
The "Mechanisms of Disease and Translational Science" (MoD) graduate track will train an elite group of PhD students to become leaders of the next generation of translational scientists. THe Graduate School's Division of Basic Science and Clinical Science, in partnership with the UT Southwestern faculty, will collaborate to provide students with new opportunities to study human diseases at the interface between basic and clinical sciences. This premier training program is one of only 23 in the United States that are funded by the HHMI "Med into Grad Initiative" in 2009.

Mission Statement:
Train a cadre of PhD scientists who have a foundation in the molecular and physiological basis of disease, who can formulate clinically important questions from a basic science perspective, who understand how to interface, and collaborate with clinical and translational researchers and who have the set of skills to target their research programs to address unmet therapeutic and diagnostic needs. Trainees will be empowered to spearhead the bidirectional translation of discoveries between the “bench” and “bedside” to harness the explosion of scientific knowledge to improve human health.
Specific Goals:
- Bridge education in basic science, medicine and clinical research principles and practices.
- Provide a curriculum that integrates clinical and translational research training components with the already rigorous training in hypothesis driven basic research.
- Offer structured opportunities to experience direct patient contact and clinical research.
Admission Information:
MoD training is available to students in any of our existing PhD programs, and complements the curriculum of the existing PhD programs. Students will graduate with a PhD degree in the home graduate program, with an "Emphasis in the Mechanisms of Disease & Translational Science". Ph.D. advisors for MoD students can be selected from any graduate program. Please see specific graduate program pages for lists of faculty members. Admission to this track will be limited to eight students per year and selection will be based on an application, personal statement and interview in the spring of the first year.
Contact Information:
Curriculum and training track:
Dr. Helen Yin, Ph.D.
Professor, Dept. of Physiology
Helen.Yin@UTSouthwestern.edu
Application process and administration:
Priyarama Sen
Administrative Coordinator
Priyarama.Sen@UTSouthwestern.edu