At Harvard University's Biological and Biomedical Sciences Program, students generally do their required coursework during the initial year in the program. By the end of that year students will have to state what thesis they'll be working on. During the second year in the program students will start to work on this thesis. Students must also work as teaching assistants for a semester while in the PhD program, as well as pass a test of their skills in science during their second year in the program. At Harvard, most students complete their PhD in about five-and-a-half years, but the school is working on trying to shorten that time frame.
Harvard University
1350 Massachusetts Avenue
Cambridge, MA 02138-3654
617-495-5315
hms.harvard.edu
Students in the Biomedical Sciences PhD program at the Medical College of Georgia initially take a variety of courses in the program, before having to choose a specific discipline. During the first year classes include topics in molecular cell biology and fundamentals of research; while electives include options such as oncology and neuroscience. In the last few years of the program, students conduct their own research that will be the basis of their dissertations. Students who are accepted into the PhD program receive almost $25,000 a year as a stipend and pay only $25 a semester for tuition.
Medical College of Georgia
1120 15th Street
Augusta, GA 30912
706-721-3278
mcg.edu
At the Medical College of Wisconsin, students in the PhD Biomedical Sciences program start their education with rotations in different laboratories at the school. This is to introduce the students to various areas of focus within the PhD program. During the first two years at the Medical College of Wisconsin, students select an adviser, complete their PhD qualifying test and continue to take courses. After those initial years, the students do their doctoral research and complete their dissertations.
Medical College of Wisconsin
8701 Watertown Plank Road
Milwaukee, WI 53226
414-456-8218
www.mcw.edu
Each fall, a little over three dozen students enter the Medical University of South Carolina's PhD program in biomedical sciences. During that first year, students gain an even greater foundation in the fundamentals of science and complete laboratory rotations to gain insight into different areas of study in the PhD program. Students don't become candidates for a PhD until they've completed their initial two years of study and successfully complete the department's qualifying test. PhD students receive a little over $20,000 a year as a stipend and free tuition to the school.
Medical University of South Carolina
41 Bee Street
Charleston, SC 29425
843-792-2300
musc.edu