Physical Principles of Morphogenesis in Plants and Animals, the KITP QBio Summer Course, will run from July 20 - August 21, 2026 at the Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics, UC Santa Barbara. Postdocs and advanced graduate students with physical, mathematical, and life science backgrounds are invited to apply.

Developmental systems exhibit remarkable coordination across scales—from gene expression to mechanical forces to tissue geometry—but how these levels interact to produce robust morphogenesis is still not well understood. This hands-on research course will integrate laboratory projects, computational data analysis, and mathematical modeling, aiming to achieve quantitative understanding of specific morphogenetic processes in a variety of model animal and plant developmental systems. Students will also attend lectures in the concurrent KITP program Geometry and Intercellular Interactions in Morphogenesis of Animals and Plants.

Visit the KITP QBio website for a course description and the online application and recommendation letter forms. The application deadline is February 1, 2026.

Website: https://www.kitp.ucsb.edu/qbio

Application deadline: February 1, 2026

Fees: The $2925 course fee covers student room and board.

Course Directors: Adrienne Roeder (Cornell) and Sebastian Streichan (UC Santa Barbara)

Contact: qbioschool@kitp.ucsb.edu