The Friedman School has announced the availability of two new fully funded PhD opportunities for exploring the discipline's social, environmental and/or nutritional implications
Cellular agriculture is a rapidly growing field which seeks to address the growing environmental, animal welfare, labor, and public health concerns of industrial livestock production by creating agricultural products from cell culture. Most current research focuses on the biological and engineering aspects of cultivated meat and other cell ag products.
However, significant gaps in knowledge exist, including the answers to questions like:
- What does a just transition to cellular agriculture look like?
- How will consumer acceptance and understanding of these products evolve?
- What policy levers (and even safeguards) will be necessary to ensure this technology has its intended impact on the world?
- How does the environmental impact vary across processes and products?
The Gerald J. and Dorothy R. Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy announced today that it will onboard three new PhD students to explore questions like these. Students will work under faculty with expertise in areas such as economics, sustainable food systems, food policy, life cycle assessment, nutritional epidemiology, and nutrition science.
Via the Tufts University Center for Cellular Agriculture (TUCCA), Tufts has a robust ecosystem of 90+ individuals from the undergraduate to faculty level working on cellular agriculture in some capacity. Most are in the School of Engineering, with a growing contingent at the Friedman School and elsewhere at Tufts.
This is a unique opportunity for students interested in thinking about the social and environmental implications of cellular agriculture to do so side-by-side with bench scientists.
About the Program
Students will be funded via a USDA National Needs Graduate Fellowship (NNF) Award, the Tufts-USDA National Needs Doctoral Fellowship Program In Cellular Agriculture, Nutrition And Society (CANS). They will be expected to complete the graduate cellular agriculture certificate along with other required coursework, and will undertake their dissertation research on topics relevant to cellular agriculture under the guidance of one or more of the program faculty.
Core program faculty include Sean Cash (program director), Nicole Tichenor-Blackstone, Fang Fang Zhang, Joel Mason, Tim Griffin, and David Kaplan.
The Friedman School is one of the leading institutions in the world in food and nutrition scholarship and policy. The school brings together diverse experts who are committed to work that equitably improves the nutritional well-being of people around the globe.
The school’s interdisciplinary focus and integrative nature complement the intellectually rich environment across Tufts University, which the Carnegie Foundation ranks as a Research 1 (R1) institution, as a doctorate-granting university with very high research activity. Moreover, the Friedman School has a history of and a commitment to interdisciplinary research on food system sustainability, including the interactions between productivity, resource use, governance, industry and consumer preferences, nutrition and health, population disparities, and broader societal outcomes.
Requirements
This funding opportunity is restricted to U.S. citizens and permanent residents. Successful applicants will have a demonstrable interest in cellular agriculture and a strong background of academic success to date and must otherwise meet all requirements for admission to one of the Friedman School doctoral programs. As such, applicants must have either completed, or be in the process of completing, a graduate degree; the Friedman School does not offer direct entry to the Ph.D. program for students coming from undergraduate programs. Although it is not required that students' graduate degrees be identical to the MS program at the Friedman School, those who have completed programs with some coursework similar to the Friedman School's MS requirements will likely be at an advantage in the admissions process. Applicants from underrepresented groups are highly encouraged to apply. Additional information is available on the Friedman School website.
Learn More
Contact Program Director Sean Cash for more information about the fully funded PhD opportunities in cellular agriculture at the Friedman School.
How to Apply
Interested applicants are encouraged to first submit an informal pre-submission inquiry at their earliest convenience to Program Director Sean Cash at sean.cash@tufts.edu. Students should include a current resume or CV as well as a brief email that describes their specific interest in the program.
Students will then be invited to submit a formal application through the Friedman School admissions portal. Applications should be submitted by December 1 for full consideration for enrollment in either summer or fall 2025. Admission fee waivers may be available upon request.
Direct any questions about the formal application process to Marny Mitchell, director of admissions, at marny.mitchell@tufts.edu. As part of the formal application, students should be prepared to include a detailed statement of purpose that describes how their interests and goals align with the topics of this funded opportunity.
