Bioengineering
Bioengineering Ph.D. students come to Penn from leading engineering and science programs across the country and around the world, bringing a wide range of academic backgrounds, research interests and perspectives to the department. The doctoral experience is designed to help students move from broad exploration to focused, independent research.
In the first year, students complete required laboratory rotations and typically select a research advisor by the spring semester. As they progress, students complete the Qualifications Evaluation, form a thesis committee, defend a research proposal and advance to candidacy, building a strong foundation for dissertation research and completion of the doctoral program.
“My Ph.D. taught me that even if you’re not immediately good at something, if you enjoy it, it’s absolutely OK and essential to keep trying.”
Photo Credit: Eric Sucar
“The unique interdisciplinary expertise I gained from these projects has shaped me into a scholar with a strong collaborative ethos, a quality I hold in high esteem as we work towards advancing our knowledge and management of health and disease.”
The Bioengineering Ph.D. program encourages collaboration across schools of thought in a way that sets the Penn doctoral experience apart from programs that silo graduate students within a single school or department. Bioengineering doctoral students take advantage of the interdisciplinary nature of academic life at Penn through access to graduate group faculty with expertise across 6 schools of Penn and leading industry partners to oversee and govern their Ph.D. studies, leading to breakthroughs at the intersection of bioengineering and several other academic disciplines. Graduate group members define degree requirements, design core curricula, serve on your dissertation committee, and evaluate your progress. They form interdisciplinary networks that guide your academic milestone completions and may be uniquely equipped to collaborate on approaches to the challenging research problems doctoral students tackle in the Bioengineering program.
