Retention, Time-to-Degree, and Career Outcomes
Of the 61 appointees to the Biomolecular Pharmacology Training Grant in the last 15 years, 87 percent earned the Ph.D. degree (7 percent completed with an M.A. degree). The average time-to-degree has been 5.2 years for the 20 most recent graduates enrolled since September 2007. The current professional positions of graduates in the last 15 years reflect the diversity of opportunities available for Ph.D.s with expertise in pharmacology. Thirteen graduates are employed in 11 pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies of varying sizes, from Pfizer (the world’s largest), Abbvie (a spinoff of Abbott Research Laboratories), and a variety of start-up companies. Graduates are also engaged in research within academic programs, including UPenn, Iowa State University, UCLA, University of Illinois, Harvard Medical School/Boston VA, Scripps Research Institute (Fla.), Brigham and Women’s Hospital (Boston), Kavli Institute (Norway), and BU. Among the MD/PhD graduates several are pursuing medical research, one at UCLA and another at UCSF. Other graduates are employed as: a reviewer at the FDA, medical writer, undergraduate biology professor, Program Manager at Jackson Laboratories, Senior Scientist at Abbvie, and ASPET Washington Fellow. Six graduates work in consulting firms, and several have positions as clinical trial coordinators.
For the most timely information regarding our program statistics please go to PhD Profiles.
There are three points of entry into the Biomolecular Pharmacology training program: PhD in Pharmacology, PhD in Biomedical Engineering, and PhD in Neuroscience.