pharmd-phd program

PharmD Information SessionPharmaceutical Sciences

PharmD-PhD Career TrackScott F. Singleton, PhD

Director of Graduate Studies

Thursday, August 13, 2009

what is a PhD?

Doctor of Philosophy

from the Latin Philosophiæ Doctor, meaning "teacher of philosophy"

the most advanced academic degree awarded by universities in a wide array of disciplines in the sciences and humanities

a requirement for a career as a university professor or researcher in many fields

a research degree


why a PhD?

always learning

work one-on-one with a mentor

creating new knowledge (information): transition from a consumer of knowledge to a producer of knowledge

transition from being taught to self-teaching

transition from problem-solving to teaching

PhD’s direct the investigations


why Pharmaceutical Sciences?pharmacists/pharmaceutical scientists care about drugs (more so than MD’s)

what should be targeted to address an unmet need?

how to make new drugs?

how to make drugs or drug candidates better (making academic concepts viable)?

how to better use medication to effect better patient outcomes

how to effect better patient outcomes through information or policy

discoveries in “the lab” lead to new routine standards of practice


fast factseach of our PhD students receives full financial support, including a competitive stipend (as either a Research or Teaching Assistantship), paid tuition, and health insurance

our students complete the PhD program in approximately 5 years

our graduates find desirable positions in academia, research institutes, federal agencies, patent law, and pharmaceutical & biotechnology industries

our location in UNC’s health sciences complex in the world-renowned Research Triangle provides a great atmosphere of collaboration with other UNC scientists as well as those at Duke, NC State University, and numerous biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies in Research Triangle Park


Pharmaceutical Sciences

PPEEDPET DPOP MOPHMCNP

PhD MS


103 PhD students in 4 tracksDPET

18

DPOP12

MCNP41

MOPH32


STAGE 4

Outcomes

ECONOMIC &HEALTH OUTCOMES OF

DRUG THERAPIES

PharmaceuticalOutcomes

&Policy

STAGE 3

Assessment

CLINICAL ASSESSMENT& EVALUATION OF

DRUG CANDIDATES

Pharmacotherapy&

ExperimentalTherapeutics

STAGE 2

Optimization

DRUG DELIVERYDRUG SAFETY

DRUG EFFICACY

MolecularPharmaceutics

STAGE 1

Discovery

TARGET DISCOVERYTARGET VALIDATION

DRUG DESIGN

Medicinal Chemistry&

Natural Products

a unique perspective

The School's PhD program has four multidisciplinary concentrations that reflect our

collaborative approach to science.


sequential PharmD-PhD program

two complete curricula & degrees

take PhD courses in place of PharmD electives

get involved in research during PharmD

can “save” 12 – 18 months


how do I know if I should consider it?

chemistry

computer science

biology

engineering

drug delivery

epidemiology

clinical drug trials

psychology

pharmacology

economics

drug discovery

sociology


how do I know what to study?

find some papers

begin reading them at 10 pm

if it didn’t put you to sleep, then you should join a lab doing that kind of research


how do I find out more?

Scott [email protected] of Graduate Studies

Mike [email protected] - Dir. Grad. Admiss.

Craig [email protected]

DPET - Dir. Grad. Admiss.

Rick Hansen [email protected]

DPOP - Dir. Grad. StudiesMike [email protected] - Dir. Grad. Admiss.

Amber [email protected]

Student Services ManagerThursday, August 13, 2009

http://www.pharmacy.unc.edu/programs


pharmd-phd program

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