Undergraduate Opportunities

Research Opportunities

There are many opportunities for students to carry out research in the laboratory of a faculty member in MCDB. A broad spectrum of state-of-the-art research activities is performed at Yale in the MCDB department and in related departments including the Yale School Medicine. This research is in molecular biology, biochemistry, genetics, cell biology, neurobiology, physiology, computational plant sciences biology, and evolution. All interested students are encouraged to participate in research.

Fellowships & Educational Opportunities

Yale Scientific Magazine  | First Guest Speaker, Sunday, Oct. 6 from 2-3pm

The Yale Scientific Magazine is hosting its first speaker event of the fall semester! Dr. Ilana Yurkiewicz (YC ‘10) will join us for her second annual lecture on her journey through writing and medicine, as well as how students can get involved in the scientific journalism industry. The event will be held Sunday, October 6th, from 2-3 p.m. in LC Room 102.

The talk will be followed by a 15-minute interactive Q&A session. Food will be served!

You can register for Dr. Yurkiewicz’s talk here.

Yurkiewicz is a science journalist and a physician at Stanford practicing oncology and internal medicine, with special interests in cancer survivorship and bioethics. In 2010, she served as the editor-in-chief of the Yale Scientific Magazine. After graduating from Yale, she attended Harvard Medical School, where she documented her experiences as a medical student in her Scientific American column, “Unofficial Prognosis.” As a physician, she created a column called “Hard Questions” for Hematology News.

Her work can be found in Scientific American, Time Magazine, The Atlantic, Smithsonian Magazine, and the New England Journal of Medicine. She recently published her debut novel, Fragmented: A Doctor’s Quest to Piece Together American Healthcare, which delves into the history of America’s broken medical care system and offers ways to reform it.

Poorvu Center Pedagogical Partners Open House and Campus Job Opportunity

The Poorvu Center for Teaching & Learning is currently recruiting students for its Pedagogical Partners program for the spring and fall 2025 semesters. Yale College students graduating in 2026 or beyond should consider attending our Open House for potential student partners on Monday, October 7, 2024 from 5:30-6:30 p.m. in the Poorvu Center. Apply now through November 1, 2024; applicants will be notified of their status in December, before the semester ends.

The goal of the program is to create a dialogue about teaching and learning through a semester-long partnership between a student and an instructor in which the student acts as a pedagogical consultant.  The program centers student perspectives from historically marginalized identities at Yale to ensure all voices are valued in the learning process.

This position consists of the following: 

  • Attending weekly student partner meetings to support your growth as a pedagogical consultant
  • Observing each class session for the course with which you are partnered
  • Meeting regularly with your instructor partner to discuss the class and pedagogy
  • Meeting periodically with the program’s leadership team to gauge how the partnership is going and share feedback on the program

By offering a structure for observation and student-instructor discussions, these partnerships create a beneficial perspective that the instructor may not otherwise have throughout the term. Students, in turn, are empowered to think more deeply about pedagogy, develop habits of reflection and have an opportunity to impact the teaching of courses for their peers and themselves during their time at Yale.

Opportunity for Seniors

Stowers Institute Graduate School Ph.D. Program

The application process for the Stowers Institute Graduate School Ph.D. Program is now open!

The Ph.D. program is designed to nurture the next generation of independent scientists by offering exceptional mentoring and hands-on research experience. Predoctoral researchers are essential members of the Institute’s vibrant scientific community, working in state-of-the-art facilities alongside scientists who are leaders in their fields.

The program starts with foundational module courses that build expertise in core disciplines and introduce the Institute’s cutting-edge technologies. Following these courses, students engage in lab and project rotations, gaining diverse, high-quality research experiences that are essential for selecting a thesis lab.

We are looking for applicants who:

  • Have previous undergraduate or postgraduate research experience
  • Hold a bachelor’s degree or equivalent
  • Possess a strong background in the biological sciences, mathematics, physics, chemistry, or computer science
  • Demonstrate a passion for basic science research

Notably, applicants do not need to submit:

  • Test scores (GRE, TOEFEL, etc)
  • Grade point average (GPA)
  • An application fee

For more details about the program and how to apply, please visit our admissions page.

PhD Program in Biological Sciences in Public Health (BPH) at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health

The BPH program emphasizes interdisciplinary basic research spanning from molecular biology to human populations. BPH students develop individualized research projects focused on defining the molecular underpinnings of human health and disease by employing cutting-edge approaches in biochemistry, cell biology, genetics, genomics, metabolic biology, physiology, immunology, biophysics, computational and systems biology, and bioengineering. A central goal of the research in this program, whether basic or translational, is the improved understanding, prevention, and treatment of the most common and impactful global health threats.

The program encompasses laboratories and faculty mentors in the Departments of Environmental Health, Immunology, and Infectious Diseases, Molecular Metabolism, and Nutrition. Major areas of investigation include: 

While the program roots cut across the entire range of biological sciences, the research also employs core quantitative disciplines (e.g., biostatistics and epidemiology), as well as approaches that bridge biology, chemistry, engineering, and computation. Students attracted to this program generally share this interdisciplinary interest and a desire to confront the most pressing health issues of our time.

All students admitted into this training program are provided full tuition, health insurance and stipend support. Our graduates hold distinguished positions in academia, industry, government, and other arenas of life science research, consulting, communications and policy. The application deadline for the 2025-26 Academic Year is December 1, 2024. 
 
Please note: The BPH program does not require or consider the GRE as part of its application process. In addition, applicants who are non-native English speakers and who received their undergraduate degree from an academic institution where English is not the primary language of instruction now have the option to submit scores for the International English Language Testing System - Academic test (IELTS) as proof of English proficiency.
 
More information can be found on our website: http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/biological-sciences/ or through these upcoming recruitment events:

HILS Virtual Open House – October 17, 5:00-7:00 PM – Admissions Panel with Faculty Panelists
Register here

BPH Virtual Open House – November 5, 10:00-11:00 am EST: Register now to join the discussion

HILS Virtual Open House – November 7, 5:00-7:00 PM – Breakout Sessions with HILS Programs
Register here

BPH Attendance at National Conferences:

National Diversity in STEM  (SACNAS) Conference
October 31-November 2, 2024 – Phoenix, Arizona

ABRCMS Conference
November 13-17, 2024 – Pittsburgh, PA

For additional information about the BPH Ph.D. and Summer Intern Program, please contact us at bph@hsph.harvard.edu. I would greatly appreciate it if you would encourage your best students to consider applying to our programs.

Pasteur Paris University PhD program - Call for application

Pasteur-Paris University International Doctoral Program is offered by the Institut Pasteur in collaboration with the Institut Imagine and leading universities in Paris region (Université Paris Cité, Sorbonne Université, and Université Paris-Saclay). This doctoral program is organized for students holding a Master’s degree or the equivalent in science, medicine and related fields delivered by a university outside of France. The program is run in English and knowledge of French is not required.

BENEFITS:         

  • A monthly salary of 2.000€
  • Assistance with administrative formalities (VISA, social security and other documents)
  • Housing (possibility to rent a flat at CIUP (International Cité of Paris)
  • Travel allocation and paid tuition
  • Family health insurance and health services for employees on campus (med, nurses, psychologist, …)
  • 75% reimbursement of transport tickets or Soft mobility package

 
DEADLINES:    
Call for applications: September 9th – October 27th 2024
Preselection results: December 18th 2024
Interview week: February 4th – 7th 2025
Final results: February 12th 2025
Beginning PhD: October 2025

If you know some talented undergraduates with a strong passion for science who may be interested in this outstanding opportunity to do a PhD, please give them the attached flyer. We would appreciate it if you would display the flyer at your institutional bulletin board and forward this mail to other colleagues.

For further information, please write to phd@pasteur.fr
 

    Job Opportunities

    Opportunities for MCDB Majors will be posted here throughout the academic year.