program of the laboratories in

which you are interested, and promote interaction and exchange of information among research

groups.

Microbiology Research Assistants must do three full-length laboratory rotations during their first

year, if you are a Ph.D. student, or two full-length laboratory rotations, if you are an M.S. student

(unless otherwise noted in their offer letter). A full-length rotation is at least 6 weeks long; rotations

typically last 6-8 weeks. You only need to identify one laboratory to rotate in at a time; however, it is

not uncommon to set up all of the rotations near the beginning of the first semester. If you have

made arrangements to do a rotation and later decide not to participate in that rotation, you must

notify the faculty member of your decision as soon as possible after the decision has been made. The

total number of credits of MICRO 697 per semester should be 1 to 6. After two weeks in a laboratory

rotation, you are responsible for contacting your advisor to discuss how the rotation is proceeding. If

you know after two weeks that this is not the area of research you wish to pursue, you should work

with your advisor and the rotation lab manager to terminate the rotation. Students are required to

participate in three full-length rotations.

Choosing a major professor

If you have entered the Interdepartmental Microbiology program directly, much of your first year will

be devoted to the important process of selecting a major professor. This is the person who will guide

you in your graduate studies and whose research group you will join. To help you decide on

professors with whom to rotate, you should make use of the following information:

• A description of the IM faculty research on the IM homepage

(www.micrograd.iastate.edu) and on the homepages of the individual faculty (click on the

“Faculty” link on the IM homepage).

• Recent publications of the IM faculty (you can find often find references to these on the

faculty homepages or by doing a literature search such as on the web in the Web of

Science search engine [Library  Collections  Indexes and Abstracts  W  Web of

Science  Go to Form0020Search  Click Last 5 years  Name [Einstein, A*]]

• Most important: Discussions with individual faculty members. Faculty can provide

curriculum vitae and recent publication references. Students are strongly encouraged to

contact and interact with at least six faculty during the rotation selection process.

When you have decided with whom you would like to rotate, you need to personally ask the faculty

member whether you can rotate in his or her laboratory. As part of this discussion, you will need to

tell him or her about your interests and inquire whether there might be space and funding for you

after you finish your rotations. You should also discuss the project you might have for your research.

If you and the faculty member agree to a rotation, you should do the following:

• Decide upon mutually acceptable dates to begin and end your rotation in the lab. If your

rotation includes holidays like Thanksgiving or Christmas, you should ask about the work schedule

during this time and indicate if you plan to take any vacation days.

• Discuss if there is an expectation of a presentation or short paper so you can plan for this during

the rotation

• Discuss the expectations regarding your work schedule (arrival and departure times)

• Ask who your main contact will be during your rotation in the lab

During your rotations, you will conduct research but are not required to complete a project. Part of

the process of choosing a lab is learning if there are any additional courses or other requirements

that must be met in the home department of your chosen faculty mentor. These requirements vary

with each department. On completion of each rotation, your performance will be evaluated and the

faculty member will provide a written evaluation to the Chair. These evaluations will be used in the

annual review of each student. You will be asked to evaluate the rotation experience in an interview

with the program Chair at the end of the spring semester.

You should avoid choosing a major professor until after your rotations. If a faculty member attempts

to get a commitment from you before the end of your rotations, you may discuss your interest in the

lab, but you must state, “I can’t actually commit to a lab until my third rotation is completed.”

Remember that as great as your present rotation may be, there is always the possibility that the next

rotation will be even more interesting or promising.

After you finish all of your laboratory rotations, ask the faculty member with whom you would like to

work whether he or she can accept you into his or her laboratory and arrange for your future

financial support. Ask about the amount of the stipend and tuition support. These are things you

need to know when deciding whether to join a specific lab. You can approach this question by

indicating the present amount you receive from IM and ask if the faculty member will be able to

provide the same support. Once a mutual agreement has been reached, please inform the

Interdepartmental Microbiology program Chair and Program Coordinator. Students should initiate a

“Request to Establish a Home Department for Students Admitted to Interdepartmental Majors” form

found at https://www.grad-college.iastate.edu/student/forms/ and bring that form to the IM

administrative office.

DEGREE REQUIREMENTS

Degrees Offered

Interdepartmental Microbiology (IM) offers coursework and research experiences leading to the

degrees of Master of Science and Doctor of Philosophy in Microbiology, and a minor to students

majoring in other programs. A Non-thesis Master of Science degree is not offered.

Admissions to a Degree Program

The degree that a student may pursue in the IM program is specified at the time of the student’s

admission into the program. Although a prior M.S. is not required for admission to the Ph.D. program,

criteria for admission to the Ph.D. program are more stringent than to the M.S. program.

Students wishing to pursue a Ph.D. in Interdepartmental Microbiology after completing an MS in the

IM program, or wishing to change the degree that they are pursing from an M.S. to a Ph.D., must re-

apply to the IM program. This application must consist of a Curriculum Vita and an unofficial copy of

their transcript. Students must also arrange for memos from their POS committee members

indicating support or lack of support for entry of the student into doctoral candidacy. Memos

communicated by e-mail are acceptable. These materials should be submitted to the Program

Coordinator of the IM program. The application will be reviewed by the Admissions Committee, with

the same criteria used in evaluating other applications to the Ph.D. program. The Admissions

Committee will decide on one of the following options:

1. The student may change from the M.S. to the Ph.D. program without completing the M.S;

2. The student may pursue the Ph.D. after earning the M.S.;

3. The student is not allowed to pursue the Ph.D. in Microbiology.

Required Courses

It is expected that all graduate students entering the IM program will have a strong background in the

biological sciences, including at least one semester of coursework in each general microbiology and

general genetics, including exposure to molecular biology. Your Major Professor or Temporary

Graduate Advisor will help you determine if you have deficiencies that should be addressed with

additional background courses.

The Microbiology Core Curriculum

To assure that all IM students develop a base of fundamental principles and information essential to

microbiology, all students will take a series of “core courses” in addition to courses specific to

individual interests. Students must receive a C or better in each course and at least a B average over

all six core courses to fulfill this requirement. This policy applies to IM minors as well as majors.

The Microbiology Core Curriculum consists of:

1. Microbial diversity and phylogeny (Micro 551) 1 credit

2. Bacterial molecular genetics and physiology (Micro 552) 1 credit

3. Pathogenic microorganisms. (Micro 553) 1 credit

4. Virology. (Micro 554) 1 credit

5. Fungal Biology (Micro 555) 1 credit

6. Microbial ecology and environmental monitoring (Micro 556) 1 credit

Additional courses required of all majors:

1. Biochemistry (BBMB 404 and BBMB 405, or the equivalent)

2. Responsible Conduct of Research in Science (GR ST 565) 1 credit.

Course Requirements for a Doctoral Degree

Ph.D. candidates majoring in Microbiology must take at least 72 credits; this includes credit from the

Core Curriculum, other courses, and research. Requirements that must be met for the doctoral

degree are the Microbiology Core Curriculum, shown above; at least 3 additional courses (9 credits)

from an approved list of courses in the microbiological sciences, and students must receive a B or

better in each course to fulfill this requirement; and enrollment and credit in the Microbiology

Seminar (Micro 604) at least five times (5 credits). Students must also make at least two formal

scientific presentations; these include presentations given in Micro 604, at scientific conferences, or

during departmental or interdepartmental seminar series. Fulfillment of this requirement requires

approval by the POS committee. Additional course work may be selected to satisfy research interests,

expectations of the POS committee, or home department requirements.

Course Requirements for a Master of Science Degree

M.S. candidates majoring in Microbiology must take at least 30 credits; this includes credit from the

Core Curriculum, other courses, and research. Requirements that must be met for the Master of

Science degree are the Microbiology Core Curriculum, shown above; at least 1 additional course (3

credits) from an approved list of courses in the microbiological sciences, and students must receive a

B or better to fulfill this requirement; and enrollment and credit in the Microbiology Seminar (Micro

604) at least three times (3 credits). Students must also make at least one formal scientific

presentation, and may be a presentation given in Micro 604, at a scientific conference, or during a

departmental or interdepartmental seminar series. Fulfillment of this requirement requires approval

by the POS committee. Additional course work may be selected to satisfy research interests,

expectations of the POS committee, or home department requirements.

Course Requirements for a Minor in Microbiology

Students can receive a Minor in Microbiology by completing the first six courses listed under the

Microbiology Core Curriculum (6 credits), as well as one additional advanced course from the

approved list of courses in the microbiological sciences (3 credits).

“Testing Out” of Required Courses

If you feel that you already know the material covered in one or more of the required microbiology

courses, you may petition to be excused from the requirement. To do this, first discuss the idea with

your Temporary Graduate Advisor or major professor, your POS Committee (if you have one), and the

course instructor. If they agree with your proposal, then you may submit a letter to the IM Chair

requesting permission to be excused from the course requirement. The letter must include a

description or documentation of your previous experience in that subject area. The IM Chair will

submit the request to the IM Curriculum Committee for a decision.

A word of caution: if you are excused from a microbiology course requirement, do not forget to

review the topics covered by the course prior to your preliminary or final exams. You will be expected

to be as knowledgeable on this topic as all other students.

Transferability of Credits from other Institutions

The transferability of credits from other institutions will be determined on a case-by- case basis by

the student’s POS committee and the IM Chair. Credits for seminars, research, workshops and

colloquia are not transferable.

Substitute core courses

For students who are unable to take one or more of the 55X (551-556) series of classes within the

first two years of enrolling in the Microbiology Graduate program, the student may petition his or her

POS committee, with prior approval of the Chair, for permission to 1) if available, take a substitute

course approved by the 55X course instructor (for a partial list of potential substitutions, see table

below); OR 2) if the 55X instructor agrees, to carry out a directed independent study as MICRO

590:Special Topics for 1 or more credits under the supervision of that instructor or a substitute

approved by that instructor. The directed independent study should achieve learning objectives

equivalent to the Micro 55X for which it is being substituted. Additional credits from a 3 credit

substitute course or from the independent study would count toward Microbiology electives. The

major professor and the POS Committee, in consultation with the student, should make the decision

on which option is most appropriate for the student.

The Micro 55X series of core courses were developed to provide all Microbiology Graduate students

with a basic level of knowledge, sufficient for them to successfully pass the preliminary examinations.

Without a minimum of five enrolled students in a given semester, graduate classes are subject to

cancellation for that semester. Bearing both of these things in mind, students should make every

effort to take the 55X courses. The alternatives described above should be considered only when

there is an irreconcilable scheduling conflict that would delay the normal course of the student’s

progress toward his or her degree.

MICRO 55x course (1 credit each)

Alternative course

MICRO 551. Microbial Diversity and Phylogeny

MICRO 530. 3 cr. Prokaryotic Diversity and

Ecology.

MICRO 552. Bacterial Molecular Genetics and

Physiology

Micro 502. 3 cr. Microbial Genetics

MICRO 553. Pathogenic Microorganisms

Micro 625. 3 cr. Mechanisms of Bacterial

Pathogenesis

MICRO 554. Virology

Micro 508. 3 cr. Virology.

MICRO 555. Fungal Biology

MICRO 556. Microbial Ecology and

Environmental Monitoring.

Micro 585. 3 cr. Soil Microbial Ecology

APPROVED LIST OF COURSES IN THE MICROBIOLOGICAL SCIENCES

VIROLOGY

Micro 408

Virology

Fall

3 cr.

PL P 509

Plant Virology

Alt Spring, uneven

numbered years

2 cr.

VMPM 587

Animal Virology

4 cr.

Micro

(VMPM) 608

Molecular Virology

Alt Fall, offered even-

numbered years

3 cr.

MICROBIOLOGY CORE COURSES

Micro 551

Microbial Diversity and Phylogeny

Fall

1 cr.

Micro 552

Bacterial Molecular Genetics and

Physiology

Fall

1 cr.

Micro 553

Pathogenic Microorganisms

Fall

1 cr.

Micro 554

Virology

Spring

1 cr.

Micro 555

Fungal Biology

Spring

1 cr.

Micro 556

Microbial Ecology and Environmental

Monitoring

Spring

1 cr.

BACTERIOLOGY/GENETICS/PHYSIOLOGY

Micro 502

Microbial Genetics

Alt Fall, even-numbered

years

3 cr.

Micro 530

Prokaryotic Diversity and Ecology

Alt Spring, uneven-

numbered years

3 cr.

Micro 586

Medical Bacteriology

Fall

MYCOLOGY

Micro 456

Principles of Mycology

Fall

3 cr.

*To be an elective.

ENVIRONMENTAL MICROBIOLOGY & ECOLOGY

Micro 585

Soil and Environmental Microbiology

Fall

3 cr.

Micro 587

Microbial Ecology

Fall

FOOD MICROBIOLOGY

Micro 507

Microbiological Safety of Foods of

Animal Origins

Fall, Spring

3 cr.

Micro 626

Advanced Food Microbiology

Alt Fall, offered uneven-

numbered years

3 cr.

PLANT-MICROBE INTERACTIONS

Pl P 506

Plant-Pathogen Interactions

Alt Spring, offered uneven-

numbered years

2 cr.

Pl P 574

Plant Nematology

Alt Fall, offered uneven-

numbered years

2 cr.

Micro 577

Bacterial-Plant Interactions

Alt Spring, even-numbered

year

3 cr.

Micro 692

Molecular Biology of Plant-Pathogen

Interactions

Alt Spring, uneven-

numbered year

3 cr.

ANIMAL-MICROBE INTERACTIONS

MICRO 525

Intestinal Microbiology

Alt Spring, even-numbered

years

3 cr.

Micro 625

Mechanisms of Bacterial Pathogenesis

Alt Spring, uneven-

numbered years

3 cr.

VMPM 536

Zoonoses and Environmental Health

Alt Spring, uneven-

numbered years

3 cr.

Ent 574

Medical Entomology

Alt Spring, even-numbered

years

4 cr.

*Only one of Micro 575 or V MPM 520 can count for the POS.

IMMUNOLOGY

Micro 575*

Immunology

Spring

3 cr.

Micro 540

Livestock Immunogenetics

Alt Spring, uneven-

numbered years

2 cr.

Micro 615

Molecular Immunology

Alt Fall, uneven-numbered

years

3 cr.

VMPM 520*

Medical Immunology

Fall

3 cr.

RECOMMENDED TECHNIQUE, LAB BASED, or STATISTICS COURSES: Not to count towards the

advanced micro course work area.

BCBIO 401

Bioinformatics of Sequences

Fall

3 cr.

BCB 546

Computational Skills for Biological Data

Fall

3 cr.

Micro 627

Rapid Methods in Food Microbiology

Alt Fall, even-numbered

years

2 cr.

STAT 587

(formerly

401)

Statistical Methods for Research

Workers

Fall, Spring, Summer

4 cr.

STAT 581

(formerly

416)

Analysis of Gene Expression Data for

the Biological Sciences

Spring

3 cr.

PL P 594

Seed Pathology

Alt Fall, uneven-numbered

years

2 cr.

VDPAM 528

Principles of Epidemiology and

Population Growth

Spring

3 cr.

ANNUAL REPORT OF STUDENT ACTIVITIES

All students majoring in Microbiology are required to submit an Annual Report of Student Activities

to the IM Chair by August 15. The format for this report is provided in the appendices. This Annual

Report will be used as a tool to assess the strengths and weaknesses of the IM program, as well as to

monitor the progress of all students in the IM program.

NOTE: The IM Program must have up-to-date Annual Reports before the IM Chair will provide a

signature of approval on forms needed for advancement through the degree program.

NOTE: A cumulative GPA of at least 3.0 is required for tuition support by the Graduate College.

If your overall GPA drops below 3.0, it is likely that you will have to pay this tuition yourself. The

grading scale at ISU is: A (4.0), A- (3.67), B+ (3.33), B (3.0), B- (2.67), C+ (2.33), C (2.0), C- (1.67),

D+ (1.33), D (1.0), and F (0). Research grades (699, 697) do not count towards GPA.

PROGRESSING THROUGH YOUR DEGREE PROGRAM

Program of Study Committee Appointment

After you have obtained a major professor and home department, you will, in consultation with your

major professor, decide on a suitable program for completion of your graduate course work. It is then

necessary to appoint a graduate Program of Study (POS) Committee. The composition and

responsibilities of the POS committee will be in accordance with the Graduate College guidelines.

The POS committee should include faculty whose research interests can aid and complement your

research interests, as well as faculty whose expertise will ensure that you graduate with a breadth of

knowledge. The POS committee for a doctoral student must consist of at least five members of the

Graduate Faculty. These faculty are listed in the back of the Graduate Handbook. The committee

must include at least three faculty, including the major professor, from within the Interdepartmental

Microbiology major. At least one faculty member must be either outside the Microbiology major or

outside your home department.

The POS committee for a master’s student must consist of at least three members of the Graduate

Faculty. It must include two members, including the major professor, from inside the

Interdepartmental Microbiology major. One member of the committee must be either outside the

major or outside your home department.

The Grad College recommends having your POS committee formed as early as the second semester

of your degree program. This is especially important for MS students as they generally have about 2

to 2.5 years to complete their degree.

Program of Study

Once the chosen members of the POS committee have agreed to serve, the next step is to call your

committee together, inform them of your research plans, and ask for their evaluation of your plans.

The Graduate College Program of Study is one of the more important documents you will encounter

while in graduate school. In essence, it is a contract between you and the graduate school indicating

the minimum course work which must be taken to complete a Ph.D. or M.S. degree. No changes can

be made in it without the mutual approval of yourself, your committee, and the Graduate College.

After meeting with your POS Committee, now is the time to prepare and complete your Program of

Study and Committee appointment (POSC) form. Use the POSC worksheet to help you practice prior

to submitting the official online POSC form in AccessPlus. When filling out the POSC form, be sure to

use the correct course designators. It would be helpful if the Core IM courses are listed together on

the form followed by the required seminars.

When the POSC form is completed and submitted, it will initiate an online approval process whereby

the form will be routed automatically to the major professor, committee members, the

Interdepartmental Microbiology Program DOGE and finally the Grad College for approval. Students

are responsible to check on the status of their POSC to make sure it gets approved by the Grad

College. This is especially important if students are planning to schedule a preliminary or final oral

exam. The POSC must be received and approved by the Grad College a term before either of these

exams is to be held.

Changes that occur in a student’s program of study, such as due to changed objectives or

unavailability of courses, should be approved by the student’s committee and the IM Chair. Any

recommended changes made after the student’s POSC has been approved by the Grad College should

be submitted on the online POSC form through AccessPlus and will require approval of the student,

major professor, committee members involved and the IM DOGE before seeking final approval of the

Grad College.

POS Meetings

The recommended time-frame for completing the POS tasks is to 1) form the POS Committee and 2)

prepare and submit a written description of the proposed research to POS Committee, have a POS

Committee meeting, and file the POSC Form within six months of joining a lab.

Each year after the formation of your POS committee you should set up a time to meet with the

members of your POS committee. IM recommends that Ph.D. students plan to do this in October of

each school year following the Ph.D. Prelim (at least three committee members must be present),

and recommends that M.S. students meet yearly until the final defense (at least two committee

members must be present). Discussion should center on how your research is progressing and if there

are areas that need to be addressed.

Scheduling a POS Committee meeting can sometimes be difficult; most professors have very full

schedules. A recommended approach is to pick a two-week interval and then ask all POS committee

members to list their free times during that interval. The student should estimate the time required

for the meeting, in consultation with the major professor, and state this in their initial message to the

POS committee members. The two-week interval should be at least several weeks in the future. After

the faculty respond, the student can select one or a few times when everyone appears to be free, and

when a room is available for the meeting, and again solicit the opinions of the POS committee

members. This whole process needs to be completed in one or two days so that slots that were free

during the initial inquiry remain free. E-mail generally works best for this process.

Preliminary Examination

Ph.D. candidates majoring in Microbiology must pass a Preliminary Examination. The purpose of the

Preliminary Examination is to test

1) breadth of knowledge in the area of Microbiology

2) depth of knowledge in a student’s particular research area and

3) critical thinking skills especially as they pertain to the scientific method and hypothesis-based

research.

For this purpose, the Preliminary Exam must contain both a written and an oral component. The

nature of the written component is determined by the POS Committee and the home department,

but often takes the form of a written grant proposal on research that is distinct from, but related to,

the student’s dissertation research. In this case, a major component of the oral examination is usually

a defense of this proposal.

To initiate your Preliminary Exam, a Request-for-Preliminary-Examination form should be turned into

the Graduate College at least two weeks prior to the date of your Preliminary Examination. “Request

for Preliminary Examination” forms are available in IM Program Office and at the Graduate College.

After processing your request, the Graduate College will send the IM Program Office the Preliminary

Examination form, and this form should be given to your major professor. The results of the

Preliminary Examination will be recorded on this form, it will be signed by all committee members,

and it must be returned to the Graduate College. All committee members must be present at this

examination. This examination should be completed by the end of the first semester of the third year

of graduate training.

M.S. candidates are not required to take a Preliminary Examination.

Writing Your Thesis

All ISU theses will be digital (“ETDs” converted to a single file in PDF format) and submitted on-line.

You are to check with the Grad College requirements and deadlines in the documents at

http://www.grad-college.iastate.edu/calendar/.

All graduate theses and dissertations submitted to Iowa State University must comply with the

requirements established by the Graduate College, as stated in the current Thesis Manual

http://www.grad-college.iastate.edu/current/thesis/thesis_template/ The Graduate College reviews

the final thesis or dissertation and approves the final format before signing the final Approval Slip.

Staffs are available to advise students on formatting problems they may encounter. In addition, staff

conduct several informational seminars and workshops early each semester.

Preparing for Graduation

Each semester, the Graduate College publishes the deadline dates at http://www.grad-

college.iastate.edu/calendar/ for submission of appropriate forms and paperwork. Early in the

semester in which you expect to graduate, you must submit to the Graduate College an Application

for Graduation (https://www.grad-college.iastate.edu/student/forms/graduation-application/) for

that term. To apply for graduation, log into your Accessplus account and fill out your Application for

Graduation. Your Application for Graduation needs to be approved by the Graduate College before

you could schedule your Final Oral Exam for that term. If you do not graduate at the expected time, a

new diploma slip must be submitted at a later time.

After the dissertation or thesis has been completed, you should consult with your major professor

and POS Committee to arrange a time for the Final Research Seminar and Final Examination. You

must also request permission from the Graduate College to schedule the Final Examination using the

“Request for Final Examination” form. This form is available online at the Graduate College website

(https://www.grad-college.iastate.edu/student/forms/). When the Graduate College receives this

request they will send a “Report of Final Examination” for reporting the examination result to the IM

Program Coordinator, who will then provide the form to your major professor.

Final Research Seminar

All students are required to present a formal, public seminar describing their completed research.

The seminar must be announced at least 2 weeks in advance to the Interdepartmental Microbiology

faculty and students. You must notify the Chair and the IM Program Coordinator, and they will make

the announcements.

Final Examination (Defense)

The Final Examination for the Ph.D. and M.S. degrees is an oral defense of the Ph.D. dissertation or

M.S. thesis. All members of your POS committee must be present. This examination reviews the

thesis and your knowledge of relevant subjects.

Exit Interview

When you receive the “Graduate Student Approval Slip for Graduation” form from the Graduate

College, schedule at least a 15 minute exit interview with the IM Chair. You will need the Chair’s

signature as DOGE for Microbiology on the Graduate Student Approval Slip.

Staying in Touch

Interdepartmental Microbiology always enjoys hearing from you. Please stay in touch with us at

[email protected].

ADDITIONAL ACADEMIC ACTIVITIES

The activities listed below are not required, but are encouraged.

Microbiology Graduate Student Organization (M.G.S.O.)

The M.G.S.O. is an academically oriented organization whose main purpose is to unite fellow

graduate students pursuing similar career goals in areas of Microbiology. It is an active forum for the

discussion of microbiology related topics and actively sponsors guest speakers.

The Graduate Student Senate

Information on the Graduate Student Senate, G44 Memorial Union, can be found at https://www-

gpss.sws.iastate.edu/. The Interdepartmental Microbiology Program has a student elected

representative on this council, and the election for this representative is administered by the

Microbiology Graduate Student Organization.

Student Meetings with the Chair

The IM program will have yearly or bi-yearly spring meetings (usually in May) in which students in

their second year or beyond are encouraged to meet with the Chair and Supervisory Committee. The

purpose of these meetings is to provide feedback on how the program is doing and what can be done

to improve it.

Prospective Student Recruitment

The IM program occasionally requests students to meet for lunch or evening meals in an informal

atmosphere with prospective graduate students. This is an opportunity for the prospective student to

get the “real scoop” on graduate training at ISU. IM pays for the meals. Notices of meeting

opportunities are made through e-mail to all of students.

Meetings with Visiting Scientists

The IM program occasionally offers opportunities for students to meet with visiting scientists for

lunch or evening meals. IM pays for the meals. Notices of such opportunities are made through e-

mail to all students, and participation in such meetings is strongly encouraged.

Training in Grant Writing

Students are encouraged to participate in activities that provide experience in grant writing. The

following courses offer such experience: Writing Proposals and Grant Applications (Engl 509), a

special section is sometimes offered for non-English major graduate students; Grant Proposal Writing

(FSHN 695); Entomology 590E Special Research Topics: Communications in Biological Sciences (Ent

590E).

Preparing Future Faculty Program

Preparing Future Faculty (PFF) is a national program for postdoctoral fellows and M.S. and Ph.D.

students that is designed to provide supplemental preparation for a faculty career through a

combination of seminars, mentoring, and practical classroom and service experiences

(http://www.celt.iastate.edu/graduate-students-postdocs/preparing-future-faculty). The PFF

program at ISU is designed to be flexible, so students can participate in the program for as few as one

or as many as four semesters, and semester components can be altered to fit individual

circumstances.

Preparing Material for Research Presentations

The Instructional Technology Center office on campus provides services relating to visual and audio

media, including loaning equipment to departments, students, faculty, and staff. Although most of

the equipment used in 1200 Communications Building is free to students, you will need to pay for

some things.

Computer Short Courses

Academic Information Technologies (AIT) offers Short Courses on a wide range of topics related to

the use of technologies, including beginning and advanced courses on the use of Project Vincent,

Virtual Tour of Gopherspace, World Wide Web, and Microsoft Word for Windows and MacIntosh. The

Solution Center, 192 Parks Library (294-4000, email: [email protected]) can assist with questions

regarding short course registration, computers, software or the network. Because of the student

computing fees paid by all students, you can take the short courses for free. The Computation Center

Newsletter is free if requested and can be sent to your campus mailing address.

ACCESSPLUS

AccessPlus is your secure and personalized online resource for accessing your important and

confidential university information and web applications. AccessPlus is available to Iowa State

University students and faculty/staff, day or night, seven days a week, from anywhere in the world.

To login to AccessPlus, all you need is your Social Security Number or University ID, and your

university PIN. Once inside AccessPlus, your tabs and menus are customized to meet your specific

needs. For example, only registered students can view their current course schedule, and only

faculty/staff can view their most recent pay information.

AccessPlus offers a wide range of services from changing your address and managing your CyCash

account to viewing, or even paying your university bill online. Some of the other many services

available for students through AccessPlus include:

•

class registration

•

class schedules

•

financial aid

•

grade reports and transcripts

•

graduate student status

•

university bill

Surviving it All

One of the first genuine shocks for many students in graduate school is how hard they need to work

to keep up with classes, research, and other responsibilities. Most students find that they need to

work harder as graduate students than at any time before in their lives, and the number of hours per

week can be staggering. If you are like most students and discover that there simply are not enough

hours in the day, then the best way to survive is to learn how to select your priorities and focus on

them. Your professor, other faculty, and your fellow students can give you advice. If you feel so

overwhelmed that you cannot function efficiently, counseling services are also available on campus

specifically to help students who are having trouble meeting their personal and professional

obligations. Student Counseling Services are available on the third floor of the Student Services

Building. Their phone number is 294-5056.

CHECKLIST FOR COMPLETION OF GRADUATE REQUIREMENTS

FOR INTERDEPARTMENTAL MICROBIOLOGY GRADUATE PROGRAM

Student:

Degree Sought:

Date Started in IM: ______________________________

Major Professor:

Co-advisor (if any):

Major: MICROBIOLOGY

Minor or Co-Major:

For each requirement in the following sections, list the term and year you met the requirement; for

example, F14, S15, or SS15. If you have not completed a requirement yet, leave the line blank. Times

when you should complete each requirement are indicated in parentheses.

Academic Requirements

Joined Laboratory of Major Professor:

Request to Establish a Home Department: ________________

POS Committee Formed:

(within 6 months of joining your major professor’s laboratory)

Research Plan and Program of Study Approved by the POS Committee:

(within 6 months of joining your major professor’s laboratory)

POSC Submitted and Approved by the Grad College: __________________

Preliminary Exam (Ph.D. only):

(by the end of first semester of third year) (Note: The preliminary exam must include a written component)

Thesis Submitted to POS Committee:

(The thesis must be given to your POS committee at least two weeks prior to your defense.)

Final Research Seminar: ____________________

(Note: This must be a public seminar and the announcement must be given to the IM Program Coordinator to distribute to all

IM faculty and students. If possible, the seminar should be given during a regularly scheduled seminar series.)

Defense: ______________________

CHECKLIST FOR COMPLETION OF COURSE AND TRAINING REQUIREMENTS

If requirement has been

waived, indicate date of

Semester Completed approval of waiver.*

Core Courses

Micro 551 _________________ ________________

(Microbial diversity and phylogeny)

Micro 552 _________________ ________________

(Bacterial molecular genetics and physiology)

Micro 553 _________________ ________________

(Pathogenic microorganisms)

Micro 554 _________________ ________________

(Virology)

Micro 555 _________________ ________________

(Fungal Biology)

Micro 556 _________________ ________________

(Microbial ecology and environmental monitoring)

BBMB 404 _________________ ________________

(Biochemistry)

BBMB 405 _________________ ________________

(Biochemistry)

GR ST 565

(Professional Practice in the Life Sciences)

_________________ ________________

Other required courses

Additional Microbiology courses _________________ ________________

9 credits (Ph.D.) or 3 credits (M.S.)

Micro 604 _________________ ________________

(Microbiology Seminar)

5 credits (Ph.D.) or 3 credits (M.S.)

Other requirements

Formal presentations _________________ ________________

2 for Ph.D. or 1 for M.S.

______________________________________________________________________________

*The transferability of credits from other institutions will be determined on a case-by-case basis by the

student’s POS Committee and the IM Chair. To waive a course requirement, send a memo, signed by

your major professor (on behalf of your POS Committee) and the instructor of the course you wish to

waive, to the IM Chair. The memo should state that you have already received satisfactory instruction

in the subject matter covered by the required course. Credits for seminars, workshops and colloquia are

not transferable.

FINANCIAL MATTERS

Your Appointment

Most students in Interdepartmental Microbiology receive some form of financial support. However,

the amount, source of the support, and responsibilities associated with it, vary from situation to

situation. Students entering directly may be awarded a research assistantship (RA) funded by

Interdepartmental Microbiology during their first year; thus, for these students, the amount of the

stipend for the first year is usually determined by the IM program. Stipends for students supported by

the faculty are determined by the faculty, but must be above the minimum stipend set by the IM

program. As typically arranged by the faculty, some students may be awarded a teaching

assistantship (TA). The responsibilities associated with your stipends depend on whether you have an

RA or a TA. Information about TA and RA support is available in the Graduate College Handbook.

All graduate students on assistantships have signed a Graduate Assistantship Letter of Intent that lists

the terms and conditions of their appointment. Generally, graduate assistantship appointments are

on a "one-half time" basis. "Half-time" is the maximum time appointment for graduate students since

the other half of your time is spent as a student in graduate studies and research. Appointments may

be terminated by mutual consent or for cause as described in the Graduate College Handbook. If you

have any questions regarding your appointment, see the IM Program Coordinator.

Payday at the University is the last working day of each month. Your paycheck will be sent through

campus mail to you by the ISU Treasurer to the university address you have given to the Human

Resources Office (Room 3810, Beardshear), or you may authorize the Treasurer to deposit your check

in a bank of your choice by completing an authorization form available at the Human Resources

Office. It is strongly recommended that you have your check sent to a banking institution. If

applicable, deductions are made for Federal and State income taxes.

Grants for Research

The Graduate Student Senate (GSS) provides funds to support graduate student research. GSS will

provide up to a maximum of $300 to each person submitting a research proposal. The projects for

which you submit the proposals must be unrelated to your thesis or dissertation research. It is

appropriate for you to apply for these funds during your first year while you are rotating through

research labs. You can obtain the "Request for Professional Advancement Grant" form on the web at

https://www.gpss.iastate.edu/pag.

Grants for Professional Travel

Attendance and presentation of research results at professional meetings is an essential part of your

training. All students should, if possible, attend at least one national or international meeting during

their degree program.

To assist you in doing this, support for travel to professional meetings and conferences is available

from the Graduate College, the Graduate Student Senate, the IM Program and some home

departments.

• To request travel funds from the Graduate College and the Graduate and Professional Student

Senate (GPSS), complete the online Professional Advancement Grants form (available at

https://www.gpss.iastate.edu/pag.)

• To request travel funds from the IM Program, submit a copy of this form as well as an

abstract, if you are submitting one, to the IM Chair, or if requesting funds only from the IM

Program, submit your request directly to the IM Chair.

• For first-year graduate students on rotation, your college is the Graduate College and the

signature of the IM Chair will be sufficient.

• You may only receive one Professional Advancement Grant from the Graduate College and

Graduate Student Senate for travel each fiscal year.

• The IM Program will provide support as funds are available. Eligible students may receive up

to $500 per travel per year.

• Eligibility: students must be in good standing in their degree program, present research data

at a conference they will attend, and have their annual report submitted and up to date.

Some funding agencies have a 90-day limit for turning in travel expense vouchers. If your trip is being

supported in part by funds from your major professor, be sure to turn in your travel expense voucher

soon after you return to insure that you will be reimbursed.

BENEFITS

ISU Student Health Insurance Program

Group Hospital, Surgical, and Medical Insurance:

http://www.hrs.iastate.edu/sship/homepage.html

Single student coverage under the ISU Student and Scholar Health Insurance Program is provided free

of charge to all graduate assistants at ISU. For new to ISU students, an ISU Insurance Program booklet

should be mailed to you through campus mail as soon as you are entered on the payroll system.

Students enroll for Health Insurance going on the line to Accessplus

https://accessplus.iastate.edu/frontdoor/login.jsp, clicking on the Student Tab and clicking through

on Health Insurance and following the instructions provided for registration.

Newly employed personnel should not drop any other insurance they may have until they know the

beginning date of the ISU insurance. The Student and Scholar Health Insurance Program is available

for the spouse/domestic partner of students and the children of students. For details and enrollment

cutoff dates on the ISU Student and Scholar Health Insurance Program, please contact the student

insurance representative (515-294-4820).

All international students, whether on assistantship or not, are required to carry the ISU Student

Health Insurance or to be covered by another health insurance policy. For more information, contact

the International Students and Scholars Office (ISSOS) in 3248 Memorial Union (294-1120).

Prescription Drug Benefit Program

Graduate students on assistantship receive single coverage free of charge in a prescription drug

benefit program that reduces the cost of generic and prescription drugs available at the Student

Health Center Pharmacy. Information on this benefit can be found at:

http://www.health.iastate.edu/pharmacy/.

Health Service

As a student, you are eligible to use the ISU Student Health Service. Thielen Student Health Center is

a complete outpatient medical clinic located west of Beyer Hall. The health fee covers consultations

with medical staff and subsidizes charges for services, such as laboratory tests, immunizations, x-rays,

and pharmaceuticals. A range of services is offered, including medical exams (physicals), women’s

health care, sports medicine, physical therapy, STD testing and treatment, travel immunizations, and

a full-service pharmacy. Specialty services offered at a reduced rate include psychiatry, orthopedics,

and ear, nose and throat. A mandatory Student Health fee and Health Facility fee per semester will

be assessed to all students registered. The Thielen Student Health Center is located at Sheldon and

Union Drive on the northwest side of campus. http://www.health.iastate.edu

Additional information on the student group plan medical insurance and the benefits of the

mandatory health fee may be obtained at: http://www.hrs.iastate.edu/hrs/sship.

Dental Insurance is available for a fee: http://www.deltadentalia.com/.

Vacations and Sick Leave

A graduate student is classified as a “Student” when participating in a class or research in pursuit of a

degree. Graduate students on assistantship appointments are paid through the University and, as

such, are expected to conduct professional activities all days ISU is open, including days when classes

are not in session. Most students also conduct research on at least part of most weekends. Many

students find semester break a good time to make substantial research progress. Vacation should be

discussed with your major professor.

Rotation students can take short vacations during their rotations at holiday times, but to do so, they

must obtain permission from both the professor in whose lab they are rotating and the IM

Chair. Such permission should be obtained BEFORE reserving airline tickets or making other non-

refundable travel arrangements. Students who take vacation without prior approval will not be paid

for missed days and may suffer other administrative consequences at the discretion of the IM

Chair. Students who opt to leave the country for vacations or holidays and whose return is delayed

due to visa or other travel problems will likely have their payroll stopped beginning at the end of any

approved vacation days until they return to work.

All students are welcome to take vacation during University holidays. During the typical graduate

student rotation period (Aug 16-May 15), University holidays include Labor Day (September), 2 days

at Thanksgiving (November), 3 days at Christmas-New Year (December and January) and Martin

Luther King Day in January.

If you will be absent because of an illness, you should call your major professor as soon as possible on

the day you are sick and must be absent. On your return, you will need to fill out an Absence Request

form for sick leave in Workday. You should also use the form in advance when you have a planned

absence for medical reasons. Maternity/Paternity leave can be taken as sick leave and/or vacation.

Accumulated sick leave is forfeited upon completion of your appointment.

Injuries and Injury Reports

If you are injured while performing your duties as a Graduate Assistant, you must notify the office of

your home department or the IM Program Office and fill out an online form First Report of Injury

through the ISU Incident Portal at:

https://www.ehs.iastate.edu/services/occupational/InfoForAccidentsAndIncidents, as soon as you

are able to do so. This website outlines the medical treatment and reporting requirements. The

Thielen Student Health Center would be the first place to visit if you are on campus: Sheldon and

Union Drive, (515) 294-5801.

Student Counseling

Student Counseling Service (SCS) provides a wide range of services to help students gain the most

from their college experience. SCS offers career counseling, personal counseling, group counseling,

and workshops. Most services provided by SCS are short-term in nature, and SCS can assist students

needing long-term assistance with referrals to community services

(https://www.counseling.iastate.edu/).

Some of the typical issues SCS assists students with include career decision-making, coping with

relationship problems, low self-esteem, stress, loneliness, depression, cultural differences, sexual

assault recovery, trauma, childhood abuse, conflicts over sexuality, substance abuse, eating

disorders, academic motivation, and other concerns. Other services include the Substance Abuse

Prevention Program, Career Resource Center, Learning Disabilities Screening, Placement Testing, and

consultation and outreach services. SCS also provides consultation and training to faculty and staff to

assist them in addressing the psychological needs of students.

Crisis Services through Student Counseling Services

If you have an urgent matter and feel it would be important to speak to a counselor as soon as

possible, please call the SCS desk at 294-5056 and let the receptionist know that you are requesting a

same-day crisis appointment or simply come to our office in the Student Services Building on the 3rd

floor. SCS counselors save some appointments each day for such matters. If this is after hours or on a

weekend/holiday when SCS is not open, and you feel it is important to speak to someone, you may

call the Richmond Center at 515-232-5811. IF THIS IS A LIFE THREATENING SITUATION OR ONE THAT

COULD RESULT IN HARM TO YOURSELF OR SOMEONE ELSE, CALL 911.

Recreation Services Office: www.recservices.iastate.edu

Legal Assistance: www.dso.iastate.edu/sls

Student Organizations: https://www.stuorg.iastate.edu/

Dean of Students Office (DSO) and Student Assistance Services (SAS)

Members of the Dean of Students Office (DSO) and Student Assistance Services (SAS) assist students

as they manage issues surrounding academic concerns, personal matters/ emergencies, and

navigation of university policies and procedures. DSO/SAS staff members counsel students on

effective ways of filing academic grievances, refer students to university & community resources,

provide notification of faculty in emergency absence situations, intervene and follow up with

students experiencing mental and physical crises, and provide assistance in understanding the

University judicial system. In general, the DSO and SAS are places where students can find answers or

start on the path to their own solutions.

These pages are designed to alleviate some frequent concerns, but it can be very helpful to talk one-

on-one with a DSO staff member. Students, family members, and ISU faculty/staff seeking assistance

can contact dso-[email protected]. Coordinator of Outreach Services; stop in to the Dean of Students

Office (1010 Student Services Building); or call 515/294-1020 (TTY 515/294-6635) to schedule an

appointment.

An Excellent Source of Information for all things graduate student—the Iowa State University

Graduate College Handbook: http://www.grad-college.iastate.edu/handbook/.

ADMINISTRATIVE MATTERS

Administrative Assistance

There are a number of offices on campus to help with the administration of your graduate program.

The main one for Microbiology students is the Interdepartmental Microbiology Office. Dai Nguyen is

the IM Program Coordinator and can provide help with questions about all administrative

procedures. (Academic advice about courses and rotations will be provided by your Temporary

Graduate Advisor or major professor).

Dai Nguyen

Interdepartmental Microbiology Program

207 Science I

 515-294-9052

FAX 515-294-6019

E-mail: [email protected]

Office and Home Address

The Interdepartmental Microbiology program needs to know your local address and telephone

number and also needs to be informed of any changes in your address or phone number that may

occur during your tenure in the program.

All first year IM RAs will have a mailbox in the IM Program Office. Your permanent office (desk)

address will be determined once you have chosen a major professor. If you do laboratory rotations,

you should be given a temporary desk in each laboratory as you proceed through your rotations. You

may also be assigned temporary office space for your first academic year.

Communication

It is vital that you maintain good contact with Interdepartmental Microbiology personnel throughout

your graduate program. This is most easily done using e-mail.

E-mail. E-mail should be checked at least daily as this is the primary means of keeping students and

faculty informed about program activities. You may use the following e-mail addresses to reach all

students and faculty in the program:

micrograd@iastate.edu (reaches all IM graduate students)

microfac@iastate.edu (reaches all IM faculty members)

Internet. Most of the information that pertains to the program in general can be found at the

following web site: http://www.micrograd.iastate.edu/

Mail Service: You will normally pick up your mail in your home department. If you have not yet

chosen a home department, a temporary mailbox will be assigned to you in 207 Science I. You should

check for mail on a regular basis (at least twice a week). If the office door is unlocked but closed,

please feel free to come into the office to obtain your mail.

Transportation

Bicycles: You can park your bicycle at many locations on campus. Except for walks labeled as bike

paths, bicycle riders must not use campus sidewalks. A bicycle used between sundown and sunrise

must be equipped with a headlight, tail lights or an adequate reflector, and a warning device.

Bicycles used only on campus can be registered free through the ISU Parking office. Bicycles used off

campus must be registered by the city of Ames. The licenses may be obtained from various locations

in Ames (Hy-Vee, Michael's Cyclery, all bike shops in Ames, Ames City Offices -Finance, the University

Book Store), from the Parking Systems Office in the Armory on campus or online

http://www.cityofames.org/government/departments-divisions-i-z/police/permits/bicycle-permit.

Buses: The city of Ames has an excellent bus system called CyRide. During the school year the buses

leave from most locations every 20 minutes. If you show a current, paid University fee card, you can

ride for free. http://www.cyride.com/

Cars and Parking: A copy of the ISU Traffic and Parking Regulations can be obtained from Public

Safety, Parking Division, 27 Armory. Consult the section covering students:

http://www.parking.iastate.edu/.

APPENDICES

ANNUAL REPORT OF STUDENT ACTIVITIES

Interdepartmental Microbiology Graduate Program, Iowa State University

August 1 to July 31

All students majoring in Microbiology are required to submit an Annual Report to the IM Chair by August 15 of

each year. This Annual Report will be used as a tool to assess the strengths and weaknesses of the IM program,

as well as to monitor your progress. The information that is to be included, as well as a suggested format for

reporting your activities for the last year, is described below. Use only the headings for which you have

something significant to report, and report items in only one location (in the category which you feel is most

appropriate). Please include activities that have occurred during the period from August 1 of the previous

calendar year to July 31 of the year of the submission of the report. In addition to the Annual Report of Student

Activities, please provide a current Curriculum Vita that reflects your cumulative career activities. Provide the

completed Annual Report to the IM Program Coordinator by August 15.

I. Introduction

Name

Dates covered by this Annual Report: (e.g., August 1– July 31, Current Year)

Semester that you first registered for courses

Date Home Department Established

Date of POSC Submitted

Date of Approval of POSC by the Grad College

Date of Preliminary Exam

Date that POS Committee last met

Awards and Honors

II. Academic Performance

Courses taken during the reporting year (list course name, number, instructor, credits, semester taken, and

grade)

III. Research Activities

Research Project (describe progress made in research during the reporting year)

IV. Publications

For publications during the last year, provide authors, date, title, name of journal or publication, volume,

and pages, and for each publication, estimate the percentage of the total contributions to the publication that

were your contributions in each of the following areas: Concept development and design (X%); data

acquisition (X%); data analysis (X%); writing (X%)

A. Refereed journal articles (Published, in press and in the review process. Do not include articles in

preparation)

B. Non-refereed journal articles, newsletters, and conference proceedings in technical, semi-technical

and popular publications.

C. Books and chapters in books.

D. Published abstracts.

E. Published book reviews and letters or comments to the editor.

F. General audience publications such as bulletins, pamphlets, brochures, state-of-the-art updates, fact

sheets, home study materials, etc.

V. Presentations

Presentations (include oral and written presentations at scientific conferences, on campus, such as in

seminar series, and at other professional meetings; provide the name of the presentation, date, name of the

conference/meeting/seminar series, the type of presentation, such as a talk or poster, and estimate the

attendance at your presentation)

VI. Grants

Grants (For proposals that you have submitted or that list you as a participant, provide the following: title of

proposal, name of granting agency, amount of funds requested, effective dates of grant, principal

investigators, and your role in the grant. Provide this information for both proposals submitted and grants

funded; indicate funded grants.)

VII. Teaching Activities

Courses taught and Evaluation (list course number, course title, semester taught, credit hours, and number

enrolled; describe your teaching responsibilities; if possible, include evidence of evaluate teaching

effectiveness, including student evaluation summaries)

Course development (describe innovative teaching techniques and materials developed)

Mentor activities (describe activities in which you mentored other scientists in microbiology, including

children, high school students, undergraduate students, other graduate students, post-doctoral

researchers, visiting scientists, and faculty)

Other teaching accomplishments, including peer review of teaching activities and other significant activities

of the past year not already discussed

VIII. Professional Improvement Activities

Membership in Professional and Honor Societies (including MGSO)

Meetings, Conferences and Workshops attended

IX. Institutional and Professional Service

Committee Activities (Indicate membership on institutional and professional committees, offices held and

length of service; describe activities)

Other significant institutional and professional activities not already discussed

X. Other information useful in assessing your activities

XI. Program Feedback

If you have any comments, suggestions, or feedback on your courses, the IM program, or other factors that

are influencing your training program, you are welcome to include them.

Please attach a current Curriculum Vita to this completed Annual Report of Student Activities and send it via e-

mail to your Major Advisor, with the request that your Major Advisor review it and when approved, forward it

to the IM Program Coordinator. (dn[email protected])

NOTE: The IM Program must have up-to-date Annual Reports before the IM Chair will provide a signature of

approval on forms needed for advancement through the degree program.

Interdepartmental Microbiology Graduate Program Faculty

To Contact all IM

Faculty:

microfac@iastate.edu

To Contact all IM Graduate Students:

micrograd@iastate.edu

Administration

4-9052

microbiol[email protected]

Interdepartmental Microbiology

Name

Office/Lab

E-mail

Department

Allenspach-Jorn, Karin

4-1281

allek@iastate.edu

Veterinary Clinical Sciences

Beattie, Gwyn

4-5571/4-3198

gbeattie@iastate.edu

Plant Pathology, Ent & Micro

Beck, Joshua

4-8293

[email protected]

Biomedical Sciences

Bellaire, Bryan

4-1006

bbella@iastate.edu

Vet Micro and Prev Medicine

Bhattacharyya, Madan

4-2505

mbhattac@iastate.edu

Agronomy

Blanchong, Julie A

4-9699

julieb@iastate.edu

NREM

Blitvich, Bradley

4-9861

blitvic[email protected]

Vet Micro and Prev Medicine

Bobik, Thomas A

4-8247

bobik@iastate.edu

Biochem, Biophys & Mol Biol

Boury, Nancy

4-6019

nan1@iastate.edu

Plant Pathology, Ent & Micro

Brehm-Stecher, Byron F

4-4210

byron@iastate.edu

Food Science & Human Nutrition

Burrough, Eric R

4-0190

burrough@iastate.edu

Vet Diagnostic and Prod Animal Med

Carlson, Steve

4-0912

stevec@iastate.edu

Biomedical Sciences

Cho, Michael

4-6449

mcho@iastate.edu

Biomedical Sciences

Cunnick, Joan E

4-2070/4-7863

jcunnick@iastate.edu

Animal Science

Dickson, James S

4-4733/4-3165

jdicks[email protected]

Animal Science

Ellis, Timothy G

4-8922

tge@iastate.edu

Civil, Construct. & Environ Eng.

Friedberg, Iddo

4-5959

idoerg@iastate.edu

Vet Micro and Prev Medicine

Gauger, Phillip C

4-2437

pcgauger@iastate.edu

Vet Diag and Prod Anim Med

Gleason, Mark L

4-0579/4-0589

mgleason@iastate.edu

Plant Pathology and Microbiology

Gupta Mohan

4-3951

mgupta@iastate.edu

GDCB-LAS

Hall, Steven

4-7650

[email protected]

Ecology, Evolution & Organismal Biol

Halverson, Larry J

4-0495/4-9729

larryh@iastate.edu

Plant Pathology, Ent & Micro

Harrington, Thomas C

4-0582/4-3921

tcharrin@iastate.edu

Plant Pathology, Ent & Micro

Harris, Steven

4-2149

[email protected]

Plant Pathology, Ent & Micro

Howe, Adina

4-0176

adina@iastate.edu

Agricultural and Biosystems Eng

Hwang, Soyoun

515-337-6871

soyoun.hw[email protected]ov

Vet Micro and Prev Medicine

Ikuma, Kaoru

4-7660

kikuma@iastate.edu

Civil, Constru. & Environ Eng.

Jarboe, Laura

4-2319

ljarboe@iastate.edu

Chemical & Biological Eng

Kohut, Marian L

4-8364

mkohut@iastate.edu

Kinesiology

Kreuder, Amanda Jo

4-2174

akreuder@iastate.edu

Vet Diag and Prod Anim Med

Li, Ganwu

4-3358

liganwu@iastate.edu

Vet Diag and Prod Anim Med

Looft, Torey P

4-5776

tlooft@iastate.edu

Vet Micro and Prev Medicine

Lyte, Mark

4-5957

mlyte@iastate.edu

Vet Micro and Prev Medicine

Mansell, Thomas Joseph

4-7642

mansell@iastate.edu

Chemical & Biological Eng

Mellata, Melha

4-9220

mmellata@iastate.edu

Food Science & Human Nutrition

Mendonca, Aubrey F

4-2950

amendon@iastate.edu

Food Science & Human Nutrition

Miller, Cathy

4-4797

clm@iastate.edu

Vet Micro and Prev Medicine

Miller, W. Allen

4-2436/4-4754

wamiller@iastate.edu

Plant Pathology, Ent & Micro

Munkvold, Gary P

4-7560

munkvold@iastate.edu

Plant Pathology, Ent & Micro

Olsen, Steven

4-3282

solsen@iastate.edu

Veterinary Pathology

Ong, Say K

4-3927

skong@iastate.edu

Civil, Construc & Environ Eng

Phillips, Gregory J

4-1525/4-8824

gregory@iastate.edu

Vet Micro and Prev Medicine

Plummer, Paul J

4-8522

pplummer@iastate.edu

Vet Diag and Prod Anim Med

Reuel, Nigel

4-4592

reuel@iastste.edu

Chemical & Biological Eng

Roth, James Allen

4-8459

jaroth@iastate.edu

Vet Micro and Prev Medicine

Sahin, Orhan

4-3861

osahin@iastate.edu

Vet Diag and Prod Anim Med

Schmitz-Esser Stephan

4-2739

sse@iastate.edu

Animal Science

Scupham, Alexandra

4-5776

ascupham@iastate.edu

Vet Micro and Prev Medicine

Shao, Zengyi

4-1132

zyshao@iastate.edu

Chemical & Biological Eng

Smith, Ryan Chad

4-8828

smithr@iastate.edu

Entomology

Soupir, Michelle

4-2307

msoupir@iastate.edu

Agricultural and Biosystems Eng

Sponseller, Brett A

1-5243

baspon@iastate.edu

Veterinary Clinical Sciences

Swanner, Elizabeth S

4-5826

eswanner@iastate.edu

GE AT Sci

Vaughn, Eric Martin

296-7016

emvaughn@iastate.edu

Vet Micro and Prev Medicine

Verhoeven, David

4-2562

davidver@iastate.edu

Vet Micro and Prev Medicine

Wannemuehler, Michael

4-3534

mjwannem@iastate.edu

Vet Micro and Prev Medicine

Whitham, Steven Alan

4-4952/4-5531

swhitham@iastate.edu

Plant Pathology, Ent & Micro

Zhang, Jianqiang

4-8024

jqzhang@iastate.edu

Vet Diag and Prod Anim Med

Zhang, Qijing

4-2038

zhang123@iastate.edu

Vet Micro and Prev Medicine

SUMMARY OF ADMINISTRATIVE FORMS

NOTE: For all forms:

The Director of Graduate Education (DOGE) is the IM Chair, Melha Mellata (Food Science and

Human Nutrition) 3346 Food Sciences, mmellata@iastate.edu, 515-294-9220).

To obtain the DOGE signature on any documents, please leave the document with Dai

The Department/Program is Interdepartmental Microbiology.

Add/Drop Forms

Use to add/drop courses after the first week of classes.

If you need assistance to add, drop, or change a course that cannot be done in AccessPlus, please let

Dai know.

Request for Professional Advancement Grant (PAG)

You can request funds from the Graduate College and the Graduate Student Senate (GSS) to attend

and/or present at conferences and symposia: https://www.gpss.iastate.edu/pag/apply.

Request to Establish a Home Department

Complete when you decide on your major professor and home department. https://www.grad-

college.iastate.edu/student/forms/

Recommendation for POS Committee Appointment Worksheet

Complete when you have formed a POS Committee:

http://www.grad-college.iastate.edu/common/forms/files/POSC.pdf

Request to Change Committee Appointment

Changes to POS Committee appointments can be made directly on the online POSC form through

AccessPlus (https://accessplus.iastate.edu/frontdoor/login.jsp)

Program of Study and Committee Appointment online form (POSC)

Should be completed by the end of the first year in your permanent lab. The online POSC form can

be completed and submitted through AccessPlus.

Ideally all of the IM core courses and seminars should be listed first so that they can be easily checked

for number of times taken. Additional courses can then be listed at the bottom of the form.

Modifications to the Program of Study

Changes to your approved POSC (such as to add or remove courses) can be made on the POSC form

directly in AccessPlus and submit for approval.

Request for Preliminary Examination

Use this form to indicate your intent to take your preliminary examination.

This form is now available on the Grad College website at https://www.grad-

college.iastate.edu/common/forms/student_forms.php. It must be completed and received by the

Graduate College 2 weeks in advance of your preliminary examination. The Preliminary Examination

Report form link will be sent to the IM Program Coordinator and to your major professor prior to

your scheduled exam.

Graduation Deadlines

This site provides the date deadlines by semester and the steps/forms necessary to graduate:

http://www.grad-college.iastate.edu/calendar/

Application for Graduation (Diploma Slip)

See above deadlines for due date and submit Application for Graduation via Accessplus:

http://www.grad-college.iastate.edu/common/forms/grad_app.php.

Thesis-Preliminary Format Check and Final Submission

Thesis—Information on Abstract, Preliminary Format Checklist, Final Submission Checklist and Thesis

sample pages can be found through this web site:

http://www.grad-college.iastate.edu/current/thesis/

See above graduation deadlines for due date

A copy of your thesis must be provided to each of your committee members at

least three weeks prior to final oral examination.

Request for Final Oral Examination (See above deadlines for due date)

This form must be turned into the Graduate College 3 weeks in advance of your final examination:

https://www.grad-college.iastate.edu/common/forms/student_forms.php. The Final Examination

Report form will be sent to the IM Program Coordinator who should then send it on to your major

professor.

Approval Slip for Graduation

The Graduate College will send your department or major professor the Approval Slip with the

"Report of Final Examination" form after your Request for Final Examination is received and

approved.

Thesis Final Submission and Graduation Checklist

Includes information on deadlines

http://www.grad-college.iastate.edu/current/thesis/checklist/

PROFESSIONAL ETHICS

It is imperative that you understand the ethical standards of science and conduct your scholarly

activities accordingly. Scientists who commit unethical acts, whether from carelessness, ignorance, or

malice, quickly lose the respect of the scientific community and/or are prevented from practicing

science. Scientific misconduct includes such activities as: falsification of data, fabrication, deceptively

selective reporting, purposeful omission of conflicting data with the intent to falsify results, plagiarism,

representation of another’s work as one’s own, misappropriation of the ideas of others, the

unauthorized use of privileged information, misappropriation of funds or resources for personal gain,

and falsification of one’s credentials. At ISU, these acts are taken very seriously and constitute

“academic misconduct” (see ISU Graduate College Handbook). Individuals found guilty of academic

misconduct may suffer a variety of penalties, up to and including expulsion from the university.

Occasionally, you may be faced with situations in which you are tempted to act in a manner you think

might be unethical. If this occurs, we recommend discussing the situation with your major professor,

or another professor whom you trust, to determine whether the actions you are considering are

unethical. He or she should be able to suggest alternative actions that will be free of ethical questions.

Unfortunately, not all people understand or care about ethical issues and, at some time in your career,

you may be witness to an act you believe to be unethical. When the individuals committing the

presumed unethical acts are members of your own laboratory, or worse yet, individuals with power

over you, such as your major professor, the situation can be very awkward and you must proceed

cautiously. You will find yourself torn between a fear of retribution and a desire to stop the unethical

behavior before it hurts you and other members of your laboratory.

If you believe that unethical behavior is going on in your laboratory, we recommend that you first

attempt to discuss the situation informally with the person whom you think might be behaving

unethically. Sometimes friendly questions will resolve the problem. If you feel uncomfortable in this

approach, or if you have tried friendly approach and it didn’t resolve the problem, we recommend that

you discuss the situation informally with a professor whom you trust. You may also go directly to the

Chair of Interdepartmental Microbiology or a member of the Interdepartmental Microbiology

Supervisory Committee. All discussions with the Chair and the IM Supervisory Committee members will

be confidential. You may also go directly to Associate Vice-Provost for Research who is responsible for

investigating charges of academic misconduct on campus. No matter what you chose to do, you should

take great care to ensure the rights of the individual whose actions you are questioning. Frivolous

accusations of misconduct and vicious spreading of rumors are just as unethical as fabrication of data

or plagiarism.

LABORATORY SAFETY TRAINING

All new graduate students participate in OSHA Lab Standard Training. This Training can be

conducted by the University Environmental Health and Safety Office (EHSO) (Ruth Book, Training,

294-8338) or the student can complete this requirement on-line by following these instructions:

Go to: http://www.ehs.iastate.edu/cms/default.asp

Click on: Learning Center Login:

Click on: On-Line Courses:

Take the following:

Chemical Hygiene Plan and Personal Protective Equipment

Fire Safety and Extinguisher Training

ISU-EPA Hazardous Waste Generator Online Training

NIH Guidelines

Biological Risk Assessment for Researchers

New graduate students will be required to participate in other lab safety training as scheduling

by EHSO allows. This can include: Personal Protective Equipment, Radiation Safety: What Non-

Radiation Laboratory Employees Need to Know, Hazardous Waste in the Laboratory: Five Critical

Factors, and Fire Extinguisher Training. To register for these courses go to:

https://training.ehs.iastate.edu/IowaSU/site/.

Click on “Login”

Click on “Register for Training/Training Calendar”. Note the months listed and look through the

listings by month for next available classes. Places, dates and times for training will be listed. You

should register for training as required and then attend the course.

Interdepartmental Microbiology Governance Document

This document was approved by a vote of the Interdepartmental Microbiology program faculty on July

9, 2003 and updated by majority vote of Microbiology program faculty on June 29, 2017.

I. Name of the Major

Microbiology

II. Mission Statement

Microbiology is integral to global well-being through its central role in agricultural productivity,

human health, environmental quality and restoration, industrial processes, and food production and

safety, as well as its contribution to a basic understanding of all living systems. The mission of the

Graduate Program at Iowa State University is to advance scientific discovery in microbiology by

providing education and research opportunities for future microbiologists.

The objectives of the major are:

• To provide broad and robust graduate student training in Microbiology.

• To enhance the national and international reputation of Iowa State University in the field of

Microbiology.

• To foster further intellectual exchange and research collaborations among Iowa State

Microbiology faculty, students and staff.

• To provide a formal entity for seeking broad-based resources for the support of lecture

series, retreats, graduate assistantships, postdoctoral fellowships and various graduate

student prizes for excellence in Microbiological Research. This financial support will be

sought from the participating Iowa State colleges, private donations, and national training

grant awards.

III. Program Description

The program includes, but is not limited to, prokaryotic and eukaryotic microbiology, virology, the

interactions between microbes and animal, plant, and arthropod hosts, and the responses of those hosts

to the microbes.

The program includes faculty from a variety of disciplines, university departments, and national

laboratories.

IV. Degrees Offered

Ph.D. in Microbiology

Graduate minor in Microbiology

M.S. in Microbiology, thesis format only

Details of the requirements for each degree are provided in the program handbook.

V. Relationship of the Interdepartmental Microbiology Major to Participating Departments

Any department may participate in the Interdepartmental Microbiology program by supporting

departmental faculty and student participation in the Microbiology graduate major.

Participating departments will benefit from new and stimulating research interactions with

faculty and students from other cooperating departments and increased number and quality of

graduate students.

Chairs of participating departments agree to support Microbiology in the following ways:

1) through recognition of time spent by faculty who actively participate in the

operations of this interdepartmental major;

2) by support, as resources permit, of Microbiology graduate students working under

the guidance of their faculty; and

3) by supporting and encouraging relevant course offerings by departmental faculty.

VI. Students

Graduate students are the most important component of the Microbiology graduate program.

Students will be recruited and selected competitively according to procedures established by

the Microbiology faculty. Details of admission procedures, curriculum, rotations, exams and

other requirements will be provided in the program handbook. Responsibility for maintaining

and revising the Graduate Student Policies Document will reside with the Chair and

Supervisory Committee. Major changes in the document will require approval of the

Microbiology faculty.

VII. Faculty

To be awarded a degree in Microbiology, a student’s major professor must be a member of the

Interdepartmental Microbiology program. Any faculty member at Iowa State University who is

actively involved in microbiology research and graduate training may apply for membership in

Microbiology. Membership must be renewed every five years.

Prospective faculty should submit applications to the Supervisory Committee, which will

recommend actions to be taken to the Microbiology faculty at large. Information to be

contained in the application and recommended standards for acceptance will be established by

the Supervisory Committee. Acceptance of membership will be determined by a vote of the

Microbiology membership. Faculty will be asked every five years if they would like to renew

their membership.

VIII. Administration

The Interdepartmental Microbiology graduate major is the responsibility of the Microbiology

faculty and is administered by the Graduate College. The faculty elect a Chair, Associate Chair,

and Supervisory Committee from their membership. The Chair is designated "director of

graduate education" for the major and as such is the faculty member recognized by the

Graduate College to be responsible for the day-to-day supervision of the major and the

monitoring of student progress. The Chair signs for the major, appoints committees other than

the Supervisory Committee and provides general leadership.

• Chair and Associate Chair

A Chair elected by the Microbiology faculty will coordinate all activities of the Interdepartmental

Microbiology program. The Microbiology Chair may reside in any participating department. The

term of office for the chair will be two years.

The Chair’s responsibilities include carrying out existing program policies, suggesting new

policies, administering the budget, serving as a liaison with higher administration, coordinating

the efforts of Microbiology committees, and supervising office staff. The Chair’s

responsibilities may be changed at any time at the discretion of the Supervisory Committee.

The Chair may also assign responsibilities to other Microbiology Committees, the Associate

Chair, faculty or staff; in this instance, however, the Chair will assume responsibility for

assuring that the tasks are performed satisfactorily.

The duties of the Associate Chair are to share in administrative duties, as assigned by the Chair.

This will relieve the Chair of some duties, provide training for the Associate Chair, and provide

more administrative continuity in the program.

Elections for Associate Chair (future Chair) will be held every two years and will be

administered by the Supervisory Committee. The Associate Chair serves for two years and then

becomes Chair for a term of two years.

Nominations for Associate Chair/Chair will be solicited from the Microbiology membership

and nominees willing to serve will be voted upon by the membership. The Supervisory

Committee has responsibility for assuring high quality nominations. During this process the

Supervisory Committee (or appointed nomination committee) will consult with the Graduate

College. Elections should be held by May 15; terms will start on July 1.

• Supervisory Committee

A Supervisory Committee will be responsible for review of all aspects of the program, for

guiding the establishment of policy, for interpreting and implementing policies that have been

established by the Microbiology membership, and for advising the Chair.

In all decisions, each member, including the Chair, will have one vote. In case of disagreements

between the Supervisory Committee and the Chair, the Supervisory Committee will have final

authority. In the case of disagreements between the Supervisory Committee and the faculty, the

faculty view, as determined by referenda, will prevail.

Voting Membership - The Supervisory Committee will include the Chair, Associate Chair, ex

officio chair, and the chairs of any sub-committees.

Terms will start on August 1. The Supervisory Committee may appoint a Microbiology

member on a temporary basis to complete any unfinished term of a Committee member

or Associate Chair, or to substitute for a Committee member or Associate Chair on

leave.

Non-voting Membership –All Principal Investigators (PI) or Program Directors (PD) on all

training grants obtained for the purpose of supplying stipends for majors in

Microbiology will serve as non-voting members of the Supervisory Committee. The

president of the Microbiology Graduate Student Organization (MGSO), or a designated

representative, will also serve as a non-voting member.

Meetings - To ensure good communication between the Chair and the Supervisory Committee,

the Supervisory Committee should meet monthly, preferably at a regularly scheduled

time. It is the responsibility of the Chair to call the meetings; if the Chair is not

available, the Associate Chair may call the meetings.

• Committees

Committees of Microbiology Faculty will be established as needed to perform tasks and advise

the Chair on matters such as student admissions, curriculum, academic standards and faculty

membership. The Chair will appoint members and chairs of these committees. The number,

membership, and responsibilities of the committees may be modified at any time at the

discretion of the Chair. In cases of disagreement between a Committee and the Chair, the

Supervisory Committee will have final authority.

• Faculty Meetings

Full faculty meetings should be held at least once per year to update faculty on Microbiology

activities and to discuss issues of importance to the group. It is the responsibility of the Chair

to call the meetings; if the Chair is not available, the Associate Chair may call the meetings.

• Establishment of Policies

All policies modifying core-course requirements and changes to this document must be

approved by a majority of the total Microbiology membership. All other policies may be

established by a vote of the Supervisory Committee. However, the Supervisory Committee

should consult with the faculty when making significant policy decisions and should hold

referenda for policy changes likely to be controversial. In addition, all policy decisions by the

Supervisory Committee must be announced to the faculty; if three or more faculty object to a

policy, a referendum must be held to determine its acceptance or rejection. Referenda on such

policies will be determined by a simple majority of the votes cast; at least 50% of the

Microbiology faculty must vote for a referendum to be valid.

• Elections and Referenda

All elections and referenda will be determined by a majority vote of the Microbiology faculty

who respond to the call for votes; at least 50% of the membership must vote for an election or

referendum to be valid.

IX. Amendment of Governance Document

Amendment of this document requires a simple majority vote of the total Microbiology faculty.

DISMISSAL CRITERIA

Continuing registration as a graduate student at Iowa State University is contingent on maintaining

good standing in a graduate major. The Interdepartmental Microbiology (IM) Program expects that

students in the Microbiology major will complete their degrees in a satisfactory and timely manner.

However, there are several situations that may require severing the relationship between the IM

Program and a student.

1. Dismissal Criteria

A student may be dismissed, that is, removed from their degree program and not permitted to register

as an IM student, for the following reasons:

a. Failure to progress satisfactorily in his/her degree program

This may be evidenced by a lack of research progress, a lack of aptitude for microbiology, or

a failure to maintain a satisfactory academic standing, as defined by the Iowa State University

Graduate College Handbook.

b. Lack of a major professor

Because graduate degrees in Microbiology at Iowa State are centered about mentored

research projects, it is impossible to complete a degree without a research mentor, i.e., a major

professor. To maintain good standing and earn a degree in Microbiology, a student must have

an IM faculty member serving as his or her major professor.

A student admitted to IM on rotation has up to 6 months (M.S.) or 12 months (Ph.D.) from

the date of entry into the program to find a faculty member willing to serve as his or her major

professor (unless otherwise designated at the time of admission). If the student desires, the IM

Chair will help the student search for a major professor; however, final responsibility for finding

a major professor rests with the student.

Occasionally, faculty members who have previously agreed to serve as major professor

become unable or unwilling to serve. Common reasons include ill health or a change in job

status by the faculty ember, or poor performance by the student, such as described in Section

1a. Faculty desiring to terminate their service as major professor may do so by notifying the

student and the Chair in writing. A student who has lost his or her major professor has up to

three months after the date the Interdepartmental Microbiology Chair is notified to identify

another faculty member willing to serve. The Chair will help the student search for a new major

professor, if the student so desires; however, the responsibility for finding a faculty member

willing to serve as major professor rests with the student and success cannot be guaranteed.

c. Academic dishonesty

The proper conduct of science requires the highest standards of personal integrity. Because

of this, dishonesty in the classroom or in the conduct of research is considered a serious offense

by IM and by the University. Students accused of academic dishonesty will be dealt with

according to the procedures outlined in the University Catalog and the Faculty Handbook.

Possible punishments can include dismissal from the program and expulsion from the

University, depending on the severity of the offense.

2. Dismissal Procedures

A student’s POS committee, or if the student has no POS committee, the student’s major professor,

Temporary Graduate Advisor, or a member of the IM Supervisory Committee can recommend the

dismissal of a student for any of the reasons listed above. Recommendations for dismissal are made to

the IM Chair and are acted upon by the IM Supervisory Committee.

Procedures for dismissal are as described in the Iowa State University Graduate College Handbook.

Before a dismissal is decided, the IM Chair must give the student a written justification for why

dismissal is being considered. The IM Chair must also discuss the situation with the student, with the

IM Supervisory Committee, and with his or her POS committee and major professor (or Temporary

Graduate Advisor) in attempt to find a satisfactory resolution. These discussions constitute the

“informal conference” as described in the Graduate College Handbook. If a satisfactory resolution

cannot be reached and the Supervisory Committee votes to dismiss the student, either party may bring

the issue to the attention of the Associate Dean of the Graduate College for a decision. The student

may appeal the decision of the Associate Dean, as described in the Graduate College Handbook.

3. Responsibilities of the IM Program and the Major Professor

It is the responsibility of the IM Program to counsel students who are having academic difficulties,

to help students search for an acceptable major professor, or if students are unable to overcome these

difficulties, to help the students identify and apply to other appropriate degree programs. It is the

responsibility of the major professor to seek funds for a student’s assistantship and for the conduct of

research. Students performing satisfactorily can normally expect two years of support as either RA or

TA for an M.S. degree, three years for a Ph.D. with a prior M.S., and five years for a Ph.D. without a

prior M.S.; however, funding cannot be guaranteed.

4. Relationship between Status in IM and Termination of Financial Support

Although students in IM are normally supported on graduate assistantships, this is not a

requirement for continued participation in the major. Students not on assistantship will continue to

have regular status in the major so long as they have a major professor, remain in good standing, and

are registered. However, because assistantship support at Iowa State requires that a student be a

member of a graduate program, dismissal from IM requires that assistantship support be terminated,

unless the student is able to transfer to another graduate program at ISU.

Students with any doubt about their assistantship status should discuss their situation with their

major professor, the IM Chair, and/or the entity providing their assistantship support. For further

information on termination of assistantship appointments, see the Graduate College Handbook.

5. Appeal Process

The University has established appeal processes for student grievances. These vary depending on

the nature of the grievance and are described in the Graduate Handbook. Generally, these procedures

begin with the program chair. It is usually best for all parties if a satisfactory resolution can be reached

without initiating a formal appeal process. The Associate Dean of the Graduate College is available to

informally consult with students and faculty.

NONDISCRIMINATION

AND SEXUAL HARASSMENT POLICIES

Complete information can be found at: http://policy.iastate.edu/policy/discrimination/

Selections from Iowa State University Discrimination and Harassment Policy follow:

Iowa State University prohibits discrimination, which can include disparate treatment directed

toward an individual or group of individuals based on race, ethnicity, sex, pregnancy, color, religion,

national origin, physical or mental disability, age (40 and over), marital status, sexual orientation

(including gender identity), status as a U.S Veteran (disabled, Vietnam, or other), or other protected

class, that adversely affects their employment or education.

Iowa State University also prohibits harassment, which can be a form of discrimination if it is

unwelcome and is sufficiently severe or pervasive so as to substantially interfere with a person's work

or education. Harassment may include, but is not limited to, threats, physical contact or violence, pranks,

jokes, epithets, derogatory comments, vandalism, or verbal, graphic, or written conduct directed at an

individual or individuals because of their race, ethnicity, sex, pregnancy, color, religion, national origin,

physical or mental disability, age, marital status, sexual orientation (including gender identity), or U.S.

veteran status. Even if actions are not directed at specific persons, a hostile environment may be created

when the conduct is sufficiently severe, pervasive or persistent so as to unreasonably interfere with or

limit the ability of an individual to work, study, or otherwise to participate in activities of the University.

It is the University's goal to prevent the occurrence of discriminatory and harassing activity and

to promptly stop such conduct. While grounded in state and federal non-discrimination laws, this policy

may cover those activities which, although not severe, persistent, or pervasive enough to meet the legal

definition of harassment, are inappropriate and unjustified in an educational or work environment. This

policy will be interpreted so as to avoid infringement upon First Amendment rights of free speech. The

University must be mindful of the tradition of academic freedom that includes the free exchange of ideas

inherent in an academic community. A determination as to whether discrimination or harassment has

occurred will be based upon the context in which the alleged conduct occurs.

Complaint Resolution

In an effort to prevent or stop discriminatory or harassing behavior, the University has adopted

specific avenues through which an individual can make his or her complaint known. With issues of

discrimination and harassment, it is important to identify and remedy the situation as soon as possible.

For this reason, the University has adopted two complaint resolution mechanisms for discrimination and

harassment concerns - informal and formal resolution. Claims of discrimination and harassment must be

brought either as an informal complaint or a formal complaint to ensure that appropriate action can be

taken right away. An informal complaint may, but need not be made before filing a formal complaint;

however, once a formal complaint has reached resolution, the same complaint cannot be brought as an

informal complaint.

To best remedy a situation, complainants are urged to promptly share concerns or complaints

rather than risking their well-being or negatively affecting the University's ability to investigate their

case due to the passage of time and potential departure of witnesses. If a formal complaint contains

incomplete information, the Office of Equal Opportunity and Diversity will promptly seek to gather the

needed information from the complainant. In the event that such information is not furnished to the

Office of Equal Opportunity and Diversity within 30 days from the date of the request, the case may be

closed. Consistent with federal regulations governing the filing of complaints, the Office of Equal

Opportunity and Diversity may decline to investigate claims in which none of the alleged discrimination

or harassing action occurred within the preceding 300 days.

Any employee, student, visitor, applicant, or program participant of Iowa State University may

file a complaint alleging discrimination or harassment in violation of the University's policy prohibiting

such conduct. In most cases, complaints against affiliates or contractors of Iowa State University must

first proceed through the affiliate or contractor before Iowa State University may intervene. Information

about the University's policy and resolution procedures may be found in several offices, including the

Dean of Students Office, the Student Counseling Service, the Women's Center, the Employee Assistance

Program, and the Office of Equal Opportunity and Diversity. As described at the above web site, the

University has designated and trained certain individuals, called Sexual Harassment Assistors, to assist

a potentially injured person in deciding if and how to proceed and in carrying out that decision.

Confidentiality

Persons seeking general information or guidance about harassment or discrimination may be

concerned about whether the information they share with another person will be confidential. While the

university is eager to create a safe environment in which individuals can be unafraid to discuss concerns

and make complaints, legal obligations may require the university to take some action once it is informed

that harassment or discrimination may be occurring. Because of their positions of authority, certain

university personnel--i.e., central administrators, deans, directors, department chairs, supervisors, and

managers--are particularly obligated to take action when they receive a complaint of harassment or

discrimination. Although the confidentiality of the information received and the privacy of the

individuals involved cannot be guaranteed, they will be protected to as great an extent as is legally

possible. The expressed wishes of the complainant regarding confidentiality will be considered in the

context of the university's legal obligation to act upon the charge and the right of the charged party to be

informed concerning the charge.

DIVERSITY AT IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY

The Office of Equal Opportunity and Diversity (EOD) is located at 3350 Beardshear Hall, right off

the elevator. http://www.hrs.iastate.edu/diversity/

ISU defines diversity as that quality of its physical, social, cultural and intellectual environment

which embraces the rich differences within the multiplicity of human expression and characteristics

including age, culture, ethnicity, gender identification and presentation, language and linguistic ability,

physical ability and quality, race, religion, sexual orientation, and socioeconomic status. “In order for

affirmative action or diversity to work, there has to be an environment that welcomes it, not just tolerates

it”, Carla R. Espinoza, Associate Vice President, Human Resources Services, Director, Equal

Opportunity & Diversity, January, 2006.

On-line training for courses such as Diversity, Harassment and Discrimination and Drug Free Workplace

are now available through ACCESS PLUS.

“Iowa State University does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, age, religion, national origin,

sexual orientation, gender identity, sex, marital status, disability, or status as a U.S. veteran. Inquiries

can be directed to the Director of Equal Opportunity and Diversity, 3210 Beardshear Hall, (515) 294-

7612.”

FELLOWSHIP OPPORTUNITIES (that we know about)

Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP) Brief overview is below; please go to the website

for complete details. http://www.nsf.gov/funding/education.jsp?fund_type=2

Synopsis of Program: The National Science Foundation aims to ensure the vitality of the human

resource base of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics in the United States and to

reinforce its diversity by offering approximately 1,000 graduate fellowships in this competition. The

Graduate Research Fellowship provides three years of support for graduate study leading to research-

based master’s or doctoral degrees and is intended for students who are at the early stages of their

graduate study. The Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP) invests in graduate education for

a cadre of diverse individuals who demonstrate their potential to successfully complete graduate

degree programs in disciplines relevant to the mission of the National Science Foundation.

The three eligibility requirements for the Graduate Research Fellowship Program -- citizenship, degree

requirements, and field of study – are described. Applicants are advised to read the entire program

solicitation carefully to be sure that the requirements are interpreted properly. Applicants must exercise

judgment in assessing eligibility. Applicants must be United States citizens or nationals, or permanent

resident aliens of the United States. Fellowships are intended for individuals in the early stages of their

graduate study. Applicants must have completed no more than twelve months of full-time graduate

study at the time of their application. Fellowships are awarded for graduate study leading to research-

based Master’s or doctoral degrees in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics

supported by the National Science Foundation (See NSF-Supported Fields of Study). The NSF

welcomes applications for interdisciplinary programs of study and research.

GEM: http://www.gemfellowship.org/ Graduate Fellowships for Minority Students

The mission of The National GEM Consortium is to enhance the value of the nation's human capital by

increasing the participation of underrepresented groups (African Americans, American Indians, and

Hispanic Americans) at the master's and doctoral levels in engineering and science. We prepare

technical leaders for advanced careers in industry, academia, and government agencies by identifying

and selecting highly qualified GEM Fellows to complete a program of graduate study and internships.

Through our university and employer members, and other strategic partners, GEM develops funding to

award fellowships and builds mentor networks to support Fellows in achieving academic and

professional success.

On-Line availability of funding resources:

http://www.ospa.iastate.edu/

The office of Sponsored Programs (OSP) located at 1138 Pearson Hall (294-5225) assists students

seeking fellowships and research funding from sources outside the university (state, federal, and

private agencies). OSP maintains a library of directories and other materials on fellowships and grants

and publishes listings of funding opportunities in each edition of the University Newsletter.

Information on finding funding can be accessed via link at https://www.grantshub.iastate.edu/finding-

funding/.