Molecular Engineering PhD Program

The Molecular Engineering (MolE) PhD program at the University of Washington is an interdisciplinary graduate program housed in the Graduate School, supported by the Molecular Engineering & Sciences Institute, and administered by a committee comprised of representatives from Bioengineering, Chemical Engineering, Chemistry, Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, Physics, Materials Sciences & Engineering, and Mechanical Engineering. The program offers students the opportunity to work with roughly 130 faculty members from over 20 different departments and great flexibility in structuring their degree around interests in Biotech or CleanTech.

Molecular engineering is a dynamic and evolving field that takes a rational approach to engineering highly-complex, multifunctional molecular systems, drawing on fundamental principles shared across various fields of engineering and sciences that develop materials with organic, biological or inorganic/organic hybrid molecular architecture. Through this training program, students gain a broad understanding of fundamental molecular descriptions of matter (including synthesis, modeling and characterization) and deep knowledge of molecular systems. Trainees are taught to design and characterize molecules and systems of molecules, model molecular system behaviors and inspire new molecular designs, and recognize and exploit molecular and nanoscale system constraints that impact system functionalities.

In summary, the MolE PhD provides students with backgrounds in engineering, science, or medicine the opportunity to: