The programs refine critical and scholarly skills in fields and areas of specialization and prepare students for a variety of careers in teaching and research both within and outside of academia, including in a governmental, clinical, or industrial setting. Graduates are expected to have acquired autonomy in conducting research, in preparing scholarly publications, through a training that includes course work, research seminars, and independent research leading to a thesis or research project.

The Department is a participating unit in the following collaborative programs: the Bioinformatics program (at the master’s level) and the Pathology and Experimental Medicine program (at the master's and doctoral levels). The main areas of research are microbiology and host biology.