Cellular and Molecular Pathology

Overview

About Cellular and Molecular Pathology at University of Pittsburgh

The program combines both basic science and clinical research to explore fundamental questions related to the biology and normal tissue differentiation and growth, as well as the cellular and molecular pathways leading to pathobiology of disease in human and animal models. Students are exposed to a variety of research topics and truly develop into biomedical research scientists.

A strength of our program is the active participation of both basic and clinical researchers from the Department of Pathology as well as other clinical departrments who provide insight and exposure to the clinical aspect of biomedical research. 

Our Program is dedicated to the development of each student as an independent biomedical scientist. Therefore, we believe that a majority of the student's time should be centered on the laboratory and the development and completion of a thesis project. Our department faculty offers or participates in several courses that emphasize the themes described above. 

Those courses cover topics from basic mechanisms to normal and abnormal tissue function. Required course-work is generally completed by the end of the second year, permitting the student to then concentrate his/her efforts on the dissertation project. The doctoral dissertation is planned and conducted with the close consultation of the student's mentor and thesis advisory committee, and the dissertation is an original contribution into the field of Experimental Pathology. Publication of the dissertation research in leading scientific journals provides a major step in the the student's career development.