Affiliated Research Programs
One of the major strengths of the University of Utah is a robust and diverse research community. Collaboration has created a close community of faculty and students, a community invested in student success. Multiple programs and departments are affiliated with the Bioscience PhD Programs through this collaborative environment as well as several certificate programs graduate students can complete during their training.
The Bioscience PhD Programs formally collaborate within the Biomedical Research Education Office (BREO) for administrative support and to coordinate career development, professional development, training grants, and other vital opportunities for the biomedical research community. The BREO team provides vital support for students in the Molecular Biology and Biological Chemistry PhD Programs.
Interdepartmental and Interdisciplinarity Programs
Neuroscience PhD Program
The Neuroscience PhD Program at the University of Utah offers rigorous training through a combination of coursework, research training, mentoring, and professional development. This interdepartmental program uses multidisciplinary approaches that draw from electrophysiology, molecular biology, genetics, behavior and cognitive neuroscience.
Nicole Caldwell, Academic Program Manager
MSTP (MD-PhD) Program
The Medical Scientist Training Program (MSTP) is designed to provide an outstanding education for students who want to develop skills that will prepare them for a career as a physician scientist. Requiring about 7-9 years to complete, students develop clinical skills and engage in rigorous scientific training. Through our top medical program and exceptional graduate programs, students become well-prepared for careers as biomedical researchers and clinician scientists as they earn their MD-PhD.
Beth McKegney, Program Manager
Summer Research Opportunities
Summer Programs in Undergraduate Research (SPUR)
SPUR provides undergraduate students with an intensive 10-week research experience under the mentorship of a University of Utah faculty member. SPUR emphasizes a cohort experience with other SPUR participants.
Research opportunities are available in a variety of disciplines. No previous college coursework or previous research experience is required.
Internship Genomics Summer Research for Magnificents (GSRM)
The Genomics Summer Research for Magnificents (GSRM) internship is a ten-week paid summer research program for undergraduate students interested in biosciences or bioinformatics with a focus on genomics research, including ethical, legal and social implications (ELSI) of genomics research.
Native American Summer Research Internship (NARI)
The Native American Research Internship is a dynamic summer research opportunity for Native American undergraduate junior and senior students who are interested in Health Science research. The internship is located at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City, Utah. It is a 10-week, paid summer internship, funded by the National Institutes of Health.
PathMaker Scholars Summer Research Program
The PathMaker Scholars Summer Research Program at Huntsman Cancer Institute seeks to increase the participation of historically underrepresented students in biomedical cancer research and to encourage students to prepare for careers in research, medicine, and education. The program sponsors students for a ten-week residential summer research experience, where they will live on campus, learn laboratory training techniques, and work on a project as indicated by a principal investigator in a university laboratory setting.
Graduate Programs in Research
Population Health Sciences (PHS) PhD
The mission of the Population Health Sciences (PHS) PhD program is to produce scientists who are committed to improving patient and population-oriented care within increasingly complex healthcare delivery systems. Leveraging the combined strength of health systems research, epidemiology, and biostatistics, students graduate from the PHS PhD program with the ability to shape and inform data-driven quality health care. Population health is at the heart of a shifting healthcare landscape and PhDs in population health sciences are at the leading edge of a new interdisciplinary approach to health care.
Microbiology & Immunology PhD
The goal of the M&I PhD is to train students to become innovative and independent researchers with solid generic skills and a strong foundation in Immunology and Microbiology that will prepare you for a variety of careers in Biomedical science and independent research positions. We offer a flexible choice of courses and unique facilities which enable you to incorporate cutting-edge techniques into your research. Our faculty have expertise in a variety of topics spanning from immunology to microbial pathogenesis and basic science research to bench-to-bedside approaches.
School of Biological Sciences - Molecular, Cellular and Evolutionary Biology (MCEB) PhD
The MCEB program focuses on how complex biological systems emerge from molecules, cells and genes – the fundamental units of life. Fields strongly represented within MCEB are molecular and cellular biology, developmental biology, Mendelian and quantitative genetics, evolutionary biology and biological diversity, biochemistry, neurobiology, and microbiology.
Shannon Nielsen, Graduate Program Coordinator
Shannon.Nielsen@bioscience.utah.edu
Biomedical Informatics PhD
The mission of the Department of Biomedical Informatics at the University of Utah is to improve health outcomes through information systems (including health, economic, and satisfaction results for consumers and providers) in both the private and public sectors of the healthcare and public health systems.
Amy Parkin, Program Manager
amy.parkin@utah.edu
Nutrition and Integrated Physiology PhD
The rigorous program trains research scientists and academic scholars on the fundamentals of translational research on the metabolic basis of disease., enabling them to take research findings from bench-to-bedside.
Molecular Pharmaceutics PhD
The Molecular Pharmaceutics PhD seeks to prepare graduate students to function independently, competently and technically in a variety of settings including academic, research, administrative, business management, legal, regulatory and investment career tracks. This goal is accomplished through formal didactic courses, seminars and journal clubs, laboratory research rotations, and dissertation research.
Professional Masters of Science and Technology - Biotechnology Track
Understanding biochemical, genetic, and molecular aspects of biotechnology is paramount in guiding the future of the industry. Biotechnology is a rapidly expanding field with opportunities in a wide range of industries including healthcare, pharmaceutical, food, agriculture, and consumer products.
Informatics Graduate Certificate
An interdisciplinary certificate that allows students to gain a broad background in core Informatics issues, as well as more specialized knowledge in sub-domains such as bioinformatics, public health informatics, clinical/nursing informatics and data science. Individual programs of study allow for further specialization and development of knowledge in related fields.
Med into Grad Program (U2M2G)
MS in Clinical Investigation (MSCI)
A transformative approach to basic science doctoral education is required to accelerate the pace at which discoveries in the life sciences and bioengineering are translated into interventions that improve human health. PhD-scientists are facing new and greater challenges: the NIH is promoting research programs with a quantifiable impact on human health, the biopharmaceutical industry aggressively seeks new ideas and talent, and current scientific methodology employs increasingly complex animal systems to model human disease and facilitate drug development. Meeting these challenges demands that basic scientists have an understanding of the fundamentals of human biology and medicine, and the tools to function in the multidisciplinary teams required for successful translational initiatives. The Med into Grad program at the University of Utah (U2M2G) provides the didactic and mentoring support to train this new breed of PhD scientists.
Immunology, Inflammation, & Infectious Disease (III) Initiative
The Immunology, Inflammation, and Infectious Disease (III) Initiative at University of Utah Health was formally established in 2017 on the premise that a better understanding of the three "I"s will fundamentally change the way we think about disease.
Nicole Frank, PhD, MSTP, Associate Director, III Initiative
nicole.frank@hsc.utah.edu