Incoming Biomedical Sciences Ph.D. Student Named 2015 Dean’s Doctoral Fellow

Anurag Dixit, a newly enrolled student in the Biomedical Sciences Doctoral Program at Georgia Regents University, is the 2015 Dean’s Doctoral Fellow.

Originally from India, Dixit came to the United States in 2013 to pursue a Master of Science with a major in biochemistry and molecular biology from Georgetown University. However that degree, along with the Ph.D. he is currently pursuing, are only the most recent additions to his academic profile. Before leaving India, Dixit also earned a Masters in Life Sciences with a specialty in medical sciences and a Master of Business Administration, which he used to work in the field of market research.

Dixit said he was honored to be named the 2015 Dean’s Doctoral Fellow. This prestigious fellowship is awarded to students for academic excellence, competitiveness and overall impressiveness, with a limited number of awardees being selected by the Biomedical Sciences Admissions Committee. Last year’s Dean’s Doctoral Fellows include Lia Taylor and Rachel Roberts, now both second-year students in the Biomedical Sciences Doctoral Program.

Dixit stated that his passion for research and discovery led him to choose the Biomedical Sciences Ph.D. Program at GRU.

“Biology has excited me since my early school days,” he said. “I was always amazed by how living cells operate with such high efficiency and precision. I was attracted to the research output and academic environment in the biomedical sciences program at GRU. I believe the Ph.D. Program here can provide me with comprehensive, multidisciplinary training in the current research practices and methodologies found in biomedical research.”

Since starting at GRU, Dixit said one of the happiest surprises has been the supportive and involved faculty. He described a good ratio of students to faculty and said he has enjoyed attending the faculty introduction sessions, which have given him insight to each department’s research areas.

“Even outside of the classroom and in the lab, faculty members are very helpful,” he said. “Labs here tend to be small and the faculty is available to troubleshoot, which is rare in many universities. At many universities, the faculty is usually so busy with other stuff they are not able to give attention to their research students, but at GRU you learn directly from the expert in the field.”

After finishing his studies, Dixit hopes to obtain a post-doc appointment or faculty position where he can perform research. He has experience and interest in cancer and molecular biology, but is keeping his eyes open for new interests during his first-year classes and rotations at GRU. He likes that biomedical sciences doctoral students are admitted through a common admissions process, with each student choosing one of nine majors in their second year.

“When I was entering the program, I was leaning towards one major because I have experience in that area – cancer biology,” he said. “But now, I want to keep an open mind and explore all of my opportunities in this program.”