Certificate in Cellular Biotechnology Training Program (CBTP)

The mission of the CBTP is to prepare graduate students for scientific careers that will transform human health through biotechnological innovation. Students from multiple scientific disciplines are provided training in interdisciplinary thinking related to biotechnology and guidance about careers in industry, government, entrepreneurship, policy, and academia. CBTP trainees typically belong to one of 12 graduate Ph.D. programs spanning 4 colleges at the university, including Biological Chemistry, Biomedical Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Chemical Biology, Microbiology and Immunology, Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology (MCDB), Cell and Developmental Biology (CDB), Molecular and Integrative Physiology, Chemistry, Medicinal Chemistry, Pharmaceutical Sciences, and Pharmacology. (Applicants from other departments will be considered as well, but must have a strong interest in cellular biotechnology and industry.) The CBTP has benefitted tremendously from the financial support of an NIH T32 training grant since 1991 (one of only 20 such NIH-funded BTPs nationwide), as well as cost-sharing from the Schools and Colleges noted above, the Rackham School of Graduate Studies, and an original transformative gift from Parke-Davis (a former pharmaceutical company originally located in Ann Arbor). Trainees conduct their doctoral dissertation research in the laboratories of CBTP faculty members, drawn from a broad spectrum of academic departments across campus. In addition, the program enhances their preparation for careers outside of the traditional academic path (i.e., doctoral studentpost-docindependent PI) by immersion within the biotechnology and biopharmaceutical industry via internships with a wide range of companies. Students who successfully complete the program can receive a Certificate in Cellular Biotechnology from the Rackham School of Graduate Studies.