Overview

The Systems, Synthetic and Physical Biology program at Rice University is designed to provide students the knowledge and tools that they will need to solve hard research questions and to apply their discoveries to the development of biotechnologies that transform agriculture, electronics, energy, the environment, information storage, medicine, and manufacturing.

What you will learn

To provide students the tools that they will need to be world-class investigators, our core curriculum covers three synergistic topics:

Synthetic Biology — the “bottom-up” construction of biomolecules and cellular systems and their applications to increasing our understanding of biological processes and enabling new biotechnologies.
Systems Biology — the emergence of functional properties in complex biological systems that are not presented by the individual components (genes, transcripts, enzymes, and metabolites).
Physical Biology — the development of models that anticipate the properties of natural and synthetic cellular systems by integrating biology with chemistry, physics, mathematics, and computer science.

Programme Structure

Courses include:

Physical Biology

Synthetic Biology

Responsible Conduct of Research

Graduate Teaching in SSPB

Advanced Topics

Key information

Duration

Full-time
- 60 months

Start dates & application deadlines

Starting 2027-08-24 00:00:00
- Apply before 2027-01-05 00:00:00

Language

English

Duolingo English Test

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TOEFL^® IBT

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Credits

90 SCH

Delivered

On Campus

Campus Location

Houston, United States

Disciplines

Physics Biology View 351 other PhDs in Biology in United States

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Academic requirements

We are not aware of any specific GRE, GMAT or GPA grading score requirements for this programme.

English requirements

Duolingo English Test

115

Take A Free Practice Test!

TOEFL^® IBT

Schedule TOEFL®

IELTS

Prepare for Your English Test

Cathoven AI IELTS Preparation

Learn your IELTS Score

AI-powered IELTS feedback. Clear, actionable, and tailored to boost your writing & speaking score. No credit card or upfront payment required.

Trusted by 300k learners
98 accuracy using real exam data
4.9/5 student rating

Other requirements

General requirements

When completing the online application, applicants will be asked to electronically submit the following:

Transcripts from all undergraduate and graduate schools attended. Unofficial transcripts may be uploaded for initial evaluation; however, applicants offered an interview must provide official transcripts.
At least three letters of recommendation from research mentors, teachers, or advisors
A curriculum vitae (CV)
Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) scores (for international students requiring visas)

Tuition Fees

Tuition fees are shown in and the most likely applicable fee is shown based on your nationality.

International Applies to you

Applies to you

Non-residents

62474 USD / year

≈ 62474 USD / year
Out-of-State

62474 USD / year

≈ 62474 USD / year
Domestic

Applies to you

In-State

62474 USD / year

≈ 62474 USD / year

Living costs

Houston

United States

1067 - 1950 USD / month

The living costs include the total expenses per month, covering accommodation, public transportation, utilities (electricity, internet), books and groceries.

Funding

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Scholarships Information

Below you will find PhD's scholarship opportunities for Systems, Synthetic and Physical Biology.

Available Scholarships

You are eligible to apply for these scholarships but a selection process will still be applied by the provider.

About

Overview

What you will learn

Programme Structure

Key information

Duration

Start dates & application deadlines

Language

Prepare for Your English Test

Credits

Delivered

Campus Location

Disciplines

What students do after studying

Academic requirements

English requirements

Prepare for Your English Test

Other requirements

General requirements

Tuition Fees

International Applies to you

Domestic

Living costs

Houston

Funding

Scholarships Information

Available Scholarships

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