Biotechnology Track

Thapar-TAU 3+2 master in Biotechnology Track

Question 1: List of courses the students need to complete at Thapar prior to their arrival.

1.1. Two obligatory biotech courses of the fourth year at Thapar will be given to the students at Thapar in a summer semester - immediately following the end of the third-year exams.

1.2. These courses are:

“Environmental Biotech” (4 s/h)
“Concepts in biomedical instrumentation” (4 s/h).

1.3. The students will be exempt from all other Thapar 4’th year courses.

Question 2: What courses will the Thapar students need to take at TAU?
2.1 Two rotations of a research project in chosen laboratories, 15 s/h each. The students should find two mentors for the first-year projects. At least one of these projects, preferably both, should be pre-arranged before the arrival to Israel, as the first project starts at the very beginning of the first semester, or perhaps even before – if that is pre-arranged, and will end before the first exam period.

2.2 The second project will start at the beginning of the second semester and will end before its exam period. The students can contact any of the PIs in the life sciences faculty (https://en-lifesci.tau.ac.il/faculty_pages), and they are not limited to members of the biotechnology department.
2.3 Following the two projects, the students will decide in which of the two labs to conduct the MSc thesis, starting from the end of the summer exam period. The students should submit a written report to the PI in whose lab the rotation does not develop into an MSc thesis.
2.4 Required faculty courses - 10 s/h

Safety in the Laboratory course (during the first year of studies) – no credit
Guided reading and discussion in research groups – 2 s/h
MSc seminar course – the students will attend the MSc seminar course of the biotechnology track unless advised otherwise by the track head – 2 s/h each year
One of the following courses:

1. Biostatistics – 4 s/h

2. Statistical principles in experimental biology – 5 s/h

2.5 Required track courses - 4 s/h

1. Separation Processes for Biological Products - 2 s/h

2. Recombinant Antibodies – 2 s/h

2.6 Elective courses – Adding courses up to a total of 30 s/h, not including the rotations.

Elective courses should be primarily chosen from the Graduate School courses. It is also possible to take elective courses from other faculties. In any event, the program in its entirety and any changes made to it require the approval of the student's advisor and the biotechnology track committee.
The biotechnology courses are all in English, and for the electives, there is a very large list of Biomed courses in English (in our faculty - https://life.tau.ac.il/yedion/2018-19/english-courses, and in the adjacent https://med.tau.ac.il/Midrasha-elective-courses). In addition, any graduate course that is regularly given in Hebrew is bound to switch to English once international students register.

Question 3. What are the specializations they can choose from at TAU?

3.1. The students can contact any of the PIs in the life sciences faculty (https://en-lifesci.tau.ac.il/faculty_pages), and they are not limited to members of the biotechnology department.

Question 4. What is the minimum combined GPA they need in order to apply?

4.1. Only outstanding students will be selected for the 3+2 Thapar-TAU program.

4.2. Students who are at the top 20% of their class, following 5 semesters at Thapar, are eligible to apply.

4.3. The biotechnology department in Thapar will conduct the first screening interview for interested and eligible candidates.

4.4. Thapar will give TAU a list of eligible students, their GPA (following 5 semesters), ranking in class, and Thapar interview evaluation.

4.5. Finally, selected candidates will be interviewed via skype by the head of the biotechnology track at TAU (together with 1-2 colleagues).

Question 5. What fellowships will be received?

5.1. During the first year, the Thapar students will receive a partial fellowship from TAU, as they are in transition from B.Tech. to M.Sc.. In contrast to regular MSc students who are already fully committed to their MSc thesis research in the designated lab, the Thapar students are doing two rotation projects in two different labs, in which they learn how to do research. Therefore, only part of the first-year research of Thapar students will be included in the MSc thesis. This fundamental difference is reflected also in the monthly fellowship. Regular MSc students receive a total fellowship of approximately 2900 NIS, which is composed of approximately 1600 NIS from the faculty and 1300 NIS from the mentor. In accordance with the different academic requirements, Thapar students receive only the faculty fellowship of approximately 1600 NIS per month in the first year. It should be emphasized TAU BSC students do rotations without any fellowship. The partial fellowship given to Thapar students in their first TAU year is thus extraordinary and will be re-evaluated towards the academic year 2021-22.

5.2. During the second year, the Thapar students will receive a full fellowship from TAU, in accordance with the regular M.Sc. fellowship in the department in which the student conducts the M.Sc. research. This full monthly fellowship is in the range of 4300-5000 NIS, depending on the department and mentor.

5.3. Students who get a fellowship (partial or full) are exempt from tuition at TAU.

5.4. TAU will reserve a dorms room for each Thapar student. The students are responsible for the payment. Thapar institute will give the students a scholarship of $4800 during the first (but not second) TAU year. This scholarship typically covers approximately half of the dorm's room expense, depending on the room type availability. During the second TAU year, the students will not receive any particular scholarship for the dorms.

Question 6. What are the criteria for BSc completion and transition to the second year at TAU?
6.1. Following successful completion of the two rotations, including a written report in one lab (see section 2.3), the life sciences faculty at TAU will submit a letter to Thapar confirming completion of the B.Tech. requirements contracted to be performed at TAU. The degree will be given by Thapar.
6.2. The head of the biotechnology track committee will decide whether the student can continue to the second year at TAU, based on the evaluation of both rotation mentors, the agreement of one of them to supervise the MSc thesis during the second year, and the evaluation of the biotechnology track committee head regarding the academic achievements of the student.

Click here to download the PDF of the Frequent Asked Questions.

Contact Us