Graduate Programs
Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences
College of Pharmacy & Allied Health Professions Wayne State University
Detroit, MI 48202
I. INTRODUCTION
The graduate program described herein represents a continuing effort by the Faculty of the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences to provide contemporary and relevant graduate education in the Pharmaceutical Sciences. This document reviews the areas of specializations offered, the curriculum and requirements for the M.S. and Ph.D. degrees and financial assistance. A description of the research interests of each faculty member is available by clicking here. The program ensures a curriculum which provides: basic coursework that forms the foundation for and complements the more specialized courses presented by the faculty; early exposure to faculty research; adequate time for selection of an advisor; and careful evaluation of the student's research and teaching abilities.
II. THE UNIVERSITY AND THE CITY
Wayne State University is one of the largest urban universities in the nation. The University is composed of twelve different colleges, one of which is the College of Pharmacy and Allied Health Professions. Shapero Hall, which houses the College of Pharmacy and Allied Health Professions, is located near the area in Detroit known as Greektown, a popular attraction for native Detroiters and tourists alike.
The Wayne State University area is also the site of numerous publicly supported institutions of the City of Detroit, including the Detroit Historical Museum, the Detroit Institute of Arts, the Detroit Public Library and the Detroit Science Center. As the home of several professional athletic teams, the City of Detroit provides the social and cultural advantages of a great metropolitan area. At the same time, the city is the hub of many routes to the nearby year-round outdoor recreational opportunities of Michigan and Canada, especially Michigan's four Great Lakes and many smaller lakes and rivers. The University benefits greatly from the resources of the city while, conversely, through its research, consulting, and other services, the University enriches the city with knowledge acquired in the classroom and the laboratory.
III. DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACEUTICAL SCIENCES
A. General Information and Background
The Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences offers the degrees of Master of Science or Doctor of Philosophy in the various areas of specialization. These programs are available to either full-time or part-time students. Applicants may be invited for personal interview in some instances.
B. Baccalaureate Training
In general, the applicant must have an adequate background in biology, physics, calculus, and chemistry. In most instances, candidates for admission who have earned a B.S. degree in pharmacy, chemistry, or the biological sciences possess adequate preparation.
C. Areas of Specialization
Medicinal Chemistry. Medicinal Chemistry involves the development of new compounds useful in the diagnosis and treatment of disease and involves elements of applied organic chemistry and the relationships between chemical structure, physical properties and biological activity. Medicinal Chemistry includes both synthetic chemistry and natural product chemistry. Synthetic chemistry is concerned with drug design and the total synthesis or structural modification of bioactive compounds, while natural product chemistry is concerned with the isolation and characterization of active materials from natural sources.
Pharmaceutics. Pharmaceutics is concerned with the study of physicochemical and biological factors that determine the input, distribution and elimination of drugs in animals and man. Thus, pharmaceutics involves the design of drug-delivery systems and elucidation of factors which alter drug disposition and pharmacologic response. Pharmaceutics, is divided into two subdisciplines: physical pharmacy and pharmacokinetics. Physical pharmacy is that area which is concerned with the development of drug dosage forms. Pharmacokinetics is concerned with factors which influence drug absorption, distribution metabolism and elimination.
Pharmacology and Toxicology. Pharmacology is the health science that encompasses the study of drug action mechanisms from intramolecular reactions at the subcellular level to drug actions on physiological systems of the whole organism. Toxicology is concerned with the alterations in normal structure or function resulting from the exposure of animals or man to drugs, synthetic chemicals, or natural products. As applied sciences, pharmacology and toxicology employ many of the principles and methods of anatomy, physiology, biochemistry, microbiology, immunology, behavior and biophysics. Research advances in these areas have enabled graduate programs to provide highly trained and competent scientists in the various subdisciplines of pharmacology and toxicology.
D. Admission Requirements and Application Procedures
The Graduate Division and the Dean for Graduate Studies have the overall responsibility for graduate admissions to Wayne State University. Decisions concerning the admissability of applicants are based on careful review of applications by the faculty in consultation with the head of the pertinent academic division(s) whenever needed. Admission procedures and requirements are described in detail in the Policies and Procedures for graduate programs in the Pharmaceutical Sciences.
Three letters of recommendation are required for all applicants. Letters of recommendation should be addressed to:
Chair, Graduate Program Committee
Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences
College of Pharmacy and Allied Health Professions
Wayne State University
Detroit, MI 48202
E. Graduate Coursework
Graduate coursework within the Department includes a broad exposure to various areas within the pharmaceutical sciences (Core Curriculum) and also intensive specialization within the area of the student's research interests. Thus, graduates from the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences are well-rounded in all facets of the discipline and capable specialists in the area of their research.
Core Curriculum
In addition to meeting course requirements as outlined in the Graduate Bulletin, all graduate students are required to register for the following three courses:
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PSC 680 Introduction to Research (2cr)
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PSC 701 Advanced Principles of Drug Action I (4cr)
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PSC 702 Advanced Principles of Drug Action II (4cr)
In addition, students are encouraged to enroll in the interdisciplinary course on Techniques in Animal Experimentation (PSC 672). Students specializing in Pharmaceutics or Pharmacology should also anticipate enrolling in Biostatistics (PSC 660).
Departmental Course Offerings by Area of Specialization
a. Medicinal Chemistry
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PSC 600 Fundamentals of Drug Design
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PSC 770 Advanced Medicinal Chemistry
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PSC 771 Chemistry of Chemotherapeutic Agents
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PSC 785 Seminar in Medicinal Chemistry
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PSC 780 Research Techniques in Medicinal Chemistry
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PSC 865 Special Topics in Medicinal Chemistry
b. Pharmaceutics
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PSC 704 Fundamentals of Pharmacokinetics
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PSC 781 Research Techniques in Pharmaceutics
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PSC 786 Seminar in Pharmaceutics
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PSC 804 Pharmacokinetics and Biopharmaceutics
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PSC 866 Special Topics in Pharmaceutics
c. Pharmacology/Toxicology
- PSC 689 Toxicology/Adverse Drug Reactions
- PSC 710 Advanced Pharmacodynamics I
- PSC 711 Advanced Pharmacodynamics II
- PSC 712 Advanced Pharmacology I
- PSC 713 Biological Psychiatry
- PSC 715 Biochemical Pharmacology
- PSC 760 Drug Abuse Pharmacology
- PSC 782 Research Techniques in Pharmacology
- PSC 787 Seminar in Pharmacology
- PSC 867 Special Topics in Pharmacology
Relevant Courses Offered by Other Departments
- BCH 701 Graduate Biochemistry
- BCH 761 Basic Instrumentation
- BCH 766 Bioenergetics
- BCH 769 Biochemistry of Disease
- BIO 616 Biophysics and Molecular Biology
- CHM 644 Computational Chemistry
- CHM 720 Organic Structures and Mechanisms
- CHM 722 Organic Structures and Synthesis
- CHM 724 Organic Spectroscopy
- CHM 741 Classical and Statistical Thermodynamics
- CHM 743 Classical Kinetics
- CHM 762 Biochemistry I
- CHM 763 Biochemistry Lab I
- CHM 764 Molecular Biology
- CHM 766 Biomolecular Interactions
- PHC701 Introduction to Pharmacology
- PHC 752 Cellular Pharmacology
- PHC 753 Neuropharmacology I
- PHC 754 Neuropharmacology II
- PHC 755 Neurochemical Pharmacology
- PHC 757 Cardiovascular Pharmacology
- PPR 767 Advance Applied Pharmacokinetics
- PSL 710 Graduate Physiology I
- PSL 711 Graduate Physiology II
- PSL 719 Neuroscience Survey
- PSL 760 Advanced Cardiovascular Physiology
- PSL 766 Neurophysiology
- PSY 505 Physiological Psychology
- PSY 709 Theories of Learning
- PSY 712 Biological Basis of Behavior
- PSY 719 Neuroscience Survey
- PSY 808 Seminar in Biochemistry and Behavior
- PTH 704 Principles of Analytical Toxicology
- PTH 729 Biochemical Pathology I
- PTH 730 Biochemical Pathology II
- PTH 746 Radioimmunoassay: Principles and Applications
F. Selection of Advisors
If a student has not chosen an advisor at the time of matriculation, a faculty member appointed by the Chairperson of the Graduate Program Committee will serve as temporary advisor. The student will be informed in writing of this temporary advisor appointment. During the first semester the temporary advisor will encourage the student to meet with all faculty members of the discipline and have the student discuss his/her research interests with those of the faculty. Masters degree students should choose a graduate advisor by the end of the first semester, whereas Ph.D. students should choose a graduate advisor by the end of their second semester.
G. Teaching Experience
It is the policy of the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences that Ph.D. students in the graduate program be provided opportunities for supervised teaching experiences, including the presentation of lectures at the undergraduate level, assistance in student laboratory courses and the presentation of research seminars.
H. Research Publications and Presentation by Students
Productive research projects result in publishable findings. Student publication of research is strongly recommended. Further, students are urged to formally present their research findings at national and regional research conferences. Both the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences and the Graduate School can support the presentation of graduate students at these meetings. In addition, graduate student support is also available through individual faculty research awards.
I. Student Financial Aid Programs
Graduate students in the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences are eligible for financial assistance from a number of sources. Although other sources also exist, graduate support is derived from primarily the following:
Rumble Fellowships. Offered by the Wayne State University Graduate School, the recipient of this award receives a graduate tuition waiver, a living stipend, health insurance and subsidied housing in the University graduate housing (Forest and DeRoy Apartments).
Departmental Graduate Teaching Assistantships. The Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences also awards Graduate Assistantships to graduate students within the Department. The recipient of this award receives a graduate tuition waiver, health insurance and a living stipend. Departmental Graduate Teaching Assistants are required to assist Departmental faculty in undergraduate teaching.
Graduate Research Assistantships - Graduate School and Faculty. Individual faculty members can sponsor students as Graduate Research Assistants. The recipient of this kind of award receives the same benefits as a Graduate Teaching Assistant. Graduate Research Assist-ants, however, are not required to assist Departmental faculty in undergraduate teaching.
Graduate/Professional Scholarships. Sponsored by the Graduate school, recipients of this award will receive either a graduate tuition waiver or the tuition waiver plus a living stipend.
Student Employment in Faculty Laboratories. Graduate students are also eligible to serve as paid hourly assistants (up to 20 hours/week) in the laboratory of faculty members.
J. Research Facilities and Environment.
The Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, located in Shapero Hall, is well-equipped for the conduct of contemporary research in drug metabolism molecular biology, biochemical pharmacology and toxicology neuropharmacology, medicinal chemistry, and pharmacokinetics. Among the major pieces of analytical equipment housed in the Department are several high performance liquid chromatographs, gas chromatograph with a mass spectrometry interface, as well as nuclear magnetic resonance, infrared, atomic absorption and ultraviolet/visible spectrophotometers. Computer-assisted drug design in medicinal chemistry is facilitated by the availability of a complete molecular modeling system. In addition, the Department has facilities and equipment for studies utilizing radioisotopes and cell/tissue cultures and for work in behavioral pharmacology. Located nearby is the Department of Chemistry, which houses the Wayne State University Chemistry Research Instrument Facility, including several mass spectrometers, with both GC and LC interfaces, NMRs and a DNA synthesizer. Researchers in the Department also have access to the services provided by the Macromolecular Core (for both sequencing and synthesis) and Flow Cytometry facilities in the School of Medicine.
The Learning Resources Center, located in Shapero Hall, maintains a library of major journals and books relevant to the Pharmaceutical Sciences. The Vera Parshall Shiffman Medical Library, whose collections include over 158,000 volumes and 2,500 journals, is located adjacent to the Detroit Medical Center. The WSU Science Library, containing over 315,000 volumes and receiving over 2,500 journals, is located nearby at WSU Main Campus.
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