The coursework requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy Degree in Medicinal Chemistry place a strong emphasis on organic and medicinal chemistry with flexibility for additional emphasis in various aspects of biochemistry, pharmacology, or other aspects of the biological sciences. The curriculum below represents the minimal program of required courses.
Students enter the medicinal chemistry Ph.D. program with a variety of undergraduate backgrounds. All graduate students must present evidence of credit in the following foundation courses. Ideally these courses will have been taken prior to entering the graduate program; if not they must be taken as early in the graduate program as practicable.
| Organic Chemistry with Lab | 2 semesters | CHEM 624, 625, 626, 627 |
| Physical Chemistry | 1 semester | CHEM 640 or 646 |
| Mammalian Physiology | 1 semester | BIOL 646 |
| Biochemistry | 1 semester | * see note below |
At the end of the first semester, continuance in the program is dependent upon satisfactory academic program progress.
| MDCM 721 | 1 cr | Introduction to Medicinal Chemistry | Fall Year 1 |
| MDCM 722 | 3 cr | Principles of Medicinal Chemistry | Fall Year 1 |
| MDCM 777 | 2 cr | Advanced Laboratory Techniques | Summer Year 1 |
| MDCM 790 | 3 cr | Principles of Drug Design* | Spring Year 1 or 2 |
| MDCM 799 | 1 cr | Seminar (Literature-based) | Fall Year 2 |
| MDCM 799 | 1 cr | Seminar (Research-based) | Spring Year 3 |
| MDCM 895 | var. | Research in Medicinal Chemistry | Fall and Spring Year 1 |
| MDCM 980 | 1 cr | Original Research Proposal | After cumulative exams |
| MDCM 999 | var. | Doctoral Dissertation | Summer Year 1 until graduation |
Effective Fall 2006 there are two options for core courses in the graduate program in medicinal chemistry, regarding which courses are taken outside the medicinal chemistry department. The two options for core courses outside the Medicinal Chemistry department are:
Track 1: Organic Chemistry (organic chemistry track).
Track 2: Biochemistry (biochemistry track).
| CHEM 740 | 3 cr | Principles of Organic Reactions | Fall Year 1 |
| CHEM 742 | 3 cr | Physical Organic Chemistry I | Spring Year 1 |
| CHEM 763 | 3 cr | Organic Synthesis I | Spring Year 1 |
| CHEM 766 | 3 cr | Spectroscopic Identification of Organic Compounds | Summer Year 1 |
| CHEM 740 | 3 cr | Principles of Organic Reactions | Fall Year 1 |
| BIOL 750 | 3 cr | Advanced Biochemistry | Fall Year 2* |
| BIOL 752 | 3 cr | Cellular Biology | Fall Year 2* |
| BIOL 918 | 4 cr | Modern Biochemical and Biophysical Methods | Spring Year 1* |
| MDCM 775 | 3 cr | Chemistry of the Nervous System |
| MDCM 785 | 2 cr | Natural Products of Medicinal Significance |
| MDCM 860 | 2 cr | Drug Metabolism |
| MDCM 950 | 2 cr | Advanced Topics in (subject varies) |
| MDCM 952 | 2 cr | Introduction to Molecular Modeling |
| CHEM 963 | 3 cr | Organic Synthesis II |
Required courses from the other track can also be counted by students as electives (i.e., students in the organic chemistry track can count BIOL 750, 752 or 918 as electives and students in the biochemistry track can count CHEM 742, 763 or 766 as electives).
Scheduling of Courses in the Ph.D. Curriculum (courses in parenthesis are prerequisites or alternatives)
| Course Abbreviation | Name | Credit |
| MDCM 721 | Intro Med Chem | 1 |
| MDCM 722 | Principles Med Chem | 3 |
| CHEM 740 | Org Reactions | 3 |
| MDCM 895 | Research | 2 |
| MDCM 701 | TBA | 3 (if required) |
| CHEM 646 or 640 | PChem I | 4 (if required) |
| TOTAL | ≥9 |
*A one-semester survey course in biochemistry is acceptable if the student received a grade of B or better in the course OR if the student scores a passing grade (70 or better) on the ACS Biochemistry placement exam given to entering graduate students in the fall (one try only will be allowed). If neither of these applies, the student will take one semester of biochemistry through the Department of Medicinal Chemistry (MDCM 701).
| Organic Track | Biochemistry Track | ||||
| Spring Year 1 | (2nd Semester) | ||||
| Course Abbr. | Name | Credit | Course Abbr. | Name | Credit |
| CHEM 742 | Phys. Org. 1 | 3 | BIOL 918* | Modern Biochemistry Methods | 4 (if offered) |
| CHEM 763 | Organic Synthesis | 3 | and/or BIOL 750 | Advanced Biochemistry | 3 |
| MDCM 790 | Drug Design | 3 | MDCM 790 | Drug Design | 3 |
| MDCM 895 | Research | 1 | MDCM 895 | Research | 1-2 |
| BIOL 646 | Mamm. Phys. (if required) | 4 | BIOL 646 | Mamm. Phys. (if required) | 4 |
| Bibliography of Med. Chem. (Workshop formatted) | Bibliography of Med. Chem. (Workshop formatted) | ||||
| TOTAL | ≥9 | TOTAL | ≥9 |
| Summer Year 1 | |||||
| Course Abbr. | Name | Credit | Course Abbr. | Name | Credit |
| MDCM 777 | Advanced Lab Tech. | 2 | MDCM 777 | Advanced Lab Tech. | 2 |
| CHEM 766 | Spectroscopy | 3 | MDCM 999 | Doctoral Dissertation | 4 |
| MDCM 999 | Doctoral Dissertation | 1 | |||
| TOTAL | ≥6 | TOTAL | ≥6 |
| Fall Year 2 | (3rd Semester) | ||||
| Course Abbr. | Name | Credit | Course Abbr. | Name | Credit |
| MDCM 799 | Literature Seminar | 1 | BIOL 750 | Advanced Biochemistry | 3 |
| Electives | 2-3 | and/or BIOL 915 | Modern Biochemistry Methods | 4 (if offered) | |
| MDCM 999 | Doctoral Dissertation | 2-6 | BIOL 752 | Cell Biology | 3 |
| TOTAL | ≥9 | MDCM 799 | Literature Seminar | 1 | |
| MDCM 999 | Doctoral Dissertation | 1-2 | |||
| Electives | 2-3 | ||||
| TOTAL | ≥9 |
| Spring Year 2 | (4th Semester) | |
| Course Abbr. | Name | Credit |
| Electives | 2-3 | |
| MDCM 999 | Doctoral Dissertation | 1-8 |
| TOTAL | ≥9 |
| Year 3 | ||
| Course Abbr. | Name | Credit |
| MDCM 799 | Research Seminar | 1 (Spring) |
| Electives | 2-3 | |
| MDCM 999 | Doctoral Dissertation | 5-8 (each semester) |
| TOTAL | ≥9 |
| Subsequent Semesters | ||
| Course Abbr. | Name | Credit |
| MDCM 980 | Original Research Proposal | 1 (once after research proposal completed) |
| MDCM 999 | Doctoral Dissertation | 9 (each semester) or 6 (each summer term)* |
Minimum enrollment for the Fall and Spring semesters is 9 credit hours each, with a minimum of 6 hours being required in the summer. It is emphasized that these are minimum enrollment figures. Students are expected to take all courses stated in the departmental curriculum even if that means taking more than the minimum hours a given term. In particular each student must be continuously enrolled in at least 1 hour of thesis or dissertation research each term (MDCM 895 or 999), regardless of other coursework, throughout their tenure in the graduate program.
Tuition of up to 9 credits per semester (6 credits in the summer) will be paid through the department (typically from grant funds). Students are encouraged to check with their faculty advisor to ensure that this has been arranged and have the ultimate responsibility for making sure that they are properly enrolled. Tuition payments will be made for a maximum of five years of support (10 semesters, 5 summers) – NO EXCEPTIONS.
Students in the Ph.D. track need to present one literature seminar (in their third semester with the topic to be provided by the faculty) and one research seminar on their research progress (usually in the fifth or sixth semester).
A series of eight monthly written cumulative examinations per year is used to monitor students’ knowledge of medicinal and organic chemistry. Effective Fall 2007, cumulative examinations will be written by two faculty, half by an organic chemistry oriented faculty and half by a biochemistry oriented faculty, and will consist of four questions. A student must pass at least 24 questions, of which at least 6 must be in the other area of concentration (i.e., students focusing on biochemistry must pass at least 6 organic chemistry oriented questions and students focusing on organic chemistry must pass at least 6 biochemistry oriented questions). Doctoral students must begin taking these exams in the first semester of their second year.
After the satisfactory completion of the cumulative examinations and most of the other requirements, an oral comprehensive examination is conducted.
Then the student prepares an original research proposal for evaluation by the faculty. These proposals have often served as the basis for successful postdoctoral fellowship applications submitted to outside agencies such as the National Institutes of Health, and the nucleus of an independent research program for those choosing an academic career.
The final requirements for the Ph.D. degree are the preparation and defense of a dissertation based upon the original laboratory research conducted by the student. Normally, the program can be completed in four to five years after completing the B.S. degree.
A non-thesis M.S. degree is automatically awarded to students after the successful completion of their oral comprehensive examination. In certain circumstances, an M.S. degree involving the preparation and defense of an original thesis can be offered. In general, all students should apply for admission to the Ph.D. program.
