The PhD Training Program in Biotechnology at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey was established in 1989. It is one of the select group of such programs throughout the country funded by the National Institute of General Medical Sciences of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The 2023-2024 year marks the 34th year of continuous NIH funding.

The aim of the program is to train a new breed of creative investigators who can translate basic science discoveries into technology developments for the needs of society, government, and industry. Students in the program; (1) become well-educated within a single biotechnology-related discipline (e.g. biochemistry, chemical engineering, molecular biology); (2) become fluent in the language, approaches and principles of the biological, chemical and physical sciences, in general; and (3) recognize the steps needed to take basic science discoveries and translate them into tools and technologies that benefit patient care, and mankind, in general.

The program is looking to produce skilled investigators and leaders for several different types of research careers including academia, large conventional industry, the start-up environment, as well as other research-related careers.