Our DVM curriculum fosters critical thinking, communication, and clinical reasoning skills to complement a comprehensive background in the biomedical and clinical disciplines that are the foundation of veterinary medicine.

Trainees are required to rotate through at least three research laboratories. The purpose of the rotations is to enable each student to assess a variety of training opportunities before selecting a research mentor, who will also serve Chair of the Special Committee.

The Chair may be a faculty member either of the College of Veterinary Medicine or another college, but must be a member of the Cornell Graduate School faculty. Although the time spent in each laboratory may vary, it is expected that each rotation will be a meaningful experience.

ONLINE ROTATION INFORMATION SUBMISSION FORM
Used to submit new rotation information to the Office of Graduate Education

The BBS rotation evaluation process provides a framework for constructive discussion of the student’s laboratory rotation.
The rotation evaluation will has three components:

Step 1 - Student Evaluation – ONLINE FORM
Student completes online self evaluation. This evaluation will be emailed to your rotation mentor and student will be copied on the message.

Step 2 - Mentor Evaluation – ONLINE FORM
Faculty submits online response which will then be emailed back to faculty mentor to be shared with student prior or during the required face to face dialogue.

Step 3 - Face to Face discussion

The CDOC has developed two new requirements to provide students enhanced guidance from the CDOC during critical points in their PhD studies:

1. Students who have been approved for a 5th year of PhD training will submit a brief 4 month progress report to the CDOC (submit to Arla)
   1. Format: Short list of bullet points that addresses the following: 
      1. What have you accomplished in the past 4 months? 
      2. Using a month-by-month outline, how do you plan to finish up experimentation by the end of the year? 
   2. The goal is to ensure that the student is on track to complete the needed experimentation prior to returning to the DVM curriculum. 
   3. This new policy will apply to students starting their 5th year of PhD training this summer and beyond. 
   4. For current students starting the 5th year of their PhD, this is due by the end of November. 
2. Students in the first year of their PhD studies will submit a brief 6 month progress report for review by the CDOC (submit to Arla)
   1. Format: Short list of bullet points that addresses the following: 
      1. What have you accomplished in the past 6 months? 
      2. What are your plans and goals for the next 6 months? Is the project progressing in a positive direction or are you reconsidering project priorities and, if so, what is the new anticipated direction?
   2. The goal of this policy is to help ensure that CD students receive guidance and support in the early months of establishing their PhD work to set them on a productive track. 
   3. This new policy will apply to students starting their PhD studies in Spring 2021 and beyond. 

During your first year in graduate school, you will take BioAP7100 — Translational Biology (spring semester), and BioAP6100 — By Experimental Design; Survival skills for graduate students (fall semester).  You will also take an Ethics course BioMG7510 - Ethical Issues and Professional Responsibilities and a Clinical Biostatistics course (VTPMD 7070).

Additional graduate courses will be taken before the A-exam. These courses will be selected to meet the requirements from the graduate field and from the student graduate committee. Information about courses can be found in the Courses of Study catalog.

To ensure broad preparation, each student is required to complete the same set of 12 Clinical Rotations. In addition, students must select one of six Clinical Pathways, comprised of seven additional rotations. This allows students to tailor a component of their clinical training to meet their interests and professional goals.

Examinations

Dissertation