Dr. Mahan Ghafari

Assistant Professor

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Biography

Mahan Ghafari is a Wellcome Trust Early Career Research Fellow and independent investigator leading the Ghafari Research Group in the Department of Biology at the University of Oxford. He is based at the Peter Medawar Building for Pathogen Research and has additional affiliations with the Data Analytics Epidemiology Group and the Pandemic Sciences Institute, holding a college position as a Kemp Junior Research Fellow in Medical Sciences at Lincoln College. His research focuses on developing quantitative frameworks to study the molecular evolution of pathogens, particularly regarding their epidemic and pandemic potential. He integrates concepts of phylogenetics, population genetics, evolutionary theory, and structural biology to reconstruct evolutionary histories, trace pathogen origins from non-human reservoirs, and evaluate potential causes of outbreaks that evade existing therapeutics. Ghafari holds a BSc and an MSc in Physics, specializing in statistical physics and quantitative modeling of evolutionary biology, and completed his DPhil in Interdisciplinary Biosciences at the University of Oxford in 2022. His doctoral thesis concentrated on the quantitative analysis of viral molecular evolution.

Research Interests

Requirements for University of Oxford

Master Program
Requirements
GPA Requirement
Required:3.7
IELTS
Listening
Required:7
Reading
Required:7
Writing
Required:7
Speaking
Required:7
Overall
Required:7.5
TOEFL
Listening
Required:22
Reading
Required:24
Writing
Required:24
Speaking
Required:25
Total
Required:110
Prerequisites
Bachelor's degree in Politics, International Relations, Economics, History, Law, Philosophy or Sociology
Application Checklist
  • Three academic references
  • Official transcripts
  • CV/Resume
  • Statement of Purpose (1,000 words)
  • Two academic essays (2,000 words each)
Specialization Notes

Department of Politics and International Relations - Higher Level English requirement.