UC Irvine’s PhD in Pharmacological Sciences program provides a unique opportunity for those interested in any scientific discipline represented by the Pharmaceutical Sciences faculty to have a year of broad, interdisciplinary training and extensive lab rotations followed by focused doctoral research in the Pharmaceutical Sciences research group of their choice.

Students can choose from one of three tracks within the program: Pharmaceutical Sciences, Pharmacology or Medicinal Chemistry.

The current areas of study in the Pharmaceutical Sciences Department include:

• Structural and chemical biology
• Medicinal chemistry
• Structure-based drug design
• Molecular neuropharmacology
• Pharmacology of aging
• Molecular evolution
• Synthetic biology
• Natural product biosynthesis and synthase engineering
• Cancer prevention and therapy
• Gene regulation and intercellular signaling
• Computational biology and bioinformatics
• Nanomedicine for targeted drug and gene delivery

For more information, please visit our website. 

Prerequisites

• An M.S. degree is not required for consideration. However, research experience (laboratory or fieldwork) is a primary criterion for acceptance into our graduate programs.
• Some biology and chemistry courses are required. However, because we are an interdisciplinary program, we admit students from various academic backgrounds, so there are no specific course requirements. Applicants recently admitted to our program have undergraduate degrees in a wide range of disciplines, including molecular biology, psychology, and chemical engineering, as well as chemistry and biology.
• Minimum cumulative undergraduate GPA of 3.0
• No GRE required.

Application Instructions

Complete the online application, which is submitted to the UCI Graduate Division.  When completing the "Degree Program" section of the online application, please make the following selections:

• School/Department: Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences
• Major/Degree: Pharmacological Sciences-PhD

Students are admitted to the Pharmacological Sciences PhD program on an annual basis in the fall quarter only.  The admissions committee screens applications immediately after the application deadline.  First round applicants selected to interview will be notified by early January.  Admitted applicants can expect to receive an offer of admission from late January through mid-March.

Submit applications by the December 1 deadline.

The online application and supporting materials should be received by December 1.  If you have any questions or concerns, please email pharmsci-grad@uci.edu.

Applicants are required to submit:

• An official online application including the application fee. 
• For application review purposes only, scan and upload copies of transcripts for all institutions attended since high school. In the online application, you will be prompted to upload your scanned documents. Please upload both the front and back sides of the transcript. Uploaded transcripts should be recent and include the following: your name, dates of attendance, grades/marks received, credits and grading legend. Official transcripts will be requested by the Graduate Division if and when you are admitted and decide to attend UCI. Do not send official transcripts until this time.
• A Statement of Purpose – must include your specific research interest(s) and three possible research advisors you would be interested in working with. You can describe your research interests, career goals, and other related information.
• A Personal History Statement – this can discuss how your personal background– including any relevant educational, familial, cultural, economic, or social experiences, challenges or opportunities– informs your decision to pursue a PhD in Pharmacological Sciences. If you have overcome socioeconomic or educational challenges, please indicate that you are a diversity candidate and describe your experience in detail. 
• Three letters of recommendation – uploaded to the online application by your recommender.
• UCI no longer requires the GRE.
• International students are also required to submit TOEFL or IELTS scores (Code: 4859)

Applicants are encouraged to upload the following in their application:

• Current curriculum vitae or resume
• List of publications

All graduate applicants are required to demonstrate English proficiency for admissions consideration.  Applicants are waived from the English Language Proficiency requirement if they have earned an undergraduate degree from an institution at which English was the sole language of instruction according to the World Higher Education Database (WHED).  For more information, please visit the Graduate Division's site on the minimum requirements for admission.

Additional information about admissions to the Pharmacological Sciences PhD program can be found on the School website. 

International Applicants

If English is not the sole language of instruction listed or if no language is listed at all, the above-described waiver does not apply and the applicant is required to take and pass an approved English proficiency test.  Approved tests and minimum scores are outlined in the next section.  

IMPORTANT NOTE: If a student will be supported as a Teaching Assistant (TA), please read the English proficiency requirement policy for Teaching Assistantships. Students who have not earned an undergraduate degree from an institution at which English was the sole language of instruction according to WHED are required to demonstrate English language proficiency to serve as a TA when they apply to the program.  Students in the Pharmacological PhD program are generally required to TA, and therefore must meet the language proficiency requirements to TA.

TOEFL

The TOEFL is administered by the Educational Testing Service (ETS).

• Please select institution code 4859 to have your official score sent to UCI. No department code is needed.
• We only accept scores submitted electronically by ETS.
• Test results that are two years old or older are not acceptable.
• We do not accept MyBest scores; you must submit all individual test scores.
• Results of institutional (non-ETS) administrations of the TOEFL are not acceptable.
• We will accept the TOEFL iBT Special Home Edition test.  The same minimum score applies.
• We do NOT accept the TOEFL ITP Plus test for China or the TOEFL Essentials test.
• For more information, please visit their website at www.ets.org/toefl

TOEFL Score Requirements for Admission Consideration:

• An overall minimum score of 80 

IELTS

As an alternative to the TOEFL, you may submit scores from the Academic Modules of the International English Language Testing System (IELTS).

• We only accept scores submitted electronically by the IELTS test center. No paper Test Report Forms will be accepted.
• Test results that are two years old or older are not acceptable.
• We will accept the IELTS Indicator test.  The same minimum score applies.
• An institutional code is NOT required. Please contact the test center directly where you took the IELTS test and request that your test scores be sent electronically using the IELTS system. All IELTS test centers worldwide are able to send scores electronically to our institution. 
• For more information, please visit their website at www.ielts.org

IELTS Score Requirements for Admission Consideration:

• An overall minimum score of 7 for admission, with a score of no less than 6 on any individual module.

Information regarding visas, student employment, and any other services to help international students transition into life at UCI is overseen by the UCI International Center.

Please note: TOEFL and IELTS test results that are two years old or older will not be accepted.

Course Requirements

Comprehensive Exam

Advancement to Candidacy

Dissertation

Final Examination