• MS Degree Requirements
• PhD Degree Requirements
• Curriculum

The Interdepartmental Biological Sciences Program (IBiS) is located on the 240-acre main campus in Evanston. IBiS brings together faculty from basic and applied sciences departments (including Biochemistry, Molecular Biology and Cell Biology; Neurobiology and Physiology; Chemistry; Chemical and Biological Engineering; Biomedical Engineering) and the medical staff of the Evanston Northwestern Healthcare Research Institute of Evanston Hospital.

The student/faculty ratio of one-and-a-half to one enhances direct interaction between professors and students in the classroom as well as in the guidance of individual research. A wide range of faculty participate in the various graduate courses, journal clubs and in house research colloquia. These programs are complemented with seminar series sponsored by departments, training programs in the life sciences, university research centers, and the Feinberg School of Medicine. Consequently, students in IBiS programs cross disciplinary boundaries in both their academic training and their thesis research.

Graduate students enter IBiS for study leading directly to the Ph.D. degree. A terminal master of science degree with a concentration in molecular biology is conferred to those Ph.D. graduate students who sucessfully complete course and research work but fail to pass their Ph.D. qualifier examination.

The MS degree program fulfills a need to train researchers throughout the pharmaceutical and biotech industries. Primarily for students who hold a degree in biology or who have completed all the undergraduate premedical requirements, the program offers coursework requirements based on students' individual backgrounds. Participants work with their advisors to tailor their programs of study to their individual needs. All students will pursue independent research in one of the participating biological sciences laboratories, culminating with a proposal based on their research. The program involves a full calendar year of study, including three quarters of coursework and one quarter focusing on the research proposal. Please note: The MS program is an integral part of the PhD program; students are not admitted directly into an MS in this discipline.

The PhD program prepares students to become creative and independent research scientists who are able to pursue careers in academics and/or industry. Training focuses on the fundamentals of cellular, molecular and structural biology, with exposure to the key research paradigms upon which these disciplines are built. After completion of the first year of core courses, electives and laboratory rotations, students pursue research in one of six areas of concentration: biochemistry and biophysics; biotechnology; cell and molecular biology; developmental biology and genetics; molecular endocrinology; and integrative biology. The program is designed to be completed in approximately five years. Each student has a committee which follows his or her research and works with the research advisor to ensure timely progress to the PhD.

Applicants should contact the program or see Web site www.ibis.northwestern.edu to learn about program-specific requirements for admission.

Faculty

The primary appointment for those faculty with joint or affiliate status in another program is noted in parentheses.