Doctor of Philosophy in Pharmaceutical Sciences

The Pharmaceutical Sciences doctoral degree program at the University of Houston College of Pharmacy offers a learning and research environment that combines the collaborative opportunities of the Texas Medical Center's world-class healthcare and scientific community with the academic resources and award-winning faculty at Houston's only Carnegie Institute-designated Tier One public research university.

Pharmaceutical Sciences research emphases in the pharmaceutics area include drug formulation and delivery, drug absorption, metabolism, elimination, and toxicity, and pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of anti-cancer, anti-AIDS and anti-microbial drugs.

Applicants to the Ph.D. program Concentrations in Pharmacology, Medicinal Chemistry and Pharmaceutics must have, or nearly have, at least a Bachelor s degree in pharmacy, biology, biochemistry, chemistry or a related discipline. In addition, applicants to the Pharmacology Concentration must have taken at least 3-credit hour course in human physiology and at least one 3-credit hour course in biochemistry. A minimum undergraduate (and graduate, if applicable) GPA of 3.0 on a 4-point scale is required. The average GPA of students admitted in 2018 and 2019 was 3.6.

Applicants to the Ph.D. program's Pharmaceutical Health Outcomes and Policy Concentration must have either completed or expect to complete a B.S. degree in a similar area with an overall GPA of 3.0 on a 4-point scale. The average GPA of students admitted in 2018 and 2019 was 3.6.

English Language Proficiency Requirements

TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language)

The minimum TOEFL score required is 79 for the internet-based test. The minimum TOEFL score for the paper-based exam is 550.

IELTS (International English Language Testing Service)

The minimum IELTS score required is an overall score of a 6.5.