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Molecular and Cellular Life Sciences

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)

Interdisciplinary

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Earn Your Ph.D. Today

How do cells replicate and grow? How do they acquire their specialized functions? When those processes go awry, what abnormalities or diseases result? At UW, we're leading the way in studying these important questions. Our Molecular and Cellular Life Sciences (MCLS) Ph.D. program allows graduate students to explore new frontiers of research addressing the inner workings of cells and molecules while being surrounded by the beauty of Laramie, Wyoming.

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About Molecular and Cellular Life Sciences at UW

We believe doctoral study of the life sciences shouldn't be constrained by the typical boundaries that define traditional scientific disciplines. Our interdisciplinary doctoral degree program in molecular and cellular life sciences has more than 30 faculty participants, distributed across campus among the College of Agriculture, Life Sciences and Natural Resources, College of Arts and Sciences, College of Engineering and Physical Sciences and College of Health Sciences.

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Just as diverse as our faculty, graduate research subjects in molecular and cellular sciences include:

  • Biotechnology, bioengineering and biomaterials
  • Microbiology and infectious diseases
  • Pharmacology
  • Cell biology and signaling
  • Genetics and development
  • Genomics, proteomics and computational biology
  • Structural biology and biophysics
  • Bioinformatics
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What Can You Do With a Molecular and Cellular Life Sciences Doctoral Degree?

The MCLS Ph.D. from the University of Wyoming prepares you for high-level careers in academia, government, independent research and industry. You will have the flexibility and research independence to customize UW’s MCLS program to fit your professional goals, opening a world of possibilities.

Molecular and Cellular Life Sciences Careers

Molecular and cellular life sciences alumni have held titles such as:

  • Postdoctoral Research Associate
  • Senior Scientist
  • Medical Writer
  • Scientific Innovation Officer
  • Senior Medical Science Liaison
  • Senior Biosensor Scientist
  • Medical Science Liaison
  • Regional Medical Director
  • Developer Relations Engineer
  • Data Analyst
  • Data Scientist

 

 

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Our graduates have worked at or pursued post-doctoral fellowships at organizations and schools such as these:

  • Vanderbilt University 
  • University of Washington
  • National Institutes of Health
  • Tufts University
  • MD Anderson Cancer Center
  • University of California, Berkeley
  • University of California, San Diego
  • USDA
  • Kaggle
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Molecular and Cellular Life Sciences PhD Program Highlights

Here are just a few reasons to consider UW’s Ph.D. program in molecular and cellular life sciences:

Flexibility

As a Ph.D. student at UW, you'll enjoy considerable flexibility and diversity as you conduct your doctoral degree work. During your first year in the program, you will complete four eight-week rotations in research laboratories of your choice, learning universally valuable molecular, cell biological, and biochemical experimental techniques. This freedom allows you to customize your graduate program of study to your professional needs and interests. The expected time from enrollment to graduation is approximately five years.

 

Graduate Funding

Costs associated with the first year of your MCLS Ph.D. program are covered by a Graduate Research Assistantship (GRA) provided by the Office of Academic Affairs. This includes tuition and fees, as well as an annual stipend. After the first year in the doctoral degree program, these costs are generally covered by extramural funding (typically from the NSF or NIH) awarded to the labs in which students conduct their Ph.D. research.

 

Teaching Experience

You'll carry out modest teaching requirements to prepare you for a potential career in teaching, mentorship, and scientific laboratory management.

Community

Publishing and presenting your own research, attending scientific seminars, and becoming a part of a lively graduate school community will round out your graduate school experience at the University of Wyoming.

 

The MCLS program intends to bring the best out of every student. I was fortunate to train under a mentor and supervisor like Daniel Levy who went above and beyond to support me in my career aspirations which could be considered non-traditional according to academic beliefs. His lab was extremely productive which helped me generate multiple publications within a span of four and a half years. Professor Gatlin, the former MCLS program director and Karyn Bercheni, the former MOLB accountant, also supported me and helped me resolve payroll issues when I took a semester off of my final year of grad school to pursue an industry internship. Recently they have also integrated alternative career options after grad school as a mandatory curriculum which is very commendable.

- Dr. Richik Mukherjee, former MCLS student
Senior Medical Science Liaison in Oncology at Genentech

Related Programs

You may also be interested in these scientific graduate-level degrees from the University of Wyoming:

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Molecular and Cellular Life Sciences

Department 3354, 1000 E. University Avenue

Laramie, WY 82071

Phone: (307) 766-3300

Email: mcls@uwyo.edu