Admission Requirements

• Master of Science and Doctor of Philosophy

Degree Requirements

• Master of Science
• Doctor of Philosophy

Mailing Address:
Pharmacognosy Program (MC 781)
College of Pharmacy
833 South Wood Street
Chicago, IL 60612-7231

Campus Location: 539 PHARM
Program Codes: 20FS1563MS (MS); 20FS1563PHD (PhD)
Telephone: (312) 996-7253
E-mail: Pharmacognosy@uic.edu
Web Site: http://pcog.pharm.uic.edu
Director of the Program: Norman R. Farnsworth
Director of Graduate Studies: Guido Fa. Pauli

The Department of Medicinal Chemistry and Pharmacognosy offers a program of study leading to degrees in Pharmacognosy at both the master’s and doctoral levels. Major research areas concern the isolation, structure elucidation, and bioassay of natural products, including plant and microbial constituents having biological activity, the use and conservation of plants employed in traditional medicine, the fundamental mechanisms of biological activity of potential drugs and their targets both in vitro and in vivo, structure and function of cellular enzymes, microbial genomics, and rational drug design. Pharmacognosy participates in a joint PharmD/PhD program; see the Joint PharmD/PhD section of the catalog for more information. The Department of Medicinal Chemistry and Pharmacognosy also offers work leading to graduate degrees in Medicinal Chemistry; consult the Medicinal Chemistry section of the catalog for more information.

Admission Requirements

Applicants are considered on an individual basis. In addition to the Graduate College minimum requirements, applicants must meet the following program requirements:

Master of Science and Doctor of Philosophy

• Baccalaureate Field Chemistry or the biological sciences. Prior academic work should include a year each of biology and/or biochemistry, and organic chemistry.
• Grade Point Average At least 3.00/4.00 for the final 60 semester (90 quarter) hours of undergraduate study.
• Tests Required GRE General.
• Minimum English Competency Test Score
  • TOEFL 550 (paper-based); 213 (computer-based); 80, with subscores of Reading 19, Listening 17, Speaking 20, and Writing 21 (iBT Internet-based), OR,
  • IELTS 6.5, with subscores of 6.0 for all four subscores.
• Letters of Recommendation Three required.
• Personal Statement Required.
• Other Requirements PhD applicants strongly preferred.

Degree Requirements

In addition to the Graduate College minimum requirements, students must meet the following program requirements:

Master of Science

• Minimum Semester Hours Required 32.
• Course Work At least 16 hours must be in didactic courses.
• Required Courses: PMPG 480, 510, and one hour of 595.
• Comprehensive Examination None.
• Thesis, Project, or Course-Work-Only Options Thesis required. No other options are available.
• Other Requirements Candidates must assist in one or more of the courses offered by the college or the department.

Doctor of Philosophy

• Minimum Semester Hours Required 96 from the baccalaureate.
• Course Work At least 26 semester hours must be in didactic courses.
• Required Courses: PMPG 507 and two hours of PMPG 595. Students must select one of four concentrations: Natural Product Drug Discovery, Medical Ethnobotany, Biomedical and Molecular Toxicology, or Pharmaceutical Biotechnology.
• Concentration-Specific Required Courses:
  • Natural Product Drug Discovery—PMPG 510, 511, 515, 516, 521, 590, and 592.
  • Medical Ethnobotany—EPID 410; PMPG 511, 517, 518, 520, 590, and 592.
  • Biomedical and Molecular Toxicology—GCLS 501; PCOL 430, 508; PMPG 590, 592.
  • Pharmaceutical Biotechnology—GCLS 501, 502, 504/505; PMPG 522, 523.
• Electives:
  • Natural Product Drug Discovery—Minimum of 10 hours, selected in consultation with the student’s advisor. Suggested electives are: EPID 410; GCLS 501; MDCH 562, 573; NURS 525; PMPG 517, 518, 520, 521, 540, 565, 569.
  • Medical Ethnobotany—Minimum of 10 hours, selected in consultation with the student’s advisor. Suggested electives are ANTH 415, 594; BIOS 539, 594; CHSC 450, 554; PMPG 511, 518, 521, 534, 565, 569.
  • Biomedical and Molecular Toxicology—Minimum of 11 hours, selected in consultation with the student’s advisor. Suggested electives are GCLS 504, 505, 515, 521; MDCH 412, 561, 562, 571, and 594; NURS 525; PMPD 565.
  • Pharmaceutical Biotechnology—Minimum of 10 hours, selected in consultation with the student’s advisor. Suggested electives are BIOS 524, 525; GCLS 503, 515, 521; BCMG 513, 514; MDCH 412, 562, 564.
• Examinations Departmental Qualifying Examination: Not required.
• Preliminary Examination: Required; written and oral. Passing this examination permits doctoral students to bypass the formal requirement of writing a master’s thesis.
• Dissertation Required; including oral defense.
• Other Requirements Candidates must assist in one or more of the courses offered by the college or the department.