The Department of Biology is strongly committed to increasing diversity within the life sciences through the recruitment and retention of graduate students from traditionally underrepresented groups, and we strongly encourage members of these groups to apply to our program.

Doctoral students admitted to the MBG and EEB programs are guaranteed five years of financial support. Such support may be provided through several sources, including fellowships from Indiana University, the Department of Biology, an NIH Training Grant, and the James P. Holland Graduate Fellowship or the Partnership Fellowship. The latter two fellowships provide stipend and tuition support to a first year Ph.D. student who is a member of a group that is underrepresented in the biomedical/life sciences.

In addition, the Department actively assists students with applications for many prestigious fellowships offered through the university and the IU Graduate School’s "Fellowships for Students Underrepresented in Graduate Education" Program, which offers fellowships for minority and women graduate students. With funding from the National Science Foundation’s Alliances for Graduate Education and the Professoriate (AGEP), the IU Graduate School is also working to increase its minority student PhD graduation rates through improved peer and faculty mentoring and the development of a peer network of graduate minority organizations on campus.

The IU Office of Academic Support and Diversity coordinates a wide array of programs and services that enhance excellence and equity for all members of the university. Indiana University also has an Affirmative Action Office on each campus and complies with all federal regulations against discrimination on the basis of sex, age, race, religion, ethnic origin, veteran status, or handicap. The University provides a wide range services for students with disabilities, maintains the Indiana Institute on Disability and Community , and complies with the letter and spirit of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

The Department’s graduate students, a mix of equal numbers of females and males, come from a wide variety of universities and colleges throughout the country as well as a number of foreign countries, including Brazil, Canada, China, Colombia, Czech Republic, Ecuador, France, Germany, Great Britain, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Iran, Ivory Coast, Japan, Kenya, Korea, Malaysia, Philippines, Portugal, Romania, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Taiwan, Turkey, and Uganda.