Research track for PharmD students
Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) students may choose to pursue the School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences research track.
This optional track enables second-year PharmD students to work alongside outstanding faculty within the school’s Pharmaceutical Sciences and Pharmacy Practice departments, and potentially in other scientific research settings.
Students who meet eligibility criteria and are selected for the track will complete a course on research methodology in addition to their required PharmD courses, and will begin to work actively on their research projects in the third year of the program.
Students who earn their Doctor of Pharmacy degree with this focused research track will be able to perform as clinical pharmacists and participate in related translational science.
I’m getting the opportunity to take what I learned in oncology and connect it to my research project. The way the cells grow, the drugs we use, and how we interpret what works and what doesn’t makes a lot more sense when you are actually dealing with everything on the cellular level, rather than just being told what drugs are used for.
Kush Grover, Class of 2021
In addition to completing the required clinical Advance Pharmacy Practice Experiences (APPEs) and one elective clinical APPE in the final year of the PharmD program, students in this track will advance their research project work in an elective research APPE. Research track students will then complete and report their research projects as their capstone experience.
Start talking with your professors early and often! The key to a successful journey through the research track is finding a mentor who both matches your passion for a subject matter and your drive to be successful. This relationship will endure both successes and failures (read: moments from which you will learn), but will ultimately help you toward your longer term goals.
Liz Laughlin, Class of 2021
