VIBRE PhD Programs Welcome First Students
The inaugural class of graduate students of the Vagelos Institute’s Biomedical Research Education (VIBRE) PhD Programs were welcomed with a series of events in August and September, including a reception attended by faculty and staff.
The 62 new students span VIBRE’s three interconnected PhD programs—Neurobiology & Behavior, Biomedical Informatics, and the newly created Biomedical Life Sciences program.
Spurred by a $175 million gift from Roy and Diana Vagelos in 2023, VIBRE’s PhD programs are redefining graduate education in the biomedical sciences.
“The gift gave our faculty and students an opportunity to come together as a community and think about how we would design a PhD program that is structured for today’s scientific environment,” says Hashim Al-Hashimi, associate dean for biomedical graduate education and the Roy and Diana Vagelos Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics at Columbia University’s Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons.
VIBRE’s new academic model gives PhD students greater freedom to create their own research path and encourages them to take the intellectual risks required to make transformative advances in medical science.
Biomedical research has been traditionally organized through different disciplines such as genetics, biophysics, and cell biology, all providing a window into different aspects of biology, health, and disease. VIBRE breaks down the barriers among these disciplines and provides training that keeps pace with the conceptual and technological revolutions rapidly reshaping biomedical research.
“We’re teaching our students the common intellectual threads that unite these disciplines and training them to see biology as one integrated framework,” Al-Hashimi says. “This is the perspective students need to tackle the most important scientific challenges of our time.”
VIBRE PhD students will have access to over 350 faculty mentors and cutting-edge research facilities, providing students with an unparalleled environment for discovery, collaboration, and innovation.
“You’re about to embark on a journey of truth, in the sense of exploring the unknown, make new discoveries to improve health, and at the same time, make discoveries about yourself,” Al-Hashimi told the students at the end of the reception. “VIBRE is here to support you throughout the journey.”