Biomedical Sciences Program Overview

The past decade has witnessed unprecedented advances in our understanding of fundamental biological processes yielding new experimental approaches to understand and to manipulate gene expression, along with new insights into the underlying basis of human disease. At the same time the mysteries of the cell, as well as the dilemmas of old and new diseases, continue to challenge our best scientists and physicians. Faculty members at the University of Virginia are engaged in pioneering research on many of the most important problems in medical science: What innovative treatments and cures can be used to reduce human pain and suffering from diabetes, atherosclerosis, cancer, asthma, AIDS, and other diseases?

  • What is the molecular basis of immune recognition and autoimmune diseases?
  • How do disease-causing organisms such as HIV interact with their host?
  • What are the basic molecular mechanisms that regulate growth and differentiation of cells, and how are these perturbed in disease states?

As our knowledge of the biological and biomedical sciences has grown, we have gained a much greater appreciation of the complexity of cells and human diseases, and recognize that successful biomedical scientists can no longer be an expert in only one area or one technique, but must be able to make use of information, technologies, and experimental strategies that go beyond the boundaries defined by traditional university departments. As someone interested in pursuing a career in science, it is critical that you obtain a wide breadth and depth of training in graduate school that will ensure your ultimate success, whether you choose a career in academia, industry, education, or any of the many other career opportunities that will be available to you.

Our goal is to provide students with the requisite knowledge and skills with which to pioneer major advances in our understanding of the complex biology of cells and tissues, and to lead efforts to cure and/or better treat human disease in the 21st Century. To help meet the challenges of modern biological/biomedical research training, the University of Virginia faculty have adopted an interdepartmental structure for graduate training that optimizes the research training opportunities available to you, and the flexibility to chose a mentor and advanced graduate specialty training area ideally suited for your professional interests and aspirations. To ensure personalized attention, entering students are asked to identify one of seven graduate program groups within the Biomedical Sciences Graduate Program that best suits their initial professional interests. However, students are free to change their program selection as their interests evolve during their first year, and have access to a plethora of research interests from over 200 biological/biomedical science faculty in the School of Medicine and College of Arts and Sciences on the main University of Virginia campus. 

As you look through our Web pages, we hope you will sense the excitement of our faculty and students with their research, their dedication to excellence, and their enthusiasm for teaching and learning. Completion of a Ph.D. Program is not easy. Indeed, there are many long hours of studying, and many days and evenings in the laboratory. However, the rewards are very significant. There is little that can match the joy and excitement of discovery, the satisfaction of understanding a complex process, and the knowledge that what you are doing may lead to improvements in the health of mankind. We believe that the Ph.D. Programs at the University of Virginia School of Medicine are among the best in the country* and we invite you to join us.

*The University of Virginia remains the No. 2 best public university in the 2007 edition of the U.S. News and World Report rankings. In the 10 years since U.S. News began ranking public universities as a separate category, U.Va. has ranked either No. 1 or No. 2.

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