GENERAL INFO

To view the NIH Graduate Research Training Program in Biotechnology flyer, please click here.

The Biotechnology Training Program for Ph.D. graduate students was established by an NIH Training Grant awarded to the Institute of Biosciences and Bioengineering at Rice University in 1991. The goal of the training program is to train graduate students from various disciplines in the broad aspects of biotechnology and in the industrial application of these techniques. The program provides stipends and research support for graduate students interested in a research career in biotechnology. It allows students access to the tools of biotechnology while specializing in a particular research area. Students receive training in broad areas of biotechnology that relate to commercial application of these techniques. A core of interdisciplinary courses is offered and includes a three-to-six month internship in an industrial setting.

Requirements for admission to the NIH Program
 In order to be considered for admission to the NIH Biotechnology Research Training Program you must be a 2nd or 3rd year graduate student in the Department of Biochemistry & Cell Biology, the Department of Bioengineering, the Department of Chemistry, or the Department of Chemical Engineering. Admission decisions will be based on a combination of your undergraduate record, GRE scores, aptitude and interest in a research career in biotechnology.

 Applicants to the NIH Program
 Applicants must be U.S. citizens or permanent residents. Minority students are encouraged to apply.

 Funding
 The Rice University Institute of Biosciences and Bioengineering's NIH Biotechnology Research Training Program is supported by a five-year grant from the National Institutes of Health and provides traineeships for 9 Ph.D. students.

Award disbursement
 The award consists of an annual stipend for up to two years.

Special features
 Funds for trainee-related expenses are available for NIH trainees. These funds fall into two categories, supplies and travel. Students can utilize the supply funds for research-related expenditures that are relevant to their specific project. In some cases this expense may be a particularly important compound, or a set of enzymes for an experimental protocol that may be outside of the usual laboratory routine. These funds provide the trainees with a level of independence and the ability to contribute to their laboratory. The travel funds are used to defray the costs of travel incurred by the trainee either while attending a scientific meeting or in traveling to an out-of-town laboratory to pursue aspects of the research which require resources not available locally. The availability of these funds to our trainees provides emphasis to the honor that we indicate a training stipend conveys.