Ph.D. Medical Sciences Degree

The Department of Neuroscience and Experimental Therapeutics (NExT) participates in an interdisciplinary graduate program in the medical sciences that leads primarily to the Ph.D. degree. A distinctive feature of the program is broad-based instruction in the medical sciences with an emphasis in neuroscience and molecular mechanisms, including drug and toxin action. This interdisciplinary approach provides the strong conceptual framework in molecular, cellular, and systems-level biomedical sciences and cutting-edge research methods essential to the modern scientist. The Department's objective is to train students to become medical scientists who can make significant contributions to research in their chosen field, including pursuing professional careers as teachers and researchers in academic, industrial, or governmental positions.

The Ph.D. program in medical sciences requires a minimum of 96 semester hours composed of at least 32 hours of formal course work. The first-year of the program consists of required and elective courses planned in consultation with a graduate adviser, who takes into account the student's previous training and interests. Typical graduate-level course work focuses on relevant topics in molecular, cellular, and systems biology related to medical sciences as well as laboratory rotations, statistics, and seminars related to the student's research interest. Courses in the second year include advanced topics in molecular, cellular, developmental, and structural-functional neuroscience and molecular mechanisms of drug and toxin action, as well as central nervous system pathobiology. Students are also encouraged, with the consent of their advisers, to enroll in several elective special-topics courses or audit courses that are related to their own developing interests. If interested, graduate students may also gain teaching experience by assisting in basic sciences courses for medical students. Cooperative programs with other departments in the College of Medicine, Texas A&M University, and other components of the Texas A&M Health Science Center are also possible.

Research Facilities

The Department of Neuroscience and Experimental Therapeutics is located in the Joe H. Reynolds Medical Building on the Texas A&M University campus. The Medical Building is a modern, four-story structure adjacent to the Medical Sciences Library. Graduate students and postdoctoral fellows have the opportunity to work in faculty laboratories with specialized state-of-the-art equipment.

Financial Support

Assistantships and graduate student fellowships are available from the College of Medicine, federal grants, and private sources. Most full-time graduate students receive assistantships.

Cost of Study

The current cost of graduate tuition for Texas residents is $175 per semester credit hour. Students should expect to pay approximately $2500 per semester for tuition and other required fees. Nonresident students who hold graduate assistantships pay the same tuition as Texas residents. Students should expect additional expenses of $2500 to $3000 per semester for books and laboratory and miscellaneous fees. Students should visit the Web site at http://www.tamhsc.edu/education/student/costs%20for%20fall%202008/gsbs-resident-fall-2008-coa.pdf for current information on the cost of study.

Living and Housing Costs

Bryan/College Station yearly ranks as one of the least expensive cities in the United States in which to live, and several nationwide rankings have listed Bryan/College Station among the best places to live in America. For example, the average 1-2 bedroom apartment ranges from $500-$600.

Student Group

Texas A&M Health Science Center, College of Medicine, has 102 graduate students enrolled, with women representing 50 percent of the student body. Students come from all regions of the United States and a number of other countries. Graduates of the program have gone on to prestigious postdoctoral fellowships that have led to both academic and research positions.

Location

Texas A&M Health Science Center, College of Medicine, is located in College Station, Texas. The twin cities of Bryan and College Station have a combined population of approximately 120,000. The communities offer good school systems, a regional shopping mall, and a variety of other retail outlets. Students can take advantage of the cultural and intellectual activities associated with an academic community. The two cities maintain forty parks, six swimming pools, a golf course, and numerous tennis courts. Also, the Gulf Coast is approximately 150 miles from College Station. The nearly year-round warm climate of the area makes College Station a desirable place to live.

The University

The College of Medicine is located on the Texas A&M University campus. Texas A&M University is the state's oldest public institution of higher learning and was founded in 1876 as a land-grant college. It is one of sixteen sea-grant colleges in the nation and in 1989 became a space-grant college. It is also the home of the George Bush Presidential Library. The main campus of Texas A&M University is situated on 5,200 acres. Its recreation facilities include an eighteen-hole golf course, tennis courts, indoor and outdoor swimming pools, and a polo field. Texas A&M University is a member of the Big Twelve Athletic Conference, and its intramural offerings constitute one of the best all-around sports programs in the country.

Applying

Application forms for admission to the College of Medicine graduate program and financial support and additional information about the department can be obtained from http://medicine.tamhsc.edu/education/graduate-studies/apply.html. Applicants are judged on the basis of their undergraduate record, scores on the verbal and quantitative portions of the Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) General Test, and letters of recommendation.

Application and Admission Requirements
Requirements for Ph.D. in Medical Sciences

Interdisciplinary Graduate Studies

For students interested in our Interdisciplinary Graduate Studies program, which includes all of the Basic Sciences Departments in the College of Medicine, please visit the Office of Graduate Studies web site at

http://medicine.tamhsc.edu/education/graduate-studies

Faculty and their Research

For more information please see:

http://medicine.tamhsc.edu/basic-sciences/next/faculty/index.html

MD/Ph.D Program

The Texas A&M Health Science Center College of Medicine offers a combined training program leading to both M.D. and Ph.D. degrees. The purpose of this program is to provide research training for highly motivated medical students planning careers in academic medicine. To accomplish this, our program integrates the studies and requirements for both the M.D. and Ph.D. degrees, providing students with many opportunities to relate their study of clinical medicine with basic biomedical science. Such training produces medical scientists with unique insights into human disease processes. Entry into the program is competitive and based on a selective process.

Financial Support

The M.D./Ph.D. program is supported by the Texas A&M Health Science Center College of Medicine. Students are supported by a scholarship during their medical school years and an assistantship during their Ph.D. training. Financial support is currently $22,000 per year during the first two years, with scholarship support increasing for the third and fourth years of medical school to $24,000 and $26,000 per year, respectively. Tuition and fees are also covered by the program.  During their graduate training students are supported by graduate assistantships, currently set at $23,500 per year for the first year.