Academic Information and Coursework

Orientation

The schedule for Orientation will be full-including welcomes, introductions, and the general administrative housekeeping necessary to start your time at Vanderbilt. We will begin orientation on Monday, August 17, 2026. All students are required to attend the orientation in its entirety. New students will also complete all the necessary safety training courses.

Academic Calendar

Please be aware that the QCB academic year is uniquely developed to match the objectives of the program and may not mesh with the items listed for the Graduate School on the University calendar. Pay close attention to program and course dates and deadlines when making travel plans.

Classes

Classes begin Friday, August 21, but students will be fully booked beginning on the first day of orientation, August 17. Classes are held Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. until 11 a.m. You will be registered for your Fall courses by our staff and the curriculum will be described in detail during Orientation.

Research Rotations

Students will perform four laboratory rotations over the course of their first year. Prior to each rotation start date, students must meet with faculty of interest and then rank their rotation choices in the Rotation portal. All students are required to identify an academic advisor who will direct their thesis project by the end of the second semester of the first academic year of graduate training. If a student has not identified an advisor by this time, the BRET office will support the student in conducting one or two additional rotations over the course of 4 weeks. If this proves to be unsuccessful, the student should arrange a meeting with the Senior Associate Dean at least one week before the end of the additional rotation(s) to consider options. Any student who is unable to find an academic advisor will be dismissed from Vanderbilt.

Academic Standing

The Graduate School policy is that a graduate student may be dismissed for not meeting academic standards in either of these ways:

Students who fall below an average GPA of 3.0 are placed on probation for one semester. If the student’s performance does not improve during that semester, the student may be dismissed.
The accumulation of three U and/or LP (Unsatisfactory and/or Low Pass) grades over the course of study can lead to dismissal.

Freedom of Expression Policy

As an institution of higher learning dedicated to research, teaching, and service, Vanderbilt is firmly committed to academic freedom and freedom of expression and will maintain the conditions of freedom of inquiry, thought, and discussion on campus and in the digital environment. For more information, please refer to the Freedom of Expression policy.

Use of AI Policy

Each course instructor and research advisor is empowered to establish their own policies on the use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) in the classroom or in research, and it is the student’s responsibility to understand and follow those policies. If instructors or advisors do not limit the use of AI, Vanderbilt University permits the use of generative AI tools, but all generative AI usage must be disclosed appropriately. Specifically, a student must disclose any text, code, or images that are AI generated or edited, even if the output is subsequently edited by the student. Disclosure should specify what content was AI generated/edited and include the name and version of the AI model that was used.

Any work that a student generates or submits is considered their own work, and they should be able to explain and justify the content of their work. Moreover, students are responsible for the accuracy and appropriateness of the content of all their outputs, regardless of whether AI was used. For coursework, students are responsible for ensuring that any assignment is an accurate representation of their own learning and understanding. For research deliverables, students must take responsibility for the scientific accuracy of their outputs.

Faculty Advisor

Your faculty adviser during the first year QCB is Dr. Ray Blind.