Health Sciences

Doctor of Philosophy in Medical Microbiology

The Doctor of Philosophy in Medical Microbiology is a doctoral programme offered at the University of Nairobi through the Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology and at KEMRI Graduate School in collaboration with JKUAT. It is designed to produce scholars capable of advancing research in medical microbiology, infectious diseases and antimicrobial resistance. The programme addresses Kenya's medical microbiology research and infectious disease control development needs.

Students engage with advanced topics in medical bacteriology, medical virology, medical mycology, antimicrobial resistance, diagnostic microbiology, molecular microbiology, hospital-acquired infections, emerging pathogens, vaccines and immunology and research methods. The curriculum emphasises original research that develops microbiological insights for Kenya's infectious disease challenges.

Kenya's infectious disease burden including malaria, TB, HIV, respiratory infections, diarrhoeal diseases, antimicrobial resistance crisis, hospital infection control needs and emerging pathogens create demand for doctoral-level medical microbiology expertise. The programme supports Kenya's infectious disease control and public health goals.

Teaching is delivered through coursework, laboratory sessions and supervised research. At UoN, the Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology offers PhD in Medical Microbiology (H810) with tuition at KSh 432,000/year, total KSh 1,432,000 over 3 years.

Related PhDs include Infectious Diseases (H84), Virology (H82), Immunology (H83), Tropical and Infectious Diseases (W80), Clinical Research (H85) and Implementation Science (H88). At KEMRI Graduate School, PhD in Medical Microbiology is offered through JKUAT/KEMRI collaborative training with application fee KSh 3,500.

Graduates pursue careers as university professors, medical microbiology researchers, clinical microbiologists, infection control specialists and public health microbiologists. They work in universities, KEMRI, hospitals, Ministry of Health and international health organisations.

Duration: 3-5 years
Public, up to: Ksh 432,000
Private, up to: Ksh 288,000
Job market: High

The programme

What you study, how long it takes, and how it is delivered.

Practicalities

Study mode: Full-time, Part-time
Attachment: 0 months
Average class: 4 students
Award: PhD

What you study

10 subjects

Advanced Medical Bacteriology
Medical Virology and Viral Pathogenesis
Medical Mycology and Parasitology
Antimicrobial Resistance and Stewardship
Diagnostic Microbiology and Laboratory Methods
Molecular Microbiology and Genomics
Hospital-Acquired Infections and Infection Control
Emerging and Re-emerging Pathogens
Vaccinology and Immunology
Research Methods in Medical Microbiology

Modules

8 in the programme

Advanced Medical Bacteriology
Year 1Semester 13 creditsCore
Medical bacteriology, exploring cutting-edge developments, theoretical frameworks, and research methodologies at the forefront of the discipline.
Medical Virology and Viral Pathogenesis
Year 1Semester 23 creditsCore
Medical virology, covering clinical principles, evidence-based practice, and contemporary challenges in healthcare delivery and research.
Antimicrobial Resistance and Stewardship
Year 1Semester 33 creditsCore
AMR, covering theoretical foundations, practical methodologies, and contemporary research developments relevant to doctoral study in this area.
Molecular Microbiology and Genomics
Year 2Semester 13 creditsCore
Molecular microbiology, covering biological principles, research techniques, and their application in understanding living systems.
Hospital-Acquired Infections and Infection Control
Year 2Semester 23 creditsCore
Infection control, covering quality assurance principles, control methodologies, and their application in professional standards.
Research Methods in Medical Microbiology
Year 2Semester 33 creditsCore
Research design and methodology, covering quantitative and qualitative approaches, data collection techniques, and analytical frameworks relevant to doctoral-level research in the field.
Departmental Seminars
Year 3Semester 13 creditsCore
Research presentations and peer review of doctoral work, providing a platform for doctoral candidates to present research findings, engage with peer feedback, and explore contemporary debates in.
Thesis Research
Year 3Semester 26 creditsCore
Doctoral thesis research and dissertation writing, involving original research, literature review, data analysis, and the production of a doctoral dissertation contributing new knowledge to the.

Specialisations

Infection Control
Research on hospital infections
Antimicrobial Resistance
Research on AMR
Molecular Microbiology
Research on molecular microbiology
Diagnostic Microbiology
Research on diagnostic methods

A day as a student

A typical day involves conducting microbiology research, culturing and identifying pathogens, running molecular diagnostics, reviewing microbiology literature, attending seminars on infectious diseases, meeting with supervisors to discuss research progress, and engaging with KEMRI, hospitals and Ministry of Health for research collaboration.

The trade offs

In its favour

Kenya's infectious disease burden creates strong demand
Access to KEMRI, CDC and WHO Kenya
Research contributes to disease control

Against it

UoN PhD is expensive (KSh 1,432,000 total)
Handling infectious agents requires biosafety compliance
Ethical approvals for medical research can be lengthy

What it costs

Tuition at both ends of the market, and how to pay for it.

What it costs, and where

Against 349 health sciences courses

Public170k to 432k

170k at Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology432k at University of Nairobi

Private144k to 288k

144k at Kenya Methodist University288k at Kabarak University

Annual tuition in Kenyan shillings, rounded. The upright tick is the median for this field, so a bar sitting entirely to its right is an expensive programme by the standards of its own subject.

The fine print

UoN 432k/yr verified (medmicrobiology.uonbi.ac.ke). JKUAT ~170k/yr. KeMU 144k, Kabarak 288k/yr.

HELB provides postgraduate loans. DAAD offers scholarships for postgraduate study. NACOSTI provides research grants. KEMRI-Wellcome Trust offers research funding and training.

Funding options

HELB Postgraduate Loan
DAAD Kenya Scholarship
NACOSTI Research Grant
KEMRI-Wellcome Trust Research Programme

Scholarships

4 recorded

NACOSTI Research Grant
GrantKenyan
Science and technology researchers in Kenya
HELB Postgraduate Scholarship
LoanKsh 200,000Kenyan
Kenyan postgraduate students
DAAD Kenya Scholarship
ScholarshipKenyan
Postgraduate students in Kenya
KEMRI-Wellcome Trust Research Programme
FellowshipKenyan
Health researchers in Kenya

Getting in

The grades, the alternatives, and who accredits the award.

What you need

KCSE mean grade: Masters Degree
Alternative entry: At UoN: MSc from UoN or recognised institution. Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology. H810. Total KSh 1,432,000 over 3 years. At JKUAT/KEMRI: Bachelor's degree Second Class Upper + MSc Medical Microbiology or related. Application fee KSh 3,500 for PhD. Total approximately KSh 510,500.

MSc in Medical Microbiology, Microbiology, Biomedical Sciences or related field
Relevant Masters from recognised university

How you are assessed

3 components

Thesis
Thesis50% of the mark
Doctoral thesis research, submission and oral defence
Coursework
Continuous assessment30% of the mark
Assignments, laboratory projects and seminar presentations
Thesis Proposal Defence
Oral defence20% of the mark
Defence of research proposal before faculty panel

Accreditation

Accredited by the Commission for University Education (CUE). Offered at University of Nairobi (Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, H810, total KSh 1,432,000 over 3 years) and KEMRI Graduate School (JKUAT/KEMRI collaborative, total approximately KSh 510,500). Related UoN PhDs: H84 Infectious Diseases, H82 Virology, H83 Immunology, W80 Tropical and Infectious Diseases, H85 Clinical Research, H88 Implementation Science.

Accredited by

Commission for University Education
AcademicRequired
Statutory body responsible for accreditation of university programmes in Kenya
Kenya Medical Laboratory Technicians and Technologists Board
Professional
Regulates medical laboratory professionals in Kenya

Where it leads

The roles it opens, and what you leave with.

Where graduates go

4 roles

Clinical Microbiologist
High demandKsh 220,000 to Ksh 550,000
Clinical microbiology at hospitals
University Professor
High demandKsh 200,000 to Ksh 500,000
Teaching and research in microbiology departments
Medical Microbiology Researcher
High demandKsh 200,000 to Ksh 500,000
Research at KEMRI and research institutes
Infection Control Specialist
High demandKsh 200,000 to Ksh 500,000
Infection control at hospitals

Graduate outcomes

Graduates pursue careers as university professors, medical microbiology researchers, clinical microbiologists and infection control specialists. They work at KEMRI, hospitals, Ministry of Health and universities.

Where these fields lead

8 careers

Certifications

Industry links

Common misconceptions

Medical microbiology is just about identifying bacteria.
The field covers virology, mycology, antimicrobial resistance, molecular microbiology and infection control.
There is no demand for microbiology PhDs in Kenya.
Kenya's infectious disease burden and AMR crisis create strong demand.
Microbiology research is purely laboratory work.
The programme uses genomics, bioinformatics, epidemiology and clinical research.
Only lab technologists study this PhD.
The programme attracts doctors, pharmacists and public health professionals.