The research interests of the Department span a number of fields that are central to modern biology: cell & molecular, computational, developmental, structural biology & molecular biophysics, genetics & genomics, evolutionary biology, chemical biology, microbiology and neurobiology. As a student here you will have the opportunity to receive broadly based training in these areas and to develop research expertise through laboratory rotations and your thesis research. The intimate scale of the Department assures you of close contacts with the faculty and your fellow students while the location of the Department within the wide research community of New York City ensures the maximum possible exposure to exciting scientific developments. We have a steady flow of visitors from the US and abroad who enrich our offerings through seminars, discussions and informal meetings with research groups and faculty.
The Department occupies a modern research facility on the Morningside Heights Campus of Columbia University, a comfortable University neighborhood. The equipment available to you is state of the art, ranging from oligonucleotide synthesizers to electron microscopes. Core facilities for protein biochemistry, cell sorting, transgenic mice and X-ray crystallography are available. A well equipped computer facility is located within the Fairchild Building adjacent to the research laboratories. The new Science and Engineering Library the home to the Digital Science Center is located nearby in the new Northwest Corner Building.
For more than a century, the Columbia Chemistry Department has played a major role in the development of the study of chemistry in the US. Until World War II, Columbia University dominated the academic scene by numbers, graduating more PhDs and staffing more academic posts in chemistry than any other US university. Since the 1940s, graduate programs have grown and expanded at many other institutions, and now Columbia is known more for quality than for quantity. The department runs one of the best graduate research and training programs in the country, famous for its lively intellectual atmosphere and for the intensity of effort put forth by its faculty and students.
The first year of graduate study is largely given to course work, the course requirements for each student being determined individually in accordance with previous training and interests. To some extent during the first year, and increasingly thereafter, students are engaged in research for the doctoral dissertation. Research is the most important part of the graduate program, and the selection of a sponsor to guide the research is the most important decision a student makes. To help with this decision, every faculty member discusses his or her research at colloquia held during the first term. Students choose a sponsor only after attending all these meetings and talking privately with at least three faculty members. All students are expected to complete the degree requirements and defend their dissertations within five years of entry into the program. The system works well; the percentage of entering students who complete the program is very high, and about twenty-five PhD degrees in Chemistry are awarded by the university each year.
The Coordinated Doctoral Programs in Biomedical Sciences are part of the medical school and the Columbia University Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. The programs are located at the Columbia University Irving Medical Center campus. PhD students have access to more than 250 training faculty when selecting their research direction, ensuring that each student receives optimal training and research experience. We also provide a supportive environment which goes beyond academics.
Programs Include: