General

Students will need to take six core classes and five electives, which are dependent on their track selection. In addition to the curriculum listed below, students must take at least 7 credit units– between the core and electives–within SEAS courses. Those SEAS programs are: BE, BIOT, CBE, CIS/CIT, EAS, ENGR, ENM, ESE, IPD, MSE, & MEAM. If a course is cross-listed, students must take the SEAS version of it for it to count toward this 7 SEAS course requirement. Students may take up to two (2) EAS courses toward the degree. In special cases, a student can petition to use three (3) EAS courses toward the Biotech degree. EAS 8960 and EAS 8970 do not count toward the 11 CUs for the program. Students are also limited to two (2) IPD courses toward the degree.

Students may petition to use a different course for core courses and electives both. Students should use the Petition Form in the MBIOT Student Resources shared Google folder to request an exception. (NOTE: Students in the Molecular Biology track may not petition to substitute another course in for their 2 CU BIOT 5990 requirement.) Petitions should be received prior to the student signing up for the course.

The curriculum below lists common courses that students take for the degree, and may be updated as more courses are allowed. Please note that not all courses will be available each semester and advisors cannot guarantee that students will get a spot in any particular course. Students should not plan their full 11.0 CU course schedule around any particular course.

Expectations for Graduate Students

The courses listed below as what a student is allowed to take, not what they will be guaranteed to be able to take. Advisors will sign off on courses each semester based on this list, but advisors are not responsible for double-checking the following list.

Graduate students are expected to take charge of their curriculum planning, and double check in the course catalog and PATH for the following information:

If a course is being offered in the semester they want to take
If a course has prerequisites
- If a course you’re interested in has a prerequisite, check to see if you have taken it already, or that you have the proper background previously from classes from your undergraduate degree. You can always contact the instructor of the course you wish to take and ask them if they feel the course is appropriate for you.
If a course has restrictions on who can take it
If a course has seats available
If a course is online, and if so, if you are allowed to take it under the SEAS online policy

Biology 4000 Level Courses

Students may take 1 CU of BIOL at the 4000 level for select course requirements in their degree. However, the course must not be cross-listed with a 5000+ level course. If it is cross-listed, students must take the 5000+ level course.

Core Curriculum

Listed below are the six core curriculum areas, along with approved courses that can be used to fulfill each requirement. Students should focus on fulfilling their core curriculum in their first two semesters, though they may take electives as well.

Students may petition to use other courses toward their core requirements, but there may be less flexibility than in the electives area.

Biochemistry

Students must take 1.0 credit unit for the Biochemistry requirement.

BE 5120: Bioengineering III: Biomaterials
BE 5270: Immune Engineering
BE 5510: Biomicrofluidics
BE 5560: Molecular Diagnostics for Precision Medicine
BE 5580: Principles of Biological Fabrication
BE 5690: Systems Biology of Cell Signaling Behavior
BE 6080/MTR 6200: Medical Entrepreneurship: Commercializing Translational Science
BE 5700: Biomechatronics
BIOL 4004: Immunobiology
BIOL 4007: Cancer Cell Biology
BIOL 4210: Molecular Genetics
BIOL 5010: Advanced Cell Biology
BIOL 5022: Cell Signaling
BIOL 5026: Chromosomes and the Cell Cycle
BIOL 5430: Evolution and Ecology of Infectious Diseases
BIOL 5535: Introduction to Computational Biology & Biological Modeling
BIOL 5710: Microbial Diversity and Pathogenesis
BIOM 6000: Cell Biology
BMB 5180: Protein Conformation Diseases
BMB 5850/GCB 5850/PHRM 6500: Wistar Institute Cancer Biology Course: Signaling Pathways in Cancer
CAMB 5110: Principles of Development
CAMB 6090/IMUN6090: Vaccines and Immune Therapeutics
CBE 5110: Physical Chemistry of Polymers and Amphiphiles
CHEM 5570: Mechanisms of Biological Catalysis
CIS 5350/GCB 5350/MTR5350: Intro to Bioinformatics
GCB 5340/PHRM 5340: Experimental Genome Science

Biotechnology I: Cellular/Molecular Biology

Students must take 1.0 credit unit for the Biotechnology I requirement.

BE 5040: Biological Data Science II: Data Mining Principles for Epigenomics
BE 5510: Biomicrofluidics
BE 5530: Principles, Methods, and Applications of Tissue Engineering
BE 5580: Principles of Biological Fabrication
BE 5610: Musculoskeletal Biology and Bioengineering
BE 5670/AMCS 5670/GCB 5670: Mathematical Computation Methods for Modeling Biological Systems
BE 6080/MTR 6200: Medical Entrepreneurship: Commercializing Translational Science
BE 6400/CAMB 7030: Mechanobiology of the Cell and its Microenvironment
BIOL 4004: Immunobiology
BIOL 4007: Cancer Cell Biology
BIOL 4077: The Science and Art of Biotechnology
BIOL 4210: Molecular Genetics
BIOL 4235: The RNA World: A functional and computational analysis
BIOL 5010: Advanced Cell Biology
BIOL 5022: Cell Signaling
BIOL 5026: Chromosomes and the Cell Cycle
BIOL 5210: Molecular Biology and Genetics
BIOL 5220: Human Evolutionary Genomics
BIOL 5231: Genome Science and Genomic Medicine
BIOL 5234: Epigenetics
BIOL 5536/CIS 5360/GCB 5360: Fundamentals of Computational Biology
BIOL 5710: Microbial Diversity and Pathogenesis
BIOM 5020: The Molecular Basis of Disease
BIOM 6000: Cell Biology
BMB 5850/GCB 5850/PHRM 6500: Wistar Institute Cancer Biology Course: Signaling Pathways in Cancer
CAMB 5320/PHRM 5320: Human Physiology
CAMB 5500: Genetic Principles
CAMB 6090/IMUN 6090: Vaccines and Immune Therapeutics
CAMB 6170: Emerging Infectious Diseases
CAMB 7520/GCB 7520: Genomics
CBE 5170: Principles of Genome Engineering
CBE 5250: Molecular Modeling and Simulations
CBE 5400/BE 5400: Biomolecular and Cellular Engineering
CBE 5550/BE 5550/MEAM 5550: Nanoscale Systems Biology
CBE 5570: Stem Cells, Proteomics and Drug Delivery
CBE 5590/BE 5590/SCMP 5590: Multiscale Modeling of Chemical and Biological Systems
CBE 5640/PHRM 5640: Drug Delivery Systems
CIS 5350/GCB 5350/MTR 5350: Intro to Bioinformatics
ENGR 5500: Biotechnology, Immunology, Vaccines and COVID-19
PHRM 6230/REG 6230: Fundamentals of Pharmacology

Biotechnology II: Engineering Biotechnology

Students must take 2.0 credit units (usually 2 classes) for the Biotechnology requirement.

BE 5400/CBE 5400: Principles of Molecular and Cellular Bioengineering
BE/CBE 5540: Engineering Biotechnology
BE/CBE 5620: Drug Discovery and Development
CBE 5170: Principles of Genome Engineering
CBE 5640/PHRM 5640: Drug Delivery Systems

Starting in 2024, the following course may also be used:

CBE 5570: Stem Cells, Proteomics and Drug Delivery

For Fall 2024 only, the only courses may also be used:

BE 5260: Immunology for Bioengineers
BE 5570: Quantitative Principles of Drug Design
CBE 5270: Advancements and Applications in Genome Editing and Engineering

For Spring 2024 and Fall 2024 only, the following courses may also be used:

REG 6120: Introduction to Drug Development
REG 6150 Post-Approval Maintenance of Drugs, Biologics, and Devices
REG 6180 Introduction to Vaccine Development

The REG courses listed above may be offered as online classes either on the Philadelphia campus or the online campus. Students may take these courses in those two formats, as long as they follow the policies outlined in the Grad Handbook. Please note that all students may only apply 2 online courses toward their Master’s degree program.

F-1 international students also have the following guidelines applied to them:

Master’s students enroll in one online class per Fall and Spring semesters. Master’s students can enroll in up to two online classes in the Summer semester.
Master’s students on academic field studies (AFS) in the Fall semester can enroll in one online class with program and Grad RAS permission.
Master’s students in their final semester (including summer), must enroll in at least one on-campus class. A 100% online-only course load is not permitted in the final semester. If the student has no alternative in-person courses available for graduation, please consult Grad RAS and your ISSS advisor for further assistance.

These guidelines are applicable whether the course is used as a Biotech II requirement or any type of elective.

Laboratory in Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering

CBE 5800: Masters Biotechnology Lab
BIOL 5825: Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics Superlab

Students who feel they have a significant amount of prior laboratory experience are welcome to request a waiver of the requirement. Details and instructions on how to request a waiver can be found on our forms website. Please note that as of November 2023, only courses in SEAS, SAS and PSOM may be used for the lab waiver.

Free Elective

All free elective classes must have a science and technology focus. With that in mind, students may choose from the following categories and/or specific courses listed. Students should clear courses with their advisors prior to signing up:

Some Wharton Business 5000+ level courses
- FNCE courses are not allowed
- HCMG courses are allowed
- MKTG courses are allowed
- STAT courses are allowed
School of Engineering (SEAS) 5000+ level courses
- EAS 8960 and EAS 8970 do not count toward any portion of the degree
Some School of Arts & Sciences (SAS) 5000+ level courses
- BIOE courses are allowed
- BIOL courses are allowed (Non-cross-listed 4000 level BIOL classes may be accepted; discuss with an advisor)
- ECON courses are not allowed
Some Perelman School of Medicine (PSOM) 5000+ level courses
- BMB courses are allowed
- BMIN courses are allowed
- CAMB courses are allowed
- HCIN courses are allowed
- REG courses are allowed
Other
- 1 CU 5000+ level ANAT courses are allowed

Track Curriculum

Each student is required to select one of the below tracks during admission to the program. Students will be required to take 5 credit units of electives according to the respective requirements for that track.

Students in all tracks may petition to use a different course as an elective credit. Students should use the Petition Form in the MBIOT Student Resources shared Google folder to request an exception. (NOTE: Students in the Molecular Biology track may not petition to substitute another course in for their 2 CU BIOT 5990 requirement.) Petitions should be received prior to the student signing up for the course.

Molecular Biology Track

Advanced Biology Electives

Students will need to take 3 CUs of Advanced Biology electives. A list of suitable courses is as follows, but students may petition to use a different course for this requirement. Petitions should be received prior to the student signing up for the course:

5000+ courses in SEAS (BE, BIOT—including BIOT 5990 if taking for a 3^rd CU—, CBE, CIS/CIT, EAS, ENGR, ENM, ESE, IPD, MSE, & MEAM)
- EAS 8960 and EAS 8970 do not count toward any portion of the degree.
5000+ level courses in ANAT
5000+ level courses in BMB
Most Core Curriculum classes listed above—but students may not double-count courses
- Classes in Free Elective section cannot necessarily be used; speak to an advisor
BIOL 5240: Genetic Analysis
BIOL 5510: Statistics for Biologists
BIOL 5860/MATH 5861: Mathematical Modeling in Biology
BMIN 5020: Database and Data Integration in Biomedical Research
BSTA 6300: Statistical Methods and Data Analysis I
BSTA 6320: Statistical Methods for Categorical and Survival Data
CAMB 5970/NGG 5970: Neural Development, Regeneration and Repair
CAMB 6970: Biology of Stem Cells
CAMB 7040: Stress Responses in Metabolism and Cancer
CAMB 7070: Cell and Gene Therapy
EPID 5100: Introductory Epidemiology
EPID 6300/REG 6300: Clinical Trials
GENC 6020: Mechanisms of Disease
HCIN 6062: Using Data for Transformation
PHRM 5800: Pharmacogenetics
REG 6100: Fundamentals of FDA Regulation (unlikely to have spots available for BIOT students)
REG 6110: Clinical Trial Management (unlikely to have spots available for BIOT students)
REG 6120: Introduction to Drug Development
REG 6160: Quality Assurance
REG 6220: New Trends in Medicine and Vaccine Discovery

Research

This track requires students to complete two credit units of BIOT 5990: Independent Study. This may be done during one semester, or two semesters (consecutive or non-consecutive). To register for BIOT 5990, please review the details and complete the form listed on our forms webpage.

Students may also take a 3^rd CU of BIOT 5990 as a Free Elective or Advanced Elective.

Biopharmaceutical/Engineering Biotechnology Track

Students in this track must take two Quantitative elective courses and two Advanced elective courses. They must also take a fifth elective, which can be either a Quantitative or Advanced elective. A list of suitable courses is as follows, but students may petition to use a different course for this requirement. Petitions should be received prior to the student signing up for the course:

Quantitative Electives

5000+ level BE/CBE class
5000+ level BMB class
BIOL 5510: Statistics for Biologists
BIOL 5535: Introduction to Computational Biology & Biological Modeling
BIOL 5568/AMCS 5681: Mathematical Modeling in Physiology and Cell Biology
BIOL 5860/MATH 5861: Mathematical Modeling in Biology
BIOM 6000: Cell Biology
BMIN 5020: Database and Data Integration in Biomedical Research
BMIN 5210: Advanced Methods and Health Applications in Machine Learning
CAMB 5300: The Cell Cycle, Genome Integrity and Cancer
CAMB 7010: Tumor Microenvironment
CIS 5200: Machine Learning
CIS 5210: Artificial Intelligence
CIS 5350/GCB 5350/MTR 5350: Intro to Bioinformatics
CIS 5360/BIOL 5536/GCB 5360: Fundamentals of Computational Biology
CIS 5450: Big Data Analytics
CIT 5900: Programming Languages and Techniques
CIT 5920: Mathematical Foundations of Computer Science
ENGR 5040: Fundamental Concepts in Nanotechnology
ENGR 5500: Biotechnology, Immunology, Vaccines and COVID-19
ENM 5030: Introduction to Probability and Statistics
ENM 5100: Foundations of Engineering Mathematics – I
ENM 5110: Foundations of Engineering Mathematics – II
EPID 6000/BMIN 5030: Data Science for Biomedical Informatics
EPID 6300/REG 6300: Clinical Trials
ESE 5430: Human Systems Engineering
ESE 5660: Networked Neuroscience
HCIN 6062: Using Data for Transformation
REG 5100/MTR 5100: Introduction to Clinical and Translational Research (unlikely to have spots available for BIOT students)
REG 5900/PHRM 5900: Molecular Toxicology: Chemical and Biological Mechanisms
REG 6230/PHRM 6230: Fundamentals of Pharmacology

Advanced Electives

5000+ course in SEAS (BE, BIOT—including up to 3 CUs of BIOT 5990—, CBE, CIS/CIT, EAS, ENGR, ENM, ESE, IPD, MSE, & MEAM)
- EAS 8960 and EAS 8970 do not count toward any portion of the degree.
5000+ level courses in ANAT
5000+ level class in BMB
Most Core Curriculum classes listed above, but students may not double-count courses
- Classes in Free Elective section cannot necessarily be used; speak to an advisor
HCIN 6062: Using Data for Transformation
NGG 5730/PSYC 6090: Systems Neuroscience
NGG 5880: Topics in Translational Neuroscience
PHRM 5420/CAMB 5420: Topics in Molecular Medicine
PUBH 5020: Introduction to the Principles and Methods of Epidemiology
REG 5900/PHRM 5900: Molecular Toxicology: Chemical and Biological Mechanisms
REG 6120: Introduction to Drug Development
IMUN 5060: Immune Mechanisms
IMUN 5070: Immunopathology
REG 6220: New Trends in Medicine and Vaccine Discovery
REG 6230/PHRM 6230: Fundamentals of Pharmacology

Biomedical Technologies Track

Quantitative Electives

5000+ level BE/CBE class
Any 5000+ level BMB class
BIOL 5860/MATH 5861: Mathematical Modeling in Biology
BMIN 5010: Introduction to Biomedical and Health Informatics
BMIN 5020: Database and Data Integration in Biomedical Research
CIS 5350/GCB 5350/MTR 5350: Intro to Bioinformatics
CIS 5450: Big Data Analytics
CIS 5500: Database and Information Systems
CIT 5900: Programming Languages and Techniques
CIT 5920: Mathematical Foundations of Computer Science
EAS 5120: Engineering Negotiation
ENGR 5040: Fundamental Concepts in Nanotechnology
ENM 5030: Introduction to Probability and Statistics
EPID 6000/BMIN 5030: Data Science for Biomedical Informatics
EPID 6300/REG 6300: Clinical Trials
ESE 5420: Statistics for Data Science
HCIN 6062: Using Data for Transformation
REG 5100: Introduction to Clinical and Translational Research (unlikely to have spots available for BIOT students)
REG 6110: Clinical Trial Management (unlikely to have spots available for BIOT students)

Advanced Electives

5000+ course in SEAS (BE, BIOT—including BIOT 5990—, CBE, CIS/CIT, EAS, ENGR, ENM, ESE, IPD, MSE, & MEAM)
5000+ level courses in ANAT
5000+ level BMB class
EAS 8960 and EAS 8970 do not count toward any portion of the degree.
Most Core Curriculum classes listed above—but students may not double-count courses
- Classes in Free Elective section cannot necessarily be used; speak to an advisor
BMIN 5010: Introduction to Biomedical and Health Informatics
CAMB 6980: Elective Tutorials in Cell and Molecular Biology
CAMB 7070: Cell and Gene Therapy
EPID 5750: Introduction to Genetic Epidemiology
HCIN 6062: Using Data for Transformation
NGG 5880: Topics in Translational Neuroscience
REG 6110: Clinical Trial Management (unlikely to have spots available for BIOT students)
REG 6120: Introduction to Drug Development
REG 6220: New Trends in Medicine and Vaccine Discovery