Information for Prospective Students
Admission to study is offered to students having good undergraduate training in biology (mainly, molecular biology and genetics) and computer science. Students lacking preparation in a particular field, but otherwise qualified, may be admitted and given the opportunity to strengthen their backgrounds by taking the appropriate courses. The GCB program especially encourages applications from minority students.
Biomedical Graduate Studies (BGS) is the administrative home for all graduate groups that confer a Ph.D. in the basic biomedical sciences at the University of Pennsylvania. General admission information, as well as a link electronically to the program, can be obtained from the BGS website. Beginning with the Fall 2005 admissions season, we will only be accepting electronic applications. However, we do still provide brochures with information on all of our graduate groups.
Completed applications will be screened by the GCB admissions committee based on: research experience, letters of recommendation, personal statement, grades and GRE General Test scores. GRE Subject Tests in biology, chemistry, physics, or mathematics are recommended but not required. In general, interviews are also required as part of the admissions process, and applicants invited to be interviewed will be notified in January/February. Admissions decisions will be made in late March/early April, with all decisions finalized by April 15th.
Students accepted for admission into the Ph.D. program receive tuition and health insurance reimbursement, plus a twelve-month stipend for living expenses for the anticipated five to six years required to attain the Ph.D. The stipend for the 2008-2009 academic year will be $28,000. In addition, applicants are urged to apply for scholarships from prestigious funding programs such as the National Science Foundation and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. Funding is also available through a training grant sponsored by the National Institutes of Health.
Applicants whose native language is not English are required to take the TOEFL. Scores are valid for two years from the test date. Applicants who have satisfactorily completed at least two years of study in an English-speaking university do not need to submit scores.
It is important for non-US citizens and students applying from outside the United States to realize that positions for overseas students are very limited and extremely competitive. We receive more than 100 applications from foreign students and usually have two or fewer positions for them.