Fisk-Vanderbilt Masters-PhD Bridge Program

Fisk-Vanderbilt
Masters-to-PhD Bridge Program
a joint program in astronomy, biology, chemistry, physics, and materials science

Areas of Study

All students in the Masters-to-PhD Bridge program begin by working toward a Masters degree in physics or biology or chemistry. Thus all students complete a core set of graduate-level courses in phyiscs or biology or chemistry (see the program requirements for more details). In addition, electives are chosen in consultation with the student's Fisk and Vanderbilt advisors based upon the intended area of PhD study. The areas of PhD study currently available to Bridge program students are listed here, along with the Vanderbilt department or program corresponding to each:

Vanderbilt Department or Program	Area of PhD Study
Department of Physics & Astronomy	Astronomy, astrophysics, cosmology Biological physics Condensed matter physics Nuclear and particle physics Medical and health physics
Department of Biological Sciences	Biochemistry Cellular and Molecular Biology Developmental Biology Ecology and Evolution Genetics Neurobiology Structural Biology
Interdisciplinary Program in Materials Science	Carbon nanostructures Cellular-nanostructure interface Nanoscale devices and nanocrystals Spintronics in nano-structured materials Linear and non-linear optical properties of nanoparticles
Department of Chemistry	Organic chemistry Polymer chemistry
Vanderbilt Institute for Imaging Science	Cancer and cardiovascular imaging Cellular and molecular imaging Functional and structural neuro-imaging Image processing and analysis Physics of imaging and spectroscopy

Bridge Student PhD Theses

Student	Thesis
Steven Babalola (2009)	SURFACE AND BULK DEFECTS IN CADMIUM ZINC TELLURIDE AND CADMIUM MANGANESE TELLURIDE CRYSTALS
John Lucien Rigueur (2012)	OPTIMIZATION OF MULTI-WALLED CARBON NANOTUBE PHOTON ABSORBERS FOR MID- AND FAR-INFRARED STRAY LIGHT SUPPRESSION IN SPACE INSTRUMENTATION
Ebonee Alexis Walker (2012)	INFLUENCE OF PHONON MODES ON THE THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY OF SINGLE-WALL, DOUBLE-WALL, AND FUNCTIONALIZED CARBON NANOTUBES
Thompson LeBlanc (2012)	THE ROLE OF DISKS IN THE ANGULAR MOMENTUM EVOLUTION OF YOUNG, LOW-MASS STARS
Melissa A. Harrison (2012)	HETEROGENEOUSLY ALLOYED SEMICONDUCTOR NANOCRYSTALS WITH INDUCED CHEMICAL COMPOSITION GRADIENTS
Julia G. Bodnarik (2013)	USING IN SITU NEUTRON AND GAMMA RAY SPECTROSCOPY TO CHARACTERIZE AND DIFFERENTIATE ASTEROIDS