Medicinal Chemistry (Ph.D.)
Establish yourself as a change agent. With your Ph.D. in Medicinal Chemistry from Duquesne University, you have the scientific expertise and research competencies to make a real-world impact.
Chart a New Path in the Pharmaceutical Sciences
Ready to make revolutionary breakthroughs in the pharmaceutical or biomedical industries? Earn your Ph.D. in Medicinal Chemistry from Duquesne University, located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Here, you advance your studies through an immersive graduate education grounded in hands-on learning, clinical research, and a supportive on-campus community.
In the Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences (GSPS), you are surrounded by students and faculty committed to discovery, hard work, and the pursuit of the common good. Whatever your long-term career goals, at Duquesne, you receive the professional development needed to thrive and share your knowledge with the world.
Program Information
Pursue groundbreaking research in drug design and development with our Ph.D. in Medicinal Chemistry program. Join our esteemed faculty and apply now!
Why Earn Your Doctorate in Medicinal Chemistry at Duquesne?
We designed our Ph.D. programs to take a holistic approach to education, ensuring you have what you need to excel in the classroom and the real world. Your coursework in the medicinal chemistry program blends traditional lectures, labs, and career-focused seminars to target all facets of your growth as a scientist. Whether you strengthen your scientific writing skills or improve your experiment design and data analysis capabilities, you test your knowledge through applied practice.
As a student in the medicinal chemistry doctoral program, you gain extensive research experience as you partner with a faculty advisor and embark on your dissertation journey. Guided by your academic and professional interests, your dissertation is a significant scholarship that offers a novel contribution to scientific and industry knowledge. No matter your dissertation topic, you build a well-developed skill set that empowers you to make innovative discoveries in drug development and help solidify your position as a pharmaceutical scientist leader.
Explore Duquesne’s academic research centers, where collaboration and discovery emerge.
You'll Be Prepared for Anything
What You’ll Learn
Push the boundaries of your expertise. To earn your Ph.D. in Medicinal Chemistry at Duquesne, you must complete a minimum of 60 post-baccalaureate credit hours, including:
- 48 credits of coursework. (This includes ten seminar credits.)
- 12 credits of dissertation research.
As a doctoral candidate, you embark on an academic journey that delivers an interdisciplinary education designed to transform your understanding of and engagement with the pharmaceutical sciences. Explore organic synthesis, drug design, and biochemical interactions and gain advanced analytical, problem-solving, and research techniques.
By combining hands-on laboratory experience with independent research, you develop pharmaceutical drug design and development expertise and make a lasting contribution to global health and well-being.
Learn more about the requirements for the Ph.D. in Medicinal Chemistry program.
Dissertation
Your time in the Ph.D. in Medicinal Chemistry program culminates in completing a dissertation. Under the supervision of your faculty advisor, you conduct original research to write a substantial piece of scholarship that contributes to the scientific community. Ultimately, your research should be worthy of publication within the pharmaceutical sciences and pharmacy administration fields. At the end of your program, you defend your dissertation to a committee composed of faculty members and discipline experts.
Curriculum
Have Questions About the Medicinal Chemistry Program?
Carl Anderson, PhD
Charlotte Brackett
Admissions Requirements
Want to jump-start your journey at Duquesne? Before applying to the Ph.D. in Medicinal Chemistry, carefully review the application requirements outlined below.
If you have earned an undergraduate or graduate degree in biology, chemistry, engineering, pharmacy, allied health sciences, the social and behavioral sciences, or business or other related fields, you are well-prepared to apply.
Please submit the following materials when applying to your chosen Ph.D. program:
- Official transcripts (credential evaluations required for international students)
- Résumé
- Personal statement
- Three letters of recommendation
- GMAT/GRE scores (optional)
- GRE Institution Code: 2196, Department Code: 0613
- TOEFL/IELTS scores (required for international students only)
- TOEFL Institution Code: 2196
Ph.D. Application Opening: July 1st
Primary Consideration Application Deadline: January 15th
Ph.D. Application Deadline: March 2nd
Applicants must apply by the deadline of the preferred starting semester to ensure sufficient time for evaluation and processing.
To learn more, review our detailed Ph.D. application information.
International Applicants
If your undergraduate and/or graduate degree(s) are from an institution located outside of the United States, you must use a transcript credential evaluation service to obtain a course-by-course report.
Please have the organization you order your transcripts through send official reports directly to Duquesne University. They will qualify as official transcripts. For more information, review our transcript credential evaluation Instructions.
Take the Next Step
Empower Yourself to Lead—Apply to the Ph.D. in Medicinal Chemistry Program
Medicinal Chemistry Faculty
Patrick Flaherty, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Aleem Gangjee, Ph.D.
Distinguished Professor
Marc Harrold, Ph.D.
Professor
David Lapinsky, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Kevin Tidgewell, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Accreditation
Accredited by the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE):
20 North Clark Street
Suite 2500
Chicago, IL 60602
312.664.3575