The PhDBCS offers a four-year study plan (240 ECTS), full-time program, or a part-time program (with the same ECTS) that lasts longer.

In the first year, the program includes a mandatory curricular unit dedicated to designing the PhD project (15 ECTS) and three optional curricular units (15 ECTS total), that can be selected from a wide range of options. The remaining 210 ECTS are dedicated to the thesis, to be carried out during the four years of the study plan.

The program is very flexible, to allow students to shape their training in accordance with previous background and competences, research interests and aims. As such, students can yearly choose among a vast offer of advanced courses that take place at the School of Medicine/ICVS UMinho (available here). Students can also be credited for courses taken elsewhere. Of relevance, the program is also shaped to train students in transferable skills (such preparation for interview, writing of CV and motivation letter, communication, ethics and integrity). Those topics are embedded in various curricular units (e.g. "Advanced Studies in Laboratory Animal Sciences ") and mandatory sessions are offered within the curricular unit "Thesis Project in Biomedicine and Health Sciences".