EDUCATING LEADERS IN PHARMACY AND PHARMACEUTICAL SCIENCES SINCE 1886
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Our highly sought-after PhD in Pharmaceutical Sciences is the foremost destination for graduate scholars interested in challenging the boundaries of drug discovery, development and evaluation.
You will work and learn alongside internationally renowned faculty as they advance the biotherapies and technologies of the future to improve human health and society.
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About the PhD Program
Program Requirements
- Required Courses: Must be completed with a grade of B- or higher. This requirement does not include research (PHC 615/616). Courses that do not meet these standards will not count toward the degree and must be repeated.
- Overall GPA: A minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0 is required across 72 credits.
| Required Courses and Milestones | Credit Hours |
|---|---|
| Out of department graduate elective courses | ≥ 4 |
| Other graduate elective courses | ≥ 4 |
| PHC 511 Research Proposal | 3 |
| PHC 599 Supervised Teaching | 4 |
| PHC 613 and PHC 614 Departmental Seminar | 2 |
| PHC 615 and PHC 616 Thesis Research | ≥ 4 |
| Required Didactic Courses | |
| Electives | |
| Total Credits: | 72 |
| Annual Progress Report | |
| Three departmental research presentations (including dissertation defense) | |
| Preliminary Exam | |
| Application to Candidacy (ATC) | |
| Dissertation Committee Meetings | |
| Dissertation Defense | |
| M-Form | |
| Electronic submission of yoru dissertation | |
| Doctoral degree recipients surveys |
| FALL | Credit Hours |
|---|---|
| Students will be registered for these first semester fall courses and will have a graduate course advisement meeting with the Director of Graduate Studies. | |
| PHC 500 Drug Development (half semester course; moving to spring starting 2028) | 1.5 |
| PHC 506 Biometry in PHC* | 3 |
| PHC 539 Biologics - Specialty Pharma (half semester course; moving to spring starting 2028) | 1.5 |
| PHC 588 Faculty Research Seminar Waived for students who completed PHC 488/588 within the past three years with a grade of B- or higher, or a Pass (for courses graded Pass/Fail) | 1 |
| PHC 607 Intermediate Pharmacokinetics | 3 |
| PHC 613 Pharmaceutics Seminar Students who have completed PHC 413/613 within three years prior to enrollment are exempt. However, they are strongly encouraged to attend lectures presented by new faculty on a non-credit basis. | 1 |
| PHC 630 Drug Metabolism and Transport | 3 |
| Total: | 14 |
| SPRING | Credit Hours |
|---|---|
| PHC 510 Pharmaceutical Analysis | 3 |
| PHC 600 Ethics of Scientific Research in Pharmaceutical Sciences | 1 |
| PHC 614 Pharmaceutics Seminar Students who have completed PHC 413/613 within three years prior to enrollment are exempt. However, they are strongly encouraged to attend lectures presented by new faculty on a non-credit basis. | 1 |
| PHC 616 Research | Varies |
| Electives | Varies |
| Total: | ≥9 |
*PHC 506 Biometry for Pharmaceutical Sciences is the preferred statistics course. This requirement may be substituted with another graduate biostatistics course from the biostatistics or other department. Written approval from the Director of Graduate Studies is required for substitution. Substitution with STA 527 is not recommended and will be allowed only in special cases with prior approval of the Director of Graduate Studies.
Students who have waivers and require additional credits are suggested to enroll in PHC 615 Research with the Director of Graduate Studies.
| FALL | Credit Hours |
|---|---|
| PHC 508 Drug Delivery | 3 |
| PHC 615 Research | Varies |
| Electives | Varies |
| Total: | ≥9 |
| Preliminary Exam (winter) Taken after all required core courses are successfully completed. Submit the Application to Candidacy form after passing the prelim. |
| SPRING | Credit Hours |
|---|---|
| PHC 616 Research | Varies |
| Electives | Varies |
| Total: | ≥9 |
| FALL | Credit Hours |
|---|---|
| PHC 599 Supervised Teaching**** | 2 |
| PHC 615 Research | ≥ 1 |
| "Out of department" graduate elective courses (fall or spring) | ≥ 2-4 |
| Other graduate elective courses | ≥ 2-4 |
| Total: | ≥9 |
| SPRING | Credit Hours |
|---|---|
| PHC 511 Research Proposal**** | 3 |
| PHC 599 Supervised Teaching***** | 2 |
| PHC 616 Research | ≥1 |
| "Out of department" graduate elective courses (fall or spring) | ≥ 2-4 |
| Other graduate elective courses | ≥ 2-4 |
| Total: | ≥9 |
****Students MUST complete PHC 511 within one year (i.e., within two semesters) after passing the Preliminary Examination and are highly encouraged to complete it within the semester immediately following completion of the Preliminary Exam.
*****Typically, students enroll in 2 credits in the fall semester + 2 credits in the spring. The credit number of PHC 599 for each session could be adjusted based on TA duties by the Director of Graduate Studies.
| FALL | Credit Hours |
|---|---|
| PHC 615 Research | ≥1 |
| SPRING | Credit Hours |
|---|---|
| PHC 616 Research | ≥1 |
| SUMMER (if needed) | Credit Hours |
|---|---|
PHC 615 Research Summer enrollment is also required if a student is using the summer semester as their last semester. | ≥1 |
- Graduate elective courses taken outside the department, recommended by advisor and approved by Director of Graduate Studies Credits: Minimum of 4
- Additional graduate elective courses (may include courses from the Elective Options list below or approved outside courses: Minimum of 4
| FALL | Credit Hours |
|---|---|
| PHC 502 Selected Topics (available fall, spring)*** | 1-3 |
| PHC 512 Pharmacometric Software (available fall, spring, summer) | 1 |
| PHC 615 Research | Variable |
***PHC 502 Selected Topics can be used to register Research Group meetings and Journal Clubs. A separate registration code is available for each faculty member. Consult faculty on availability.
| SPRING | Credit Hours |
|---|---|
| PHC 502 Selected Topics (also offered in fall)*** | 1-3 |
| PHC 512 Pharmacometric Software (available fall, spring, summer) | 1 |
| PHC 516 Pharmacogenomics | 1 |
| PHC 518 Nutrigenomics in Cancer (prerequisite: Pharmacogenomics or Drug Metabolism) | 2 |
| PHC 531 Pharmacokinetics and Pharmacodynamics I | 4 |
| PHC 608 Advanced Pharmacokinetics (PHC 607 C grade or better) | 3 |
| PHC 610 Population PK-PD Modeling (PHC 607 C grade or better) | 2 |
| PHC 609 Quantitative Systems Pharmacology | 2 |
| PHC 616 Research | Variable |
***PHC 502 Selected Topics can be used to register Research Group meetings and Journal Clubs. A separate registration code is available for each faculty member. Consult faculty on availability.
Ready to take the next step?
Visit our Pharmaceutical Sciences PhD admissions information page to apply!