Microbiology and Immunology (PhD)

Admission Requirements and Procedures

Students with at least a baccalaureate degree in biological or physical science or in mathematics, computer science or engineering are encouraged to apply. Admissions are based upon the student’s academic record, letters of recommendation, previous research experience, written statement of interest and a personal interview. Applicants who are citizens of countries where English is not the official language (and the Province of Quebec in Canada) are required to submit evidence of English Language proficiency by submitting the official results of the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or the International English Language Testing System (IELTS). A minimum TOEFL score of 600 (paper) or 100 (iBT), or IELTS score of at least 7.00 is required for admission to the Program. Applicants who have earned a bachelor’s degree or a higher degree from a regionally accredited institution in the United States are exempt from submitting English language proficiency test results.

Additional information and a link to the online application can be a found at https://www.pmi.pitt.edu/admissions

Financial Assistance

All full-time students receive a stipend, educational enrichment fund, computing and network service, and individual health insurance (with option to purchase additional family coverage) during their graduate training.

Degree Requirements

This is an accelerated program that provides the opportunity for students to complete their degrees in approximately 4-6 years. Students enter the program in the summer or fall sessions and perform four research rotations during their first year. It is expected that four rotations of seven weeks each will be performed in different laboratories of members of the PMI training faculty, but there are several circumstances where the requirement for four rotations or laboratories might be relaxed. Additional information can be found in the Student Handbook:  https://www.pmi.pitt.edu/sites/default/files/KristinD-Files/Handbook_PMI_05.18.21.pdf

A minimum of 72 credits is required for graduation with a PhD. Of these, 32 credits must come from approved courses, both required and elective course work, and 40 of these credits are taken as dissertation research credits upon completing the comprehensive examination, to be held during the fall term of the second year and advancing to candidacy. Required course work includes the following:

• MSMI 2100 - FIRST PMI LABORATORY ROTATION and
• MSMI 2110 - SECOND PMI LABORATORY ROTATION (taken during fall and spring terms of the first year)
• MSMI 2000 - PRINCIPLES OF MICROBIOLOGY AND IMMUNOLOGY (taken during the fall of the first year)
• MSMI 2200 - COMPREHENSIVE MICROBIOLOGY: MOLECULAR VIROLOGY & MOLECULAR PATHOGENESIS and/or
• MSMI 2210 - COMPREHENSIVE IMMUNOLOGY (taken during the spring of the first year)
• MSMI 2250 - TA: MEDICAL MICROBIOLOGY (taken during the spring of the second and third years)
• MSMI 2300 - SCIENTIFIC WRITING IN MICROBIOLOGY AND IMMUNOLOGY (taken during the summer of the first year)
• MSMI 2350 - INTRODUCTION TO BIOSTATISTICS FOR MICROBIOLOGY AND IMMUNOLOGY GRADUATE STUDENTS (taken during the summer of the first year)
• INTBP 2290 - SCIENTIFIC ETHICS AND THE RESPONSIBLE CONDUCT OF RESEARCH (taken during the summer of the first year)
• MSMI 2450 - IMMUNOLOGY RESEARCH SEMINAR (taken every fall and spring term from the second year through graduation)
• MSMI 2460 - MICROBIOLOGY AND RELATED TOPICS SEMINAR SERIES (taken every fall and spring term from the second year through graduation)
• MSMI 3220 - CONTEMPORARY TOPICS - IMMUNOLOGY (taken during the fall and/or spring terms of the second and/or third years)
• MSMI 3230 - MICROBIOLOGY RESEARCH IN PROGRESS (taken every fall and spring term from the second year through graduation)