CAMPUS
The campus of the GSBS is the Texas Medical Center, among the world's largest, most modern, and best equipped facilities for training in the basic biomedical sciences as well as translational and clinical research. The TMC occupies 675 acres on an attractive site two miles southwest of downtown Houston, as seen in this aerial view, and includes more than 20 academic institutions plus hospitals and patient care facilities. The campus is immediately adjacent to Rice University (see below) and “the Village,” a student centered collection of shops, restaurants, and entertainment. The TMC is also approximately three miles from the University of Houston’s main campus and its facilities and activities.
The most comprehensive academic health sciences university in Texas, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston comprises the schools of Medicine, Dentistry, Public Health, Nursing, Health Information Sciences, the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, the Institute of Molecular Medicine, and many associated research institutes and centers. Over 3,300 students are enrolled and taught by over 1,100 faculty.
The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center is one of the one of the world's most outstanding centers devoted to cancer research, education, and prevention, as well as patient care. Its departments include many of the basic sciences essential to understand the function and proliferation of cancer cells and the normal tissues from which they arise. M. D. Anderson has more grants from the National Cancer Institute than any other institution in the world, and it is the #1 ranked cancer hospital in the U.S. Approximately 2,700 students take part in educational and research programs each year at M. D. Anderson.
The Texas A & M University Institute of Biosciences and Technology studies molecular and cellular aspects of agriculture and medicine and encourages the technology transfer of research discoveries to the marketplace. GSBS students are able to study with 14 of the IBT scientists who are members of the GSBS Faculty.
Across the street from the TMC, Rice University is consistently ranked as one of America’s best comprehensive universities. Rice provides Division I intercollegiate sports, jogging trails, cultural events, and other student-centered activities for the TMC area. GSBS students and faculty are involved in collaborations with several academic programs at Rice, and our students may take courses at Rice and vice versa.
Houston ranks as the fourth largest and fifth most ethnically diverse city in the U.S. As the cultural center of the Southwest, it is home to the Houston Ballet, Grand Opera, Symphony and the Alley Theatre. Six world-class museums are within walking distance of the TMC. The city also has a large number of entertainment spots and restaurants of every variety and price range, and many are located in the vicinity of the TMC. Houston hosts major league teams in five professional sports and is less than an hour’s drive from the beaches and water sports activities of Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico.
Houston has the most affordable housing of the 10 largest U.S. metropolitan areas and the second lowest cost of living among major American cities. Safe, attractive, and affordable housing is available in the TMC area and many GSBS students choose to live in the UT-H Student Apartments, located on a free shuttle bus route less than a mile from the Medical Center. The university maintains a first class recreation center, Olympic sized swimming pool, playing fields, tennis, racquetball, and basketball courts, a jogging trail, other athletic and social facilities, and a child care center immediately adjacent to apartments. The UT-Houston Work/Life Program provides assistance locating housing plus a variety of other relocation services to incoming students.
A wide variety of student services, from copy and printing services to the Recreation Center to financial aid and health services are available to GSBS students.
