2024 Hooding Ceremony

Doctoral candidates from the Coordinated Doctoral Programs in Biomedical Sciences at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons were honored on May 13th, 2024, for their scholarly achievements. During the academic year, 86 students received PhD degrees from Columbia's Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. The hooding ceremony is part of an academic system of caps, gowns, and hoods adopted in 1865 and offers a special memory for PhD students.

Dean Katrina Armstrong and Dr. Arthur Palmer, Robert Wood Johnson, Jr. Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics, Associate Dean for Graduate Affairs, addressed graduates and the newly minted Dr. Nicole Guilz (Nutritional & Metabolic Biology Program) gave a fantastic student talk. Following the remarks, the graduates were called one by one on stage. They were joined by their thesis advisor, who placed the hoods over their heads in recognition of their astonishing accomplishments with cheers and applause from family and friends.

This year, Ariel Pourmorady and Yocelyn Recinos were awarded for Dean's Award for Excellence in Research.  Danil Tyulmankov and Patricia Ho were awarded for Titus M Coan Prize for Excellence in Research in basic cell and molecular biology and translational biology, respectively.