The Department of Chemical and Systems Biology admits Ph.D. students through the Stanford Biosciences Program, which spans the Schools of Medicine and Humanities & Sciences. All applicants are required to use Stanford’s online application. The Stanford Biosciences website also provides information on specific training programs and the admissions process.
The department of Chemical and Systems Biology recognizes that the Supreme Court issued a ruling in June 2023 about the consideration of certain types of demographic information as part of an admission review. All applications submitted during upcoming application cycles will be reviewed in conformance with that decision.
The department of Chemical and Systems Biology welcomes graduate applications from individuals with a broad range of life experiences, perspectives, and backgrounds who would contribute to our community of scholars. The review process is holistic and individualized, considering each applicant’s academic record and accomplishments, letters of recommendation, prior research experience, and admissions essays to understand how an applicant’s life experiences have shaped their past and potential contributions to their field and how they might enrich the learning community at Stanford.
The Stanford Biosciences Admissions Office, not the Department of Chemical and Systems Biology, processes applications for the Ph.D. program. All materials should be uploaded electronically to the online application.
Graduate Admissions only requires admitted applicants who accept the offer of admission to submit official transcripts that shows their degree conferral. Please do not send or have sent any official transcripts to us at this time.
Autumn 2023-24 applications must be received by Tuesday, December 5, 2023 (11:59:59 pm PST). Late applications will not be accepted.
To apply for Knight-Hennessey Scholars: The deadline to apply is October 11, 2023, 1:00pm Pacific Time. More information here.
After the submission deadline, the Admissions Committee for the Department of Chemical and Systems Biology, which includes faculty members and occasionally student reviewers, will select candidates to be invited to interview March 6th-March 10th, 2024, in person. This will be our only interview session.
Please note that the Biosciences Admissions Office will be closed on Thursday, November 23 through Friday, November 24, 2023, and Thursday, December 21, 2023 through Wednesday, January 3, 2024.
Please refer to this How to Apply webpage and the Graduate Admissions webpage for more information on the application process.
Please also refer to our CSB Information Session Webinar in which CSB faculty and students answer various questions about the admissions process and what it is like to be a PhD student in the CSB Department. We plan to post a new webinar every fall before applications open.
Please see our CSB Information Session Webinar for more in depth perspectives from our faculty and students, including research experience, research interest and fit with the CSB mission. The information session details what the admission committee looks for in an application and answers various questions regarding the application process.
We encourage you to reference the Graduate Admissions Statement of Purpose link and the Stanford Biosciences How to Apply link for more information.
Statements of purpose that address how you can apply scientific reasoning and rigor to your research projects, and leverage your unique interests and talents to do so, tend to fare better than those that list techniques you have mastered.
At least three letters of recommendation are required for your application. For more information, please reference the Graduate Admissions Letters of Recommendation link as well as the Stanford Biosciences How to Apply link.
We encourage you to seek out recommenders who can speak to your character, depth of scholarship, and curiosity as a researcher.
All Primary CSB faculty members and 2-3 student reviewers will select candidates to be invited to interview.
Stanford will cover the expenses for your admissions in-person visit.
When completing the “Program Selection” section of the application, you will be asked to select a “Program Choice”. Although Biosciences applicants can apply to up to two Home Programs, at this point please select your top Home Program choice.
When completing the “Biosciences PhD Admissions Supplemental Form,” which is part of the “Supplemental Information” section of the application, you will have the opportunity to select one additional Home Program. Only select an additional program if you have a genuine interest in the field. Including a poorly matched program will not necessarily increase your chances of being accepted. You will be required to answer additional questions related to your Home Program selection(s) on the Supplemental Form. The information you provide in this section will help the Admissions Committee match you with the Home Program that seems most suited to your background and research interests.
You can choose up to two home programs when completing the “program selection,” section of your application. Please only select a secondary program if you have a genuine interest in the field. A poorly matched additional home program will not increase your chances of being accepted.
To clarify, you may apply to only one degree program at Stanford per academic year. An exception is within the Biosciences, in which you may apply to up to two of the 14 Biosciences home programs within your one Biosciences PhD application.
The application fee is $125, is non-refundable, and must be received by the application deadline. Please review more information about the application fee here.
If you are not eligible for the Biosciences fee waiver but still need financial assistance, please email danarama@stanford.edu. Requesting a fee waiver has no impact on the review of your application.
All CSB students in good standing receive a competitive stipend, as well as tuition and health insurance. Stanford guarantees your funding for the first four years coming from the Biosciences program, allowing you independence in your thesis lab choice. Your lab generally funds you for the remainder of your time as a CSB graduate student at Stanford. The department also encourages students to seek internal and external fellowships to provide additional support for their research.
Please refer to this link for information on CSB faculty.
No, there are no minimum GPA score requirements. Each application is viewed as a complete packet, and the reviewers will consider letters of recommendation, personal statements, transcripts, etc.
Applicants will need to use recipient number 4704 to communicate their official TOEFL to the central Biosciences Graduate Admissions Office at Stanford.
Students are highly encouraged to apply for outside fellowships, and our trainees have historically been very competitive for the most prestigious predoctoral fellowships. Students are therefore expected to apply for outside funding if eligible (e.g. National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowships, National Defense Science & Engineering Graduate Fellowships, Hertz Graduate Fellowships, and Ford Foundation Fellowships. Matriculated students can also apply for internal funding opportunities at Stanford, including Stanford Interdisciplinary Graduate Fellowships, Bio-X Fellowships, DARE Doctoral Fellowships, and Gerald J. Lieberman Fellowships.
Chemical and Systems Biology Ph.D. students are not required to teach or serve as teaching assistants (TAs). Nevertheless, many students in our program are considering academic careers, and they have found TA positions helpful in assessing their interest in and aptitude for teaching. TA positions also provide some extra income to students, and they are regularly available through the numerous undergraduate- and graduate-level courses at Stanford.
First-year graduate students are required to rotate in three laboratories before selecting a faculty advisor, spending one quarter in each laboratory. The purpose of the rotation system is to broaden the students’ research experience, to familiarize them with ongoing projects, and to find a laboratory that matches their needs both intellectually and culturally. The fall and winter rotations are performed within the Department of Chemical and Systems Biology; the spring quarter rotations may be within the Department, or alternatively, students may arrange to rotate with faculty in other programs. After the laboratory rotations are completed, students can approach faculty members about dissertation research opportunities under his/her guidance. These discussions guide the final matching of students and faculty advisors.
Course requirements for The Chemical and Systems Biology Ph.D. program are provided in the Chemical and Systems Biology Student Guide.
Students receiving a Ph.D. in Chemical and Systems Biology must complete the following requirements. More information on these requirements are available in the Chemical and Systems Biology Student Guide.
We encourage eligible, incoming students to consider ADVANCE.
We encourage our matriculated CSB students to check out the Molecular Pharmacology Training Program for funding and activity opportunities.
Other Stanford programs are available for students interested in translational medicine, biotechnology, and entrepreneurship. These include the Stanford SPARK Program, the ChEM-H Chemical/Biology Interface Training Program, and courses available through Stanford Ignite.
The Department of Chemical and Systems Biology organizes several events and programs to enhance graduate student training, such as the Cutting Lectures, a vibrant seminar series throughout the academic year, that allows students to hear from and interact with internationally renowned scientists. Other opportunities include the Sterling Visiting Lectureship and workshops from the Alan Alda Center for Communicating Science.
The Department also hosts an annual three-day retreat at an off-site location, typically near Santa Cruz, Monterey or Lake Tahoe. The retreat is held at the beginning of the fall quarter and allows new trainees to rapidly acquaint themselves with ongoing research within the department and to meet current faculty, students, and postdoctoral fellows.
Graduate students have regular opportunities to share their research discoveries with the Chemical and Systems Biology community. Throughout the academic year, the Department convenes each week for Science Circle Pizza Talks and Think Tanks, during which students and postdoctoral fellows present their work and receive feedback.
Please feel free to reach out to the students below.
Laura Keller – ljkeller@stanford.edu
Christy Luong – luongc@stanford.edu
Becca Rodell – rodell@stanford.edu – she/her
From: St. Louis, MO
Graduated From: Cornell University
Research Interests: RNA! In my thesis, I’m focused on how RNA modifications are regulated, but I’m generally interested in novel functions of RNA.
In middle school, I was a horse girl. As horse girls do, I went to a horse girl summer camp. In between the horseback riding sessions I was really there for, we had classes on equine science. I learned about the fascinating logic behind the genetic of coat color and was hooked. I wanted to learn more about how these unseen genetic could influence all the life around me.
Through the opportunities and classwork here, CSB does a great job preparing you for any career you wanted post-grad, whether it be academia, industry, or something else, something that felt unique compared to other schools. Additionally, the small department felt like it would be a good homebase, where I wouldn’t be lost or forgotten, to explore all Stanford has to offer. Also, the California weather sounded pretty nice!
In our lab, we study how RNA modifications, particularly pseudouridine, affect RNA processing, such as alternative splicing. I am focused on how a pseudouridine synthase, PUS7, selects which sites it will modify on nascent pre-mRNA.
I’m either working out, hanging out with my cat, baking something delicious, or napping.
Set aside time to make friends! It takes a lot of time and effort to build a good community for yourself, so be aware of that. Establishing a strong community support network in your first year when you have the time will pay you back so much later.
From: Taipei, Taiwan
Graduated From: National Taiwan University
Research Interests: Pattern formation and signaling dynamics
At first it was scientific magazines for little kids, the ones with science-themed cartoons and great pictures of nature. Then it was school chemistry lab where we made foams, precipitates, and color changes out of chemicals. Lately it has been teachers and peers who did awesome stuffs and shared with me the exciting findings.
CSB has a wide range of interests, approaches, and expertise. All of these comes together as a great resource to everyone.
I am trying to understand how redox signal is sent across distance, what chemical / physical laws limit its transmission, and what biological mechanism makes it possible. I focus on big animal cells, like eggs, whose cytoplasm is not a well-mixed bag of solution and where cellular signals must be delivered timely to ensure early embryonic development.
Sampling local food, bouldering, idling with my cohort.
Try out new things -- it is the time to expand your knowledge base and experience and find things that really capture your imagination!
From: Columbia, CA
Graduated From: Bachelors of Science in Cell Biology from UC Davis
Research Interests: Microbial Evolution, Prions, DNA Damage
I always find this question challenging, because I think interest in science is the compulsion to wonder ‘why?’ and ‘how?’ This pondering begins at such an early age, and is nurtured in a scientist. In short, the many complexities and conundrums of the natural world sparked my interest in science!
When applying to graduate school, I looked into research labs that most interested me, and then determined what department the faculty belonged to. The research conducted in CSB is broad, but all of it is fascinating to me! Particularly, I was interested in epigenetic inheritance.
I study how prions effect the dynamics of microbial evolution through an interaction with DNA replication and repair.
Spending time with fellow grad students, playing with my dogs, and watching the same three TV shows over and over again.
1. Make sure to build a support system! Grad school has a lot of ups and downs, and good friends help you get through it.
2. Rotate in labs that ask questions that really intrigue you.
3. Trust yourself!!
From: St. Cloud, Minnesota
Graduated From: University of St. Thomas
Research Interests: Mitochondria, Aldehyde dehydrogenases, population genetics
As a kid, my parents took me to the local library on ‘science days’ where we would do experiments like making slime. I was really fascinated and wanted to learn more about how that process occurred. My father also suffered a spinal cord injury which inspired me to learn about human physiology and pathology.
The diversity in research of the CSB department was exciting to me. When I entered graduate school, one of my goals was to learn new techniques and gain expertise in a new field outside of what I did in undergrad. The CSB department is a great place to be exposed new ideas.
My current focus is to understand how genetic variation in aldehyde dehydrogenases contribute to neurodegeneration.
hanging out with my cohort, running, or drinking coffee
1. Follow your interests! Graduate school is a great time to learn new things outside of your comfort zone.
2. Find a balance between lab and life that works for you.
3. Identify a support network you can rely upon.
4. It’s important to have friends and mentors who you can trust throughout graduate school.
