World-leading biomedical research university focused on graduate education and transformative science.
Rockefeller is a graduate-only institution offering doctoral degrees in biomedical sciences, chemistry, and biophysics. The university admitted its first graduate students in 1955 and currently enrolls approximately 270 graduate students. The curriculum is organized around laboratory research rather than traditional departments, allowing students to meet degree requirements through participation in any combination of courses and laboratory work. In partnership with Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and Weill Cornell Medicine, Rockefeller participates in the Tri-Institutional MD–PhD Program and a Tri-Institutional chemical biology Ph.D. program.
Rockefeller maintains 72 biomedical laboratories organized into ten interconnecting research areas spanning biochemistry, cancer biology, cell biology, genetics, immunology, neuroscience, and stem cell biology. Faculty have pioneered major breakthroughs including the discovery of leptin (1994), identification of histone-modifying enzymes (1996), elucidation of potassium channel structure (1998), and development of COVID-19 antibody treatments (2020). The university ranks highly in international research impact assessments and maintains a $228 million annual research budget.
The 16-acre urban campus on Manhattan's Upper East Side features Founder's Hall (a National Historic Landmark built 1903–1906), the geodesic dome Caspary Auditorium (1957), and the Stavros Niarchos Foundation–David Rockefeller River Campus (completed 2019). Graduate students receive subsidized on-campus housing and annual stipends. Student organizations include PRISM, WISeR, and SEPA; the student-run publication Natural Selections is produced monthly. The campus also houses a childcare center for researchers and university employees.
Rockefeller's graduate program emphasizes laboratory-based research with flexible course requirements. The university offers comprehensive support to graduate students, including housing subsidies and annual stipends. The institution maintains a Women in Science initiative (established 1998) that includes scholarships and entrepreneurship funding. Outreach programs include RockEDU for K–12 students and teachers, and the Chemers Neustein Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship Program (SURF).