New PhD Students

Complete your health insurance paperwork. Georgetown covers your health insurance through Gallagher Koster. Prior to arriving, fill out the medical history form mailed to you after admission.

Georgetown University does not cover vision or dental insurance. However, you do receive a dental discount via the Basix program and can purchase dental insurance through Gallagher Koster.

Go the BGE New Student Checklist page for more information on the student ID card, email account, and immunizations.

How to choose your first rotation (new window)? This is the trickiest one since you have not arrived yet. Take advantage of the interview to probe faculty as to rotation projects and availability. The more you can learn at that time, the better. After you have decided on coming to Georgetown, use email to contact faculty and students who have rotated in the labs you are considering. Keep in touch with Dr. Patrick Forcelli and let him know your thought process. Rotations require approval from Dr. Forcelli prior to confirming a lab.

During the summer, students will be doing their first rotation in a laboratory. By early May, you should begin contacting laboratories that you are interested in working with. By the middle of June, you should have already solidified the lab you will work in. 

All students need to attend basic radiation safety, laboratory safety, and GURAM worker training. These should be done before, or as soon as possible after, you begin working in the laboratory. The schedules are found on the EHS website – click on Training Schedule (pdf).

Biomedical Graduate Education (BGE) also holds a mandatory orientation session (new window). Following the BGE orientation, there will be a Pharmacology orientation in the Pharmacology Library (NE401 Med/Dent).

You will pre-register for classes during July. All first-year students take the same courses. See the list of required courses on the Courses page.