Tulane’s Ph.D. Program in Biomedical Sciences takes an interdisciplinary approach to graduate education and research. There are many ways to shape your Tulane experience to fit your needs and career goals, and our program has an array of options to accelerate, customize, and enrich your education and, ultimately, your career. The program is dynamic, giving you an array of controls that allows you to heavily customize your experience here to suit you.
Students complete all course requirements in their first two years. Core courses including Advanced Cell Biology, Biochemistry, Human Molecular Genetics, Biostatistics, Systems Biology, and Biomedical Informatics, which along with Basic Science electives provide a broad foundation for future research. More than 150 scientists from Basic Science and Clinical Departments and School Of Medicine Centers participate fully in the BMS program. Students have ample opportunities to match with one of these scientists by conducting at least three lab rotations in their first year prior to selecting their Dissertation Advisor.
All PhD students receive a full tuition waiver and a stipend of approximately $33,000 per year for the entire duration of the program.
A minimum of 48 credit hours of coursework and independent study is required for a Ph.D. at Tulane University. Students take an identical Core Curriculum in the first year (except for Biomedical Informatics Track), totaling 27 credit hours. In the second year, students must complete at least 21 credit hours. Coursework in the second year must include at least 6 credit hours of lecture-based coursework (electives), with the remaining credit hours consisting of Independent Study and/or Special Topics (research). Students may take Independent Study and/or Special Topics for 1-6 credits each per semester for a maximum of 12 credits each until course completion. Electives are selected from the elective curriculum by the student in consultation with the dissertation advisor.
Plan of Study Grid
Year 1
Fall
Credit Hours
Total coursework for the First Year Fall + Spring must equal 27 credit hours
