Overview
The University of Chicago Promotes Interdisciplinary Graduate Research and a Community of Scholarly Innovation
Faculty and students of the University of Chicago are expected to be pioneers, scholars, and agents of change who rigorously pursue knowledge. The University of Chicago places a strong emphasis on critical thinking, research, and discovery, so students tend to have stimulating discussions in and out of the classroom.
Graduate students are trained for careers in academia and research, exploring information in all disciplines, even those outside their selected fields. The university has a strong scientific pedigree, with 82 Nobel Prize recipients having been students, researchers, or faculty. U Chicago was where carbon 14 dating was developed, REM sleep was discovered, and where the mathematical foundations of genetic evolution were first laid.
The Committee on Genetics, Genomics, and Systems Biology (GGSB) at the University of Chicago is an interdisciplinary Ph.D. granting program that trains students to use sophisticated genetic analysis techniques in their own research program. Students work with distinguished faculty and learn to integrate genetic-based strategies and approaches from other disciplines in order to address important biological problems in diverse genetically tractable systems including viruses, bacteria, blue-green algae, Arabidopsis, yeast, Tetrahymena, nematodes, Drosophila, mice, humans, and worms.
The GGSB program is aimed at training Ph.D. scholars for careers as independent scientists in basic and applied biomedical research and education, by combining a foundation in modern genetic analysis with training in more hands-on interdisciplinary methods of addressing complex systems. Over 78 training faculty, from 16 different departments, provide a supportive, collegial, and intellectually-stimulating environment in which students learn to become competent independent researchers.
The University of Chicago Offers Students the Cultural Benefits of Hyde Park Along with Numerous Campus Events
The University of Chicago is located in Hyde Park, just south of downtown Chicago on Lake Michigan. Most students live in Hyde Park, which has a history of social activism, political leadership, and community life. Hyde Park also boasts a number of famous museums and architectural landmarks, offering students a wide variety of cultural opportunities. Still, Hyde Park is primarily a residential neighborhood, so students can expect to repeatedly run into their friends at local restaurants, coffee shops, and bookstores.
The Chicago Transit Authority buses run from most graduate student housing options directly to the campus.
The campus itself has a number of events in which graduate students may choose to involve themselves. The Biological Sciences Division has a Dean's Council--to which a student from each department and committee is elected--which funds social events like movies and barbecues, or subsidizes cultural events ranging from dances to symphonies.
The campus also features a student pub, with 21 beers on tap and a weekly trivia night. The Athletic Center features an Olympic-size pool, and is open from 6 am to midnight, seven days a week. Many intramural sports teams play in the center regularly. Students who wish to join a religious group or community service group to volunteer in the community will have plenty of options.
Genetics, Genomics, and Systems Biology Students Choose Majors and Special Programs to Research in Thesis Laboratories
The Committee on Genetics, Genomics, and Systems Biology (GGSB) at the University of Chicago offers broad training that spans not only various aspects of genetics, but also research across multiple other disciplines as well. When students select a thesis lab, they may consider labs using genetic approaches anywhere in the university, even if the researcher is not currently in the GGSB.
Laboratory types range from ecology and evolution to human genetics to medicine. GGSB students work in buildings all over campus on projects of various types, including human disease, viral transmission, stem cell propagation, molecular evolution, signaling pathways, genome regulation, embryology, and polymerase structure.
GGSB students are assigned to an academic advisor, and take weekly faculty research seminars to learn about the available faculty research opportunities. Weekly lunch meetings and an annual Molecular Biosciences Retreat give students the opportunity to meet in a pleasant, informal setting to learn about the research programs of the various laboratories.
Seminars from the department and other graduate students also help students decide on the focus of their research interests, allowing them to begin work on the appropriate track based on their interests: model systems, human genetics, developmental genetics, population genetics, and genomics and systems biology.
From infectious diseases to viral transmission, students have a wide degree of flexibility in selecting their electives, courses, and eventual theses.
The University of Chicago Is Located Just South of Downtown Chicago, Illinois
The University of Chicago is located just south of downtown Chicago, Illinois in the community of Hyde Park. The University's proximity to this bustling metropolis has allowed U Chicago to both contribute to and draw from the strength and diversity of the city, engaging with the community and larger world. The University of Chicago contributes to the city with targeted education programs, while the city in turn serves as a living laboratory for addressing social issues on a national and global scale.
