Q: Please define more exactly how many years of graduate study a student may have and still be eligible.

A: To be eligible, a student must have completed, by September 2005, two years (but not more than three years) of study toward a doctoral degree. That is, the student must be in the second or third year of studies toward the doctorate at the time of nomination.

Q: Does study toward a master's degree count toward the years of study limit?

A: The years studying for a master's degree received as part of a graduate program leading to the doctorate count toward the two or three years eligibility criterion. If the M.S. is received in the same field of study but at a different institution, the years also are counted. If the M.S. is in a totally different field (for example, the student holds a biology M.S. and is now studying toward a Ph.D. in physics), then the years in the master's degree program should not be counted. The purpose of this criterion is to ensure that students are in an appropriate point in their studies in the topics of the Lindau Meeting, which this year are chemistry, physics, and medicine/physiology.

back to Lindau 2005 Home