Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology
School of Medicine
Stony Brook University, State University of New York
Stony Brook, New York
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Stony Brook University, State University of New York - Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology - Overview
Program in Molecular Genetics and Microbiology at Stony Brook University
The PhD program in Molecular Genetics and Microbiology at Stony Brook University engages students in rigorous coursework and research activities to train for careers in fields including molecular genetics, cell biology, infectious diseases, and biochemistry. The program is uniquely research-intensive, with graduate students interacting with highly skilled faculty members in state-of-the-art research labs. In conducting their dissertation research, students participate in a wide variety of activities, including seminars with visiting scholars, research presentations, journal clubs and an annual program retreat.
Since the program's inception in the early 1970s, graduates receiving PhD degrees have gone on to become leaders in academic research, highly ranked professionals in government science administration agencies or in industries such as pharmaceuticals, or science educators.
Graduates most frequently become research scientists, and their expertise is typically applied to the investigation of pressing issues such as cancer, infectious diseases, and cell cycle regulation.
Course of Study
First-year students working toward their PhD degrees in Molecular Genetics and Microbiology take part in a rotation of 3 laboratories of their choice during the first and second semesters. They also have the option of rotating in an additional laboratory during the summer.
Following their first year, students choose a laboratory to join, where they conduct their dissertation research. Upon satisfying all required coursework and successfully defending their dissertation proposal, the student conducts research with the supervision of their dissertation advisor and advisory committee.
Highly Distinguished Faculty
Graduate students in Molecular Genetics and Microbiology program at Stony Brook University are mentored by a faculty of outstanding scientists working at Stony Brook University, as well as Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Brookhaven National Laboratory and the Feinstein Institute for Medical Research.
Molecular Genetics and Microbiology faculty have received many awards and honors. Professors Jorge Benach and Eckard Wimmer, for example, have been elected to the rank of Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and Professor Wimmer has won the prestigious international M.W. Beijerinck Virology Prize for his work sequencing the poliovirus genome and his contributions to RNA virology. Dr. Martha Furie serves as president of the American Society for Pathology. Dr. Carol Carter has been appointed to the Council of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
Research Areas
The Molecular Genetics and Microbiology program's training faculty performs groundbreaking research in 6 key research areas: molecular virology; bacterial, viral, and fungal pathogenesis; yeast genetics; cell growth and development and cancer; immunology; and structure and biochemistry of macromolecules.
Research labs within each specialty cover a broad range of topics. In the bacterial, viral and fungal pathogenesis research specialty, for instance, the laboratory of Carol Carter focuses on the assembly of HIV and the molecular basis of resistance to drugs that target the protease of HIV.
In molecular virology, the lab of Patrick Hearing focuses on adenovirus-host cell interactions and the use of adenovirus vectors for gene therapy; and in immunology, the focus in the lab of Adrianus van der Velden is the mammalian T cell response to Salmonella enterica serovar typhimurium. One of several areas of focus in Bruce Futcher's laboratory is the regulation of the cell cycle using Saccharomyces cerevisiae as a model organism.
Chemical Biology Training Program
Graduate students involved in research groups that are run by faculty members who are involved in the Chemical Biology Training Program (CBTP) may also apply to the CBTP.
While in the CBTP, students continue to meet the requirements of the Molecular Genetics and Microbiology Program and take additional courses in chemical biology. They also participate in a spring seminar course and annual retreat of the Institute of Chemical Biology and Drug Discovery.
The degree that is conferred to students once they have met all requirements is a PhD in Molecular Genetics and Microbiology.
Top Research Facilities at Stony Brook University
Stony Brook University offers outstanding facilities to support the institution's expansive research efforts. The Proteomics Center, a core facility at Stony Brook, for instance, provides services including protein sequencing, peptide synthesis, analytical HPLC, preparative HPLC, MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry, and DNA sequencing. The DNA Microarray Center provides researchers with facilities to simultaneously analyze the expression of thousands of genes in humans, rodents, yeast plants, bacteria, or Drosophila.
The university's Center for Structural Biology has advanced instrumentation for NMR spectroscopy and X-ray crystallography, and the University Microscopy Imaging Center assists in research projects requiring advanced light, electronic light, and electron microscopy techniques.
Cell Culture/Hybridoma Research Facility
The university's Cell Culture/Hybridoma Facility has a superb reputation for research support services and has supported collaborations to broaden technical capabilities in areas ranging from infectious disease to cancer stem cells. More than 150 cell lines have been cryopreserved in the facility for Stony Brook researchers, and many hybridomas have been produced, with numerous clones disclosed for licensing.
Admission
Applicants to the Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology graduate program should have an undergraduate background in biochemistry, genetics, and cell biology. Many successful applicants have had some independent laboratory experience demonstrating a commitment to research activity.
Applicants should also have strong recommendations from references who are in a position to evaluate the student's potential for success as a graduate student.
Graduate applicants at Stony Brook are strongly encouraged to take the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) early enough to ensure receipt of the scores by the application deadline.
The program does not offer admission in the Spring semester.
Financial Aid Includes Full Financial Support
All graduate students in the Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology receive a stipend and a full tuition scholarship.
Stony Brook University
Stony Brook University has earned high ratings on global rankings of universities, and the school was recently ranked as one of the "100 Best Values in Higher Education" among public universities by Kiplinger's Personal Finance.
The university's main, 1,000-acre campus is on Long Island's North Shore, and the school recently opened the new Stony Brook Manhattan campus, a research and development park.