Degree Programs

Biochemistry, Cell and Developmental Biology (BCDB)

The Biochemistry, Cell and Developmental Biology (BCDB) program at Emory University is a cross-disciplinary training program that encourages and fosters innovative thinking and experimentation. Program faculty members are drawn from 15 departments within Emory University to provide training in Biochemistry, Cell Biology, Development, Molecular Biology, Structural Biology, Cancer Biology, and allied areas of research.

The program uses formalized training in scientific research, presentation, writing, hypothesis design, and teaching to enable students to integrate diverse biological disciplines. BCDB students graduate as well-rounded biomedical research scientists who are highly competitive in a number of different career paths. Whether your goal is pure basic science or translational research, we offer research opportunities that will enable you to impact human health and our understanding of our world.

Biomedical Engineering (BME)

The Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering (BME), a joint effort between Georgia Tech, Laney Graduate School, and the Emory School of Medicine, provides superb education and research in biomedical engineering with an emphasis on applications to human health. The BME PhD program is ranked second in the country by US News and World Reports. The curriculum integrates life sciences, engineering, and mathematics to train researchers who can formulate and solve significant biomedical problems quantitatively and with a systems perspective.

The BME doctoral program has identified five critical areas of research where our combined strengths are the foundation of strong research programs:

Biomechanics and Mechanobiology
Biomedical Imaging and Optics
Cellular, Molecular and Biomaterials Engineering
Computational Biomedical Systems Analysis
Healthcare Informatics and Technology

Cancer Biology (CB)

The Program in Cancer Biology (CB) provides outstanding training opportunities in every aspect of cancer research, from basic to translational research. This includes molecular and cellular biology, genetics and epigenetics, signal transduction, genetic engineering, nanotechnologies, and many other disciplines used to understand the development and progression of cancer.

Genetics and Molecular Biology (GMB)

The graduate program in Genetics and Molecular Biology (GMB) at Emory University offers exciting broad-based training in the fields of genetics and molecular biology and their related disciplines of biochemistry, bioinformatics, cell biology, developmental biology, and epigenetics.

A broad spectrum of research opportunities in genetic model systems and studies focused on human genetic diseases enables students to become highly trained specialists in their area of interest while building a strong and essential background in genetics.

Immunology and Molecular Pathogenesis (IMP)

The Immunology and Molecular Pathogenesis (IMP) program is part of the broader Graduate Division of Biological and Biomedical Sciences at Emory that offers research-intensive training programs leading to the Ph.D. degree. The IMP program offers interdisciplinary training in molecular and cellular immunology and the role of the immune system in the pathogenesis of infectious disease.

Faculty members are affiliated with basic science and clinical departments in the School of Medicine, the Emory Vaccine Center, the Yerkes National Primate Research Center, as well as the adjacent U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Microbiology and Molecular Genetics (MMG)

The Program in Microbiology and Molecular Genetics (MMG) provides training in the study of microorganisms as well as in the use of microbial models to investigate basic problems in molecular genetics. The program is designed not only for students interested in academic careers in teaching and research but also for those interested in careers in related aspects of medicine and industry.

Research training is offered in bacterial genetics and physiology, microbial development, molecular biology of viruses and bacterial pathogens, mechanisms of bacterial and viral pathogenesis, molecular biology of gene regulation, antibiotic resistance, antiviral and vaccine development.

Molecular and Systems Pharmacology (MSP)

The Molecular and Systems Pharmacology (MSP) graduate program offers broad training in the biomedical sciences for students interested in learning how the drugs of today work and how the novel therapeutics of tomorrow can be developed. Ph.D. training in the Emory MSP graduate program prepares students for successful careers in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries as well as in academic research, teaching, government research, patent law, and other disciplines that depend upon knowledge of fundamental pharmacological principles.

Cancer Pharmacology research at the Winship Cancer Center, combining cutting-edge research with patient treatment
Neuropharmacology research at the Yerkes Primate Research Center, which is world-renowned for research on addiction & neurodegeneration
Infectious Disease research, as close proximity to CDC has helped to make Emory a leader in anti-viral research, especially anti-HIV work

Other areas of strength include Cardiovascular Pharmacology, Inflammation, Toxicology, Chemical Biology, and Structural Biology of drug targets.

Neuroscience (NS)

The Neuroscience (NS) program includes over 120 neuroscientists drawn from 22 University and Medical School departments, the Yerkes National Primate Research Center, as well as collaborators from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC).

Many faculty come from the departments of Pharmacology (ranked #1 university in the world by "The Scientist" magazine for impact in pharmacology and toxicology research), Neurology (ranked 3rd nationally in total NIH funding), Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences (ranked 9th nationally in total research funding), and Rehabilitation Medicine (ranked 4th nationally in total NIH funding).

Thus, the program provides access to excellent labs focused on a wide variety of specialties within neuroscience.

Physics/Biological Physics

The graduate program in Physics offers a comprehensive education in physics and opportunities to engage in experimental and theoretical research with internationally-recognized groups using state-of-the-art techniques and instrumentation. We also offer a collegial, supportive atmosphere, with close interactions among students, faculty, and staff that are unique to a “research-1 university.”

The research in the program is focused in four principal areas, which are currently among the most active in the basic and applied physical sciences. Both experimental and theoretical research is conducted in the program in each of these areas.

Biophysics investigates problems at the interface of physical and life sciences.
Condensed Matter Physics and Optics group at Emory investigates nanoscale systems where surfaces, interfaces, and confinement effects result in new physical phenomena.
Soft Matter Physics research addresses the properties of materials that display both fluid and solid behavior ("complex fluids").
Statistical and Computational Physics addresses both equilibrium and nonequilibrium properties of condensed matter.

Physics researchers at Emory benefit from close interdisciplinary interactions and collaborations with faculty in other graduate programs and research centers at the University. The Department of Mathematics and Computer Science is located with Physics in the Math and Science Center Building, and the Department of Chemistry and the Emerson Center for Scientific Computation are located across the street. Medical and Biological Sciences researchers that are part of Emory’s renowned School of Medicine are a short walk away.

The program awards both a PhD in Physics and a combined Physics PhD/Computational Science MS degree.

Population Biology, Ecology, and Evolution (PBEE)

PBEE faculty and students pursue a broad range of research questions in a wide variety of experimental systems, ranging from bacteria to humans. One central feature unites this program: the focus on the use of quantitative methods and models during the course of their research.

This theme is reflected in the design of its core curriculum and the research projects pursued by its students. The graduate program has six main areas of inquiry:

Bioinformatics and Biostatistics
Biology of Species Interactions
Disease Ecology
Ecological and Evolutionary Modeling
Genetics of Complex Traits
Population and Comparative Genomics