About

The Ph.D. in Biomedical Science and Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering are offered through the Graduate School of Biomedical Science and Engineering (GSBSE), which is a multidisciplinary research consortium connecting four external research organizations with the University of Maine as the degree-granting institution. The over 150 affiliated faculty conduct research in a variety of topics, including biomedical engineering, computational biology, bioinformatics, biophysics, bioengineering and nanotechnology, molecular and cell biology, neuroscience, and the molecular mechanisms of disease. The GSBSE contributes to learning and discovery on the emerging frontier of the biological, physical, clinical, and behavioral sciences, preparing new faculty, training scientists and engineers, and furthering Maine’s biotechnology and biomedical infrastructure. 

The GSBSE is a multi-institutional graduate program connecting two academic institutions of the University of Maine and the University of New England as well as three world-class research institutions of The Jackson Laboratory, the Maine Health Institute for  Research, and the Mount Desert Island Biological.

During their first year, Ph.D. students complete four core modules (BMS 625). Individual programs of study are then developed for each student with coursework relevant to their research topic. In addition to core coursework, during their first year in the program Ph.D. students undertake a minimum of three laboratory research rotations hosted by faculty members in at least two of the five partner institutions. Students also have the option to do a fourth rotation. At the end of or during the rotation sequence, students identify their dissertation mentor and project.