Study Program
of the International Doctoral School for Biological Sciences

at the Museum and Institute of Zoology, PAS

(set out according to the decree by the minister of  science and higher education,

dated September 1, 2011, Act Report no. 196)

I. Scope of the PhD studies

• The table outlining the detailed program is set out at the end of this document
• The program courses and activities, corresponding to 60 ECTS points, include:

-          mandatory subjects

-          optional  subjects

-          seminars

-          workshop developing  teaching skills

-          individual tasks monitored by the supervisor

-          individual preparation for the doctoral exams

• Mandatory subjects  (total of 60 ECTS points). PhD students are required to attend the courses (≥ 60 h in total) and  pass the exams of the following subjects:

-          Evolution/ Evolutionary ecology

-          Statistics

-          Molecular techniques for taxonomic, ecological and evolutionary research

-          Contemporary problems of  biodiversity conservation / nature protection.

• Optional, complementary subjects (min. 4 ECTS in total). PhD students are required  to attend at least 60 h of the additional subjects selected, after consultation with  their supervisor and/or  the Doctoral School director, out of educational offers of  their institute, other institutes of  PAS and universities.  The course completion (with the final grade or without) must be confirmed in the student’s index by the course lecturer.
• Attendance and active participation in the doctoral seminars is obligatory on each year of the PhD studies.
• Workshop developing teaching skills (10 ECTS point), added recently to the PhD curriculum by ministerial decree,  improves student’s  practical teaching qualifications
• Individual tasks supervised by the PhD adviser are directed towards  preparation of the dissertation and include acquiring necessary skills and  learning of specific techniques of data collection, data analysis, ms writing etc.
• Individual preparation for the doctoral exams. PhD students are required to pass three doctoral exams (at least two of them during 4 years of the School attendance):

-          Philosophy

-          Foreign language

-          Biology (field of specialization)

II.  Rules of  the program implementation

• Each academic year starts on October 1 and ends on September 30 of the next calendar year.
• The 8-weeks long holiday must be planed carefully as to not interfere with the research and courses, and set with the supervisor.
• Completion of each academic year is confirmed by the School director                    on the basis of :

-          annual report on study and research achievements submitted before June 30

-          student’s  index with all required entries

-          an extensive opinion of the supervisor on the progress in the research.

• At the end of the 2^nd academic year students are required to present a published paper.
• The procedure leading to PhD degree should be open formally during the third or at the beginning of the fourth academic year.

III.  Examples of the optional courses  recommended for our PhD students:

• Advanced research methods;  e.g. GIS, radiotelemetry,  ecological chemistry
• Advanced  statistics methods;  mathematical modeling
• Modern systematics and zoogeography;
• Advanced population/metapopulation ecology
• Ecotoxicology
• Characteristics of the fossil records.
• Geological history of  Earth ecosystems and environments. 

* it is assumed that half of the mandatory subjects will be completed at the first academic year and the rest at the second academic year.