Fall 2025 has Officially Started
A new semester and academic year are upon us at McWilliams School of Biomedical Informatics. We welcome our new students and are very happy to have the returning students back.
If students need any assistance this semester, please contact the Office of Academic Affairs at [email protected] or 713-500-3911. We want to wish all students a productive & successful fall semester!
Educational Tehcnology Reminders for Fall 2025
The fall 2025 semester began on August 25, 2025. Course Add/Drop via myUTH will run until to September 10, 2025. Please refer to the academic calendar for other important dates as well as events. Course offerings and classroom information can be found on the semester schedule page. Textbook information is posted at this website.
Courses students register for in myUTH may take up to 24 hours to appear in Canvas. To complete required coursework, students must make sure their computer meets the technical requirements.
The Academic Honesty policy has been updated in all McWilliams course syllabi. Students should read each syllabus carefully for each course they are enrolled in as grading policies and assignment instructions may differ from course to course.
UTHealth Houston Zoom users have been notified of their account migration to Zoom for Gov. The previous Zoom login link will stop working and any user data in their previous Zoom accounts will be permanently deleted after August 31. Please contact [email protected] if you need help with access to your new Zoom account.
Students enrolled in in-person/on-campus classes should attend each weekly class session at the McWilliams School of Biomedical Informatics building space (6th floor of 7000 Fannin Street, Houston, TX 77030). Any student in an on-campus course missing more than three class meetings may be dropped at the discretion of the instructor. Please refer to school catalog for the attendance policy.
- Canvas Login
- Contact the Educational Technology team.
Our liaison librarians at the TMC Library are Sonya Fogg & Brandon Kennedy. Their email addresses are listed on the TMC Library Directory website. However, the best way for students or faculty to make an appointment is via the consultation form: https://librarytmc.libwizard.com/f/consultation.
McWilliams Events for the Start of Fall 2025
The fall 2025 semester is officially underway! There are several upcoming events within in the school that we want to bring to your attention.
Friday, September 5: New PhD Student Orientation
- Students that must attend will receive a calendar invite via Outlook.
- This event will take place both in-person and online.
Friday, September 5: Research Meet and Mixer + PASS Day
- Both in-person events will take place in our classrooms (E612, E614 and E618).
- The back-to-back events start at 11:30 AM and conclude at 4:30 PM.
- RSVP via the Outlook Calendar invite sent to all students and faculty.
Tuesday, September 16: Student Town Hall
- We encourage all students at McWilliams to attend this event.
- If you cannot attend in person, there is also a Zoom link: https://go.uth.edu/msbmi-student-townhall.
- Please complete the pre-survey to submit your questions or outline important topics in advance of the event.
Fall 2025 Tuition and Fee Reminders
It is important that all students log-in to your myUTH account and submit or have submitted a full payment for your tuitions & fees bill and/or have selected a payment plan to avoid being DROPPED for non-payment. If you have selected a payment plan, please submit the initial payment in a timely manner so you are not dropped from courses.
Students who do not have their balance paid in full or have not made their first payment of 50% of their tuition and fees on an installment plan will be dropped from courses and not be eligible for reinstatement.
PAYMENT OPTIONS:
You can find additional information on how to make a payment through the Bursar's website (Tuition Payments) or you can call them directly at 713-500-3088. More information on UTHealth Houston Student Services offices can be found here: https://www.uth.edu/student/.
You may also apply for an Emergency Tuition Loan to assist with payment at this time. Here is the link with general eligibility criteria and required documents. Completed Emergency Tuition Loan applications should be sent to [email protected]. Applications received after 3 pm will be processed the next business day.
The McWilliams Academic Calendar also provides all important dates for the semester that you should be aware.
McWilliams Bragging Points
Members of the McWilliams School of Biomedical Informatics Community have recently achieved noteworthy accomplishments. We want to recognize and applaud these individuals.
- DHI Candidate Philip Walker serves as the director of Vanderbilt’s Annette and Irwin Eskind Family Biomedical Library and Learning Center. He was recently elected as the chair of the National Library of Medicine’s Board of Regents, and his one-year term began on August 4, 2025.
- Postdoctoral Fellow Xingzhong Zhao, PhD has been named an American Society of Human Genetics (ASHG) postdoctoral finalist for the 2025 Trainee Research Excellence Award. Out of over 800 applicants, 60 semifinalists were named, and Dr. Zhao is among the 18 finalists. Dr. Zhao will present at the ASHG Annual Meeting in October and the award winner will be named at that event.
27th Annual Salutation – Save the Date
Student Intercouncil at UTHealth Houston is hosting the 27th annual Salutation on Thursday, September 18. There will be food, beverages, giveaways, and great prizes such as monthly parking passes, gift cards, and more. Your UTHealth Houston student ID is your admission ticket.
Who: All UTHealth Houston students
When: 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, September 18
Where: Denton A. Cooley, MD and Ralph C. Cooley, DDS University Life Center, 7440 Cambridge St.
For more information on this event, visit this website.
Upcoming Student Opportunities
- The HIMSS26 Student Ambassador program is accepting applications for the conference taking place in March of 2026. The deadline to apply is Friday, September 26 by 5:30 pm CT. For details on the requirements, please view this PDF.
- AMIA is accepting Student Volunteer Program applications for this year's Annual Symposium in Atlanta (November 15 to 19). Visit the AMIA website for more information as applications are due by September 30.
UTHealth Houston Center for Digital Healthcare Innovation (CDHI) Informatics Summit
Our school community is invited to attend the UTHealth Houston Center for Digital Healthcare Innovation (CDHI) Informatics Summit on Thursday, September 25. This year’s theme, Mission: Unstoppable, celebrates the bold thinkers, creative problem-solvers, and everyday changemakers transforming the landscape of digital health care. From improving patient access to advancing automation, they will spotlight the efforts that move us forward together.
For information on the summit visit https://www.uth.edu/center-for-digital-healthcare-innovation/summit.
Fifth Annual Texas Health Informatics Alliance Conference
UTHealth Houston, along with the University of Texas Arlington (UTA), Texas State University (TXST), Texas Woman’s University (TWU), the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center (UTSW), and the University of North Texas (UNT) are pleased to announce the Fifth Annual Texas Health Informatics Alliance (THIA) Conference.
This conference will bring together the Health Informatics community in Texas, provide an opportunity to share, collaborate, showcase the amazing work in Health Informatics, and feature presentations and keynote speakers from our state. This year, it will be hosted as an in-person conference on Friday, September 26 at The University of Texas Arlington in Arlington, Texas. Registration is now open!
The theme for this year is “ALL IN: Practice of Trustworthy and Responsible AI Operations in Health Care.” THIA invites researchers, developers, health professionals, information management professionals, data and information scientists, and students to submit abstracts as well.
The registration fee is $100. Close of registration will be on Monday, September 15 at 5 pm CDT. Registration is available through the THIA 2025 website.
To attend the event, visit go.uth.edu/registrationexploration. No registration required!
2026 Archer Fellowship Program
UTHealth Houston collaborates with UT System to promote the Graduate Archer Fellowship Program (a part of UT System). This opportunity is available to students at all seven UTHealth Houston schools.
While the application for 2026 will open next month, there are four upcoming information sessions where students can learn more about this program (see image below for list). Additional information is also available on the fellowship website.
MARK YOUR CALENDAR
Important Dates
| Aug. 25 – Sept. 10 | Late Registration & Add/Drop open in myUTH |
| Sept. 1 | Labor Day Holiday – University is closed |
| Sept. 10 | 12th Class Day & Drop for non-payment date |
Visit our website for a full list of research seminar dates and access to recordings for past seminars.
Office of Academic Affairs
7000 Fannin, Ste. 650 Houston, TX
Phone: 713.500.3591
Email: [email protected]
7000 Fannin, Ste. 650 Houston, TX
Phone: 713.500.3591
Email: [email protected]
