Biological and Biomedical Sciences (BBS) offers many exciting opportunities for research in the life sciences. Our training program builds on a foundation of contemporary mechanistic biology to prepare students for thesis research in a wide range of disciplines (listed below). We are fortunate to have generous support from Harvard Medical School (HMS) and a network of many superb Harvard-affiliated hospitals to provide trainees with an exceptional array of both academic and scientific resources. This wealth of intellectual and material resources helps to propel frequent innovation in both the laboratory and the classroom.
We are also fortunate to reside in one of the nation’s most vibrant and growing centers for the industries of biotechnology, biomedicine and pharmacological sciences. We are surrounded by over 130 companies, many of which host BBS students for internships in applied biology. Our extensive alumni network and our dedicated staff collaborate vigorously to introduce our trainees to many different career opportunities in the biomedical science arena.
Most importantly, we have worked very hard to build a renewed culture of mentorship and collaboration. Drawing on excellent scholarship in mentor training, pedagogy and institutional research from many colleagues across the world, we strive to continually evolve and improve our graduate education programming and research training through data-driven and student-centric approaches.
We encourage your students to become acquainted with our different BBS research communities — essentially our “neighborhoods within the city.” Each group of trainees, faculty and staff provide a close-knit micro-environment where people with common interests work together to advance research in their field and participate in enriching training activities. More information is available on our website, or at one of the autumn informational sessions listed below.
Our Research Training Communities in both Basic and Translational Sciences include:
- Mechanistic Molecular Biology
- Cancer Biology
- Cell Biology
- Developmental & Regenerative Biology
- Genetics & Genomics
- Human Biology and Translational Medicine
- Microbiology
- Therapeutics
All students admitted into our BBS program are provided full tuition, health insurance and stipend support. The application deadline for the 2022-2023 Academic Year is December 1, 2022. Please note: The BBS program no longer accepts the GRE as part of its application process. More information can be found on our admissions page: https://bbsphd.hms.harvard.edu/apply.