OpenFieldVanderbilt Graduate School Provost's Doctoral Fellowship & Full Stipend
Flagship 5-year doctoral fellowship funding exceptional PhD candidates conducting high-impact research in machine learning, cyber-physical systems, and surgical robotics.
Vanderbilt University: Biomedical Engineering, Computer Science & Fully Funded PhDs
Vanderbilt University is an elite private research university situated on a historic 330-acre arboretum campus in Nashville, Tennessee. Ranked among the nation's premier institutions, Vanderbilt is renowned for biomedical engineering, pharmacology at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, computer science, and education (Peabody College).
Verified degree programs and opportunities
Review checked academic pathways and funding options below:
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Biomedical Engineering (BME)
Nationally top-ranked doctoral program closely integrated with Vanderbilt University Medical Center, pioneering optical coherence tomography, therapeutic ultrasound, and targeted oncology.
Master of Science in Computer Science & Autonomous Intelligent Systems
Two-year master's curriculum exploring deep reinforcement learning, cloud distributed architectures, cyber-physical system verification, and computer vision.
Institute for Surgery and Engineering (VISE) Surgical Robotics Assistantship
Interdisciplinary research post based at VISE developing steerable needles, transoral surgical robots, and augmented-reality surgical guidance systems.
Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) Biomedical Data Science Practicum
Applied data science practicum embedded within BioVU, Vanderbilt's massive biobank linking de-identified electronic health records with patient genomic profiles.
Vanderbilt Center for Quantitative Sciences Postdoctoral Fellowship
Two-year postdoctoral fellowship developing novel statistical methods for single-cell multiomics, cancer spatial transcriptomics, and clinical survival prediction.
Master of Engineering (M.Eng.) in Civil & Infrastructure Management
Professional master's curriculum focusing on intelligent transportation systems, smart grid integration, structural health monitoring, and disaster risk assessment.
Admissions, language requirements & application process
- Master's admission eligibility
- Four-year bachelor's degree from an accredited institution with exceptional academic standing (typical undergraduate GPA 3.6+ on a 4.0 scale).
- Doctoral admission eligibility
- Undergraduate or master's degree in a relevant discipline; all admitted full-time doctoral students receive guaranteed 5-year funding packages covering full tuition, living stipends, and health insurance.
- Language proficiency
- TOEFL iBT 100+, IELTS Academic 7.0+, or Duolingo English Test 130+.
- Research statement / Proposal
- Comprehensive statement of purpose detailing intellectual trajectory, research experience, and specific alignment with 2–3 Vanderbilt faculty laboratories.
- Application fee
- $95 USD (institutional fee waivers available for demonstrated financial hardship and diversity pipeline programs).
- Required documentation
- Official academic transcripts, 3 confidential letters of recommendation, curriculum vitae, and research writing sample.
Tuition fees and verified scholarship systems
Graduate tuition at Vanderbilt is approximately $57,500 USD per year. However, all full-time PhD students admitted to the Graduate School receive 100% full tuition scholarships and guaranteed annual research/teaching stipends of at least $38,000 to $42,500 USD for 5 years.
Verified faculty profiles and research leaders
Distinguished researchers and laboratory heads at Vanderbilt University:
Dr. Robert Webster
Richard A. Schroeder Professor of Mechanical Engineering & Co-Director of VISE · Surgical Robotics, Continuum Robots, Medical Devices, Image-Guided Surgery
Dr. Abhishek Dubey
Associate Professor of Computer Science & Electrical Engineering · Smart Cities, Cyber-Physical Systems, Resilient Transit, Decentralized AI
Dr. Anita Mahadevan-Jansen
Orrin H. Ingram Chair in Biomedical Engineering & SPIE President Emeritus · Biomedical Photonics, Raman Spectroscopy, Optical Diagnostics, Intraoperative Imaging
Important verification note
Facts reflect official Vanderbilt University documentation reviewed 2026-10-15. Degree admissions, scholarship awards, and employment positions are subject to formal university review. OpenField does not charge students application fees.
Reviewed 2026-10-15 · Editorial standards · Report an issue