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QCB Online Application and Application Instructions

Our Online Application opens on August 1.

The application deadlines are:

November 15 for the Priority Deadline. Complete applications that are submitted by the Priority Deadline with have early review by the Admissions Committee.

December 1 for the Final Deadline, at 12 midnight (UTC-6).

Admissions Timeline and Instructions

Admission to the QCB and IGP is granted for the Fall semester only. There are no spring admissions.

August 1Online Application available online for the following Fall semester
November 15Priority Deadline for applications
December 1Deadline for applications
January-MarchOn-campus interviews for selected candidates
April 15Deadline for candidates to accept offers

 

Important Notes on the Application

The link below takes you to the Vanderbilt Graduate School application and you have to specify which program within the Graduate School you are applying.

  • Under Area of Study, select “Biomedical and Biological Sciences” or “Interdisciplinary Programs”.
  • From the Program Selection menu, select
    • “Quantitative and Chemical Biology”
      • Do NOT select “Biological Sciences” to apply to the IGP or QCB; that is a separate PhD program
      • Do NOT select “Biomedical Sciences” to apply to the IGP or QCB; that is a masters program.
      • Do NOT select “Neuroscience” to apply to the IGP or QCB; that is a separate application to the Neuroscience program only.

Not Sure Whether to Apply to the IGP or QCB Pathway?

Application Instructions: Please read before initiating your application

The application will include:

Personal Information

This includes various aspects of your personal history: education, work, publications, experiences (which are research experiences and/or work research experiences)

  • Under Experiences, be sure to indicate the number of research hours for any research experience.
  • Work experiences that are not research related (working in the bookstore for example) should not be listed here. You can include them on your CV, but not in this section.
  • Projects or presentations that are part of a college course (ie Genetics) do not count as a research experience. An exception would be an independent study course or a thesis credit course, which is independent research.

CV or Resume

Please still complete the “Experiences” tab of the application, even though you upload a CV or resume. In the “Experiences” section we ask for information about the amount of time you spend in each experience, which is not on one’s CV or resume

Statement of Purpose

Please upload a PDF. Once you submit the application, you may not see this as being present in the application. This is an issue with the software, and it will be present but if you are concerned you can reach out for confirmation.

Optional Essay for November 15 Priority Deadline

Candidates who are offered admission to QCB may be considered for supplemental honors awards from the Graduate School. These awards provide service-free supplemental funding for up to 5 years, on top of the student stipend. If you would like to be considered for a supplemental honors award, please submit your completed application (inclusive of reference letters) by the Nov 15 priority deadline and submit an essay of no more than 400 words on the following prompt:

How will your research and leadership push discovery forward in your field of study and at Vanderbilt?

Transcripts

Please upload your unofficial transcripts into the application; you will not need to send in your official transcripts until requested by the program.

  • You can upload official transcripts, but they are not required.
  • For international applicants, an evaluated/WES transcript is not required but can be helpful if you have it.
  • If your school does not calculate Class Rank, leave it blank
  • If you need to calculate your GPA, you can find instructions at the bottom of the Graduate School site page here.
  • Read more about transcript requirements here.

Letters of Recommendation

You will be asked to provide the e-mail addresses of at least three recommenders. Vanderbilt will contact your recommenders by e-mail and provide them with instructions on how to submit their recommendations online.

  • You are required to submit three recommenders.
  • You may submit up to five recommenders.
  • Please note that we cannot edit or change any submitted recommender information, so please confirm that recommender email addresses are correct before you submit your application.
  • We are unable to accept letters from Interfolio at this time.

GRE Scores are OPTIONAL

The GRE is OPTIONAL/not required.

  • If you are submitting GRE scores and would like to report your official scores, the GRE institution code for Vanderbilt is 1871.
  • GRE scores older than five-years old will not be accepted.

Language Exam Scores

Official TOEFL, IELTS or Duo-Lingo test scores if the international applicant graduated from non-English degree granting institution. These must be sent to Vanderbilt University and be received by the application deadline.

  • Duolingo English Test: No school code is required.
    • You will be asked to provide our school’s name: “Vanderbilt University” in the request. If Vanderbilt is indicated as a recipient of the Duolingo English Test, the results are received and posted to your application two days after taking the test
  • TOEFL and IELTS: 1871
    • You can submit scores electronically to Vanderbilt University, code 1871
    • If English is your native language or if you have graduated from a University where instruction was in English, you do not have to submit language proficiency scores. Once you upload your Academic History and transcripts, it will be determined whether you would have that requirement waived. If you have not yet graduated from an English language institution, you must submit official language proficiency exam scores.
    • It is helpful to upload “Supporting Documentation for English Test Waiver”; this will expedite the waiver.
    • See this page for more details on language exam waivers and how to report your official test scores.

Application Fee and Fee Waivers

Our application fee is $95.

  • All individuals who have performed research funded by a US entity are granted an automatic fee waiver. This waiver is on the Application Fee and Waiver page, and applies to US citizens, permanent residents, and international applicants who qualify. More information is found below.
  • For international applicants who do not qualify for a research waiver who wish to request a waiver due to financial hardship, please see below.

Application Submission

Please note that applications will be reviewed by the Admissions Committee only if they are officially submitted. Once you fill out the application, upload your Statement of Purpose, transcripts, test results (if applicable), and complete the recommender information, you can submit your application.

You do not have to wait for recommendation letters to be uploaded in order to submit the application; as the letters are uploaded they will automatically populate your application.

An application is COMPLETE after it is “Officially Submitted” (per step 3 of the application instructions) AND all supporting documents have been submitted. Only complete applications will be reviewed, so be sure to check on the status of your recommendation letter submissions before the December 1 application deadline.

If you have difficulty uploading your transcripts or with your recommenders receiving email links to upload their letters, contact Stephanie Richards via email, or phone 615-343-6111.

All applicants who are not selected to interview will be notified by March 15.

More Questions? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions.

Access the Online Application Here

Application Fee and Fee Waiver Information

Please read this closely; all individuals who have performed research on a project funded by a US entity, public or private, will be granted an automatic fee waiver.

If this applies to you, your waiver will be processed within the application itself; simply check “yes” to the question that asks if you’ve performed US-funded research on the Application Fee and Waiver page of the application. US funding of your research project could be through US governmental funds such as the NIH or NSF, or private funding such as the American Cancer Society. Many of our applicants will qualify for this waiver, and no other waiver is necessary. This waiver is not dependent on US citizenship. E-mail Stephanie Richards (stephanie.richards@vanderbilt.edu) if you have any questions.

Application Fee

The Graduate School application fee is $95.00.

  • After you submit your application online, you will see instructions to pay the fee with a credit or debit card via a secure payment portal.
  • If you have qualified for a fee waiver, you will not be asked to make a payment.
  • You only need one fee waiver for the application. If you qualify for more than one category of fee waiver, you only need apply one.
  • If you submit applications to more than one program (maximum of two per year), only a single fee will be charged.
  • In addition to fee waivers being granted based on the criteria below, a small number of additional waivers will be granted at the discretion of the program and school based on recruitment priorities.

A candidate’s eligibility for admission will not be impacted by an application for or receipt of a fee waiver.

Other Application Fee Waiver Eligibilities

Vanderbilt Sponsored Programs
Students that participated in any of the following VU sponsored programs within the past three years are eligible for a fee waiver.

  • Fisk-Vanderbilt Master’s-to-PhD Bridge Program
  • Vanderbilt NSF REU in Chemical Biology
  • Vanderbilt NSF REU in Nanoscale Science and Engineering
  • Vanderbilt NSF REU in Physics
  • Vanderbilt Summer Science Academy
  • Vanderbilt National Name Exchange (NNE) Diversity Fair
  • Vanderbilt-hosted recruitment event where a QR code is supplied
  • VU-EDGE Pre-VU PhD Recruitment Event

Fellowship, Research, and Training Programs

Students that are members of the following VU-associated Fellowship, Research, and Training Programs are eligible for a fee waiver and who participated in the program in the past three years. Documentation demonstrating that student is/was member of the  VU-associated program must accompany the waiver request:

  • California Polytechnic State University, Pomona Undergraduate Research Program
  • Dozoretz National Institute for Mathematics and Applied Sciences (DNIMAS)
  • Gates Millennium Scholars Program (GMSP)
  • Initiative to Maximize Student Development (IMSD)
  • Leadership Alliance Summer Research Early Identification Program (SR-EIP)
  • Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (LSAMP)
  • NIH/NIGMS Maximizing Access to Research Careers (MARC)
  • Mellon Mays Minority Undergraduate Fellowship Program (MMUF)
  • National Name Exchange (NNE)
  • Research Initiative for Scientific Enhancement Program (RISE)
  • Ronald McNair Scholars Program
  • The National Consortium for Graduate Degrees for Minorities in Engineering and Science (GEM fellows and associate fellows)
  • University of Baltimore Maryland County Meyerhoff Scholars Program
  • University of Central Florida Academic Advancement Programs

Waivers of the application fee will be considered upon request for US citizens and US permanent residents1 if they have a cumulative grade-point average of at least 3.0 in their last program of enrollment AND meet at least one of the criteria below:

  • Demonstrated financial need in the past year (Pell Grant eligibility).
  • Current or former member of the United States Armed Forces.

1US permanent residents must provide proof of this status, such as a copy of a Green Card – Permanent Resident Card.  International applicants attending US colleges and universities are also eligible to apply for a fee waiver.

Discretionary Fee Waivers for International Applicants who do not qualify for the Research Fee waiver:

For international applicants who do not qualify for a Research Waiver and who do not have the financial resources to pay the application fee, a small number of application fee waivers are available based on qualifications for the program, recruitment priorities, and other circumstances.

  • Upon submission, the application portal will request payment of the application fee. You can skip this step if you would like to be considered for an application fee waiver. It will not affect your application’s consideration.
  • The program will consider each submitted and complete application for a fee waiver during the review process. A complete application includes the Statement of Purpose, transcript(s), a language exam score if required, and at least three submitted recommendation letters.
  • The application must be complete and submitted by midnight December 1, Central Standard Time (CST= UTC-6).
  • Each submitted and complete application will be considered whether a fee waiver has been applied or not.
  • Please do not email the program recruiter to request a fee waiver. If your application is submitted and complete, we will consider it.

Extenuating circumstances
Applicants with extenuating circumstances can apply for waiver; explanation with documentation must be provided with application.

Please visit our graduate school application fee information website for more information on the fee waiver policies.