Each student becomes associated with the adviser's department, which may provide financial support, research facilities, and office space. Applicants are encouraged to explore opportunities by contacting faculty who may be prospective advisers.

The objective of this program is to educate and train plant biologists using the most modern techniques available today. Graduates from this program have gone on to a diverse range of careers, including positions in colleges and universities, research institutes, industry, and government. Research interests of the program faculty span the breadth of scientific areas ranging from molecular, cell, and evolutionary biology, biochemistry, biophysics, genetics, and functional genomics to whole-plant physiology and ecology. Student training includes a comprehensive set of team-taught courses that reflects this breadth of scientific approaches.