Prospective Graduate Students

Our graduate program is one of Canada’s leading programs in biochemistry and molecular biology. Over the past five years, we have graduated nearly 60 PhD and over 30 Master’s students. Approximately 40% of our alumni have transitioned directly into the private sector, while 45% of our PhD graduates have pursued academic careers through postdoctoral positions.

Currently, our program hosts over 90 graduate students spread across more than 30 research laboratories. Our research covers a diverse array of topics and techniques, with detailed information available through our faculty profiles for prospective students. Research groups range in size from small teams to larger labs, providing a variety of mentoring approaches. Each lab also has a Lab Code of Conduct to clearly outline team expectations. Our research labs are equipped with cutting-edge equipment, including state-of-the-art infrastructure in proteomics, single-molecule imaging, structural biology, and access to advanced facilities in cell sorting, imaging, and high-throughput screening.

The minimum stipend for our graduate students is $33,250, and PhD students receive additional support to cover tuition fees. Over one-third of our graduate students are awarded major scholarships, reflecting the competitive and supportive environment we foster. Our strong graduate community, led by the Graduate Student Association (GSA) and the department, organizes numerous scientific and social events, creating a vibrant and engaging environment for our students.

Located in Vancouver, consistently ranked among the world’s most livable cities, our campus offers stunning views of mountains and ocean. Students can enjoy outdoor activities such as hiking, biking, or simply running along the waterfront and the nearby Endowment Lands. The city also boasts a vibrant food scene, good transit, diversity, and openness, making it an ideal destination for graduate school.

The following is a list of Principal Investigators (PIs) who are recruiting for September 2025. If you are interested in joining their research team, please visit their profile pages to learn about their research activities. The publication lists on our site for some professors are only a selection of their work. Many of them maintain their own updated web pages or have lab web pages with other organizations and departments. We encourage prospective students to contact them directly by email to inquire further about current project and position availability

Our program provides advanced education with the goal of preparing students for a career in research. We do not offer introductory training to applicants who possess a minimal background in the basic sciences. Such applicants are advised to apply for undergraduate degree. If you hold a degree in a clinical/medical field (e.g., MD, Pharmacy, Clinical Laboratory) or application-based fields (e.g., Chemical Engineering), you would generally be more successful applying to another graduate program.

Our program typically admit about 20 to 25 new students each year, with most students starting in the Master’s stream in September. Prospective students are encouraged to directly contact potential supervisors to inquire about position availability.

Our program receives over 100 applications annually. The deadline for applying is January 15 for a September start date. Only 1 to 2 students will begin in January. See below for more information about requirements and the application process to apply. Approximately 30 students will be pre-accepted into our program and will be contacted by mid-February. Top applicants will be invited to the Department Interview Day in March, pending availability of funds. Pre-accepted students will then need to secure a position within one of the program-affiliated research laboratories. Decisions for formal acceptance are based on:

• Academic achievement
• Experience in or aptitude for research
• Favourable letters of reference
• A formal interview, if possible
• Availability of a research project, research space, and funding

There are different entrance requirements for the Masters program and the PhD program with a previous Masters degree. If your credentials are not from Canada and the USA, you will also need to meet some additional requirements. Most students in our program start as Master students and then transfer to the PhD stream in year two without completing a Master. 

Meeting the minimum requirements may not be sufficient for admittance as top students from around the world compete for our limited number of positions. However successful applicants typically match the profiles indicated below.

The academic credentials of both Canadian and International degree holders are subject to a final evaluation by the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies.

• You should have advanced laboratory experience in a biochemistry and/or molecular biology research environment, such as through a summer student research project, co-op work experience, a directed studies laboratory research course, or employment as a laboratory technician in a research or relevant industrial setting.
• At a minimum, you should hold or be in the process of completing a four-year BSc or BScH in a science discipline.
• You should have completed an introductory biochemistry course, an introductory biochemistry laboratory course, and at least two advanced courses in biochemistry or molecular biology.
• You should possess knowledge of organic and physical chemistry beyond the introductory level.
• Courses in genetics, microbiology, cell biology, biotechnology, biophysics, bioinformatics, and statistics (including basic coding in R or other programming languages) are strongly recommended, with at least a subset of these courses completed.
• While having published research, participated in conferences, received scholarships, or developed leadership skills through community engagement is not required, we encourage you to highlight these experiences in your application. These elements can strengthen your candidacy when applying for scholarships.
• North American degree holders must have achieved an overall transcript average of B+, about 76%, or have first-class standing in 12 credits of combined 3rd- and 4th-year relevant coursework.
• Non-North American degree holders must review the minimum academic entrance requirements as set by the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies.

You should hold a recognized Master’s degree which involves:

• At least 12-15 months of full-time laboratory research
• A seminar course
• Graduate level courses
• A written thesis
• An oral presentation/examination before a research supervisory committee
• Ideally, you should be a co-author on a manuscript published in an internationally recognized journal
• Students, who have attended Canadian and American institutions must have a overall average of B+ (76% at UBC) in your master’s degree program
• International students may review the academic entrance requirements by country

You should compare your academic record with the closest corresponding program at UBC to ensure your background is equivalent in terms of course content/standard, number of courses and total credit value. Please see UBC’s on-line Calendar for undergraduate program descriptions. You must also review the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies academic requirements for students from your country.

The TOEFL and GRE requirements are waived for students who hold degrees from recognized Canadian and American institutions.

International applicants whose education is not in English, must provide an English language proficiency exam. Test scores should be above 106 (internet based). TOEFL reports are valid for two years from date of test. In place of TOEFL, we accept IELTS with overall band scores of 7.5/9.0. Code 0965 34.

Applicants, including Canadian citizens, who hold degrees from international institutions must provide a GRE General or Subject (Biochemistry or Chemistry) report. Test scores should be in the upper percentile range (80-100%). Other relevant subject fields may be considered. Code 0965 0202

There are several steps to the application process:

• Review the program entrance requirements
• If you meet the requirements, submit an online application through Evision
• Upload pdf versions of all official transcripts, include grading key
• Completed application packages are reviewed by the admissions committee. At this point an applicant is either approved or rejected. If the application is approved: The application will be made available to our PI’s
• The strongest applicants will be invited to our Annual Prospective Graduate Recruitment Day
• The applicant must find a supervisor before we can finalize the admissions process
• If a supervisor offers a position in his/her lab, we will continue with the formal admission offer
• If we are unable to offer you admissions, an option available to you would be to share your application with other disciplines in the Life Science Institute. There will be no need to submit a new application or pay the application fees. Please advise us by email, if you wish to have the Department of Cellular & Physiological Sciences, or Department of Microbiology and Immunology review your application.

September start: Canadian and International applicants apply by January 15.

January start: Canadian and International applicants apply by May 1. Please be advised that only one to two positions are normally available each year for a January consideration. Students planning to begin in January should find a supervisor prior to applying.

We do review applications submitted after these dates. However your chances of finding a supervisor and being invited to the interview day are higher, if you keep to the deadlines listed above.

A completed application package must contain the following supporting materials:

If needed, paper supporting materials should be sent to:
Graduate Program Coordinator
Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, UBC
Life Sciences Centre
2350 Health Sciences Mall
Vancouver, BC, V6T 1Z3, Canada