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Program Requirements for Molecular and Medical Pharmacology
Applicable only to students admitted during the 2017-2018 academic year.
Molecular and Medical Pharmacology
School of Medicine
Graduate Degrees
The Department of Molecular and Medical Pharmacology offers the Master of Science (M.S.) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degrees in Molecular and Medical Pharmacology.
Master’s Degree
Advising
A graduate adviser is assigned for new entering graduate students or students in their first year of study. Students must obtain approval from this adviser for enrollment in courses each quarter. The adviser also is available to discuss overall academic progress. By the beginning of the second year, students choose a faculty member to serve as adviser for their thesis research.
To obtain the M.S. degree, the student must formally request approval by the graduate training committee. If approved, a guidance committee, proposed by the student and approved by the graduate training committee, reviews the thesis. None of the research conducted for the M.S. thesis may be applied to a Ph.D. degree at a later time.
Areas of Study
Consult the department.
Foreign Language Requirement
None.
Course Requirements
The M.S. degree requires satisfactory completion of the required courses as listed under Course Requirements for the Doctoral Degree.
Required: Molecular and Medical Pharmacology 200 (three quarters), 237, 251 (must be taken every quarter during the first and second year) 291, and 292.
Recommended Electives: Molecular and Medical Pharmacology 211A-211B, M241, M248, M255, 288; Molecular Biology 298; a course in biostatistics.
Teaching Experience
Seminar presentations are required of all students in the graduate program. Students may participate as teaching assistants in undergraduate, medical, or graduate courses.
Field Experience
Not required.
Capstone Plan
None.
Thesis Plan
Every master’s degree thesis plan requires the completion of an approved thesis that demonstrates the student’s ability to perform original, independent research.
The M.S. degree requires satisfactory completion of a thesis.
Time-to-Degree
The time to final completion of the graduate program is expected to be six to nine quarters.
| DEGREE | NORMATIVE TIME TO ATC (Quarters) | NORMATIVE TTD |
MAXIMUM TTD |
| M.S. | 6 | 6 | 9 |
Doctoral Degree
Advising
A graduate adviser is assigned for new entering graduate students or students in their first year of study. Students must obtain approval from this adviser for enrollment in courses each quarter. The adviser also is available to discuss overall academic progress. By the beginning of the second year, students choose a faculty member to serve as adviser for their dissertation research.
From the second year onward, students are required to submit an annual progress report that summarizes the progress made toward the dissertation research in the preceding 12 months. The report should not exceed two single-spaced pages and should include the following headings: title of project, original aims, summary of results, problems and obstacles that impeded progress, future plans, and abstracts and publications. A signature from the student’s adviser is required on the report.
After advancement to candidacy and before the final oral examination, students are required to meet at least once annually with their doctoral committee. For this annual progress meeting, students are expected to give a presentation on their dissertation research. Students should be prepared to engage in a discussion with the committee members who will offer guidance on the progress and direction of the research project.
Major Fields or Subdisciplines
Animal models of disease; biochemistry; cardiovascular pharmacology; cell biology; chemical pharmacology; drug discovery; functional genomics; immunology; medical pharmacology; molecular imaging; molecular pharmacology; immuno-pharmacology; neuroendocrine pharmacology; neuropharmacology; psychopharmacology; nuclear medicine (positron emission tomography); pharmacokinetics; signal transduction; structural biology; systems biology; toxicology; and virology.
Foreign Language Requirement
None.
Course Requirements
Required: Molecular and Medical Pharmacology 200 (three quarters), 237, 251 (must be taken every quarter during first and second year), 291, 292.
Recommended Electives: Molecular and Medical Pharmacology 211A-211B, M241, M248, M255, 288; Molecular Biology 298; a course in biostatistics.
Students are required to maintain a grade-point average of 3.0 in all course work to be in good standing.
All required course work should be completed by the end of the sixth quarter.
The department provides a system of laboratory rotations (Molecular and Medical Pharmacology 200) in order to familiarize students with a variety of pharmacological research areas and techniques. During the first year in the department, students participate in projects of the laboratories of their choosing. Students also become familiar with the literature relevant to the various research projects and thus establish a basis for the selection of their own research areas.
Students must submit a report on their activities at the end of each quarter of Molecular and Medical Pharmacology 200 to research advisers. The report should include the nature of the project, how the student participated, the results obtained, and a critical evaluation of the project. A copy of this report and an evaluation form by the research adviser are submitted to the graduate training committee. A report on the student and the final grade are also submitted to the committee by the research adviser.
Examinations are given in all courses except seminars and research. These are in the form of written examinations, oral examinations, term papers, and/or laboratory practicals.
Teaching Experience
Seminar presentations to department faculty and students are required of all students in the graduate program at least once a year. One quarter as a teaching assistant is required.
Written and Oral Qualifying Examinations
Academic Senate regulations require all doctoral students to complete and pass university written and oral qualifying examinations prior to doctoral advancement to candidacy. Also, under Senate regulations, the University Oral Qualifying Examination is open only to the student and appointed members of the doctoral committee. In addition to university requirements, some graduate programs have other pre-candidacy examination requirements. What follows in this section is how students are required to fulfill all of these requirements for this doctoral program.
All committee nominations and reconstitutions adhere to the Minimum Standards for Doctoral Committee Constitution.
By December 1st of the third year, students are required to take and pass a written qualifying examination and the University Oral Qualifying Examination in order to advance to doctoral candidacy. The examinations are administered by the student’s doctoral committee, which must be appointed in advance by the Graduate Division. The examinations test for a rational, analytical approach to problem solving and for ability to integrate material learned in different courses. Students are required to know basic principles of pharmacology and the status of topics of current interest in pharmacology. Specifically, the written examination consists of submitting a written research proposal to the student’s doctoral committee, at least one week before the proposed date of the University Oral Qualifying Examination. The research proposal must be written according to the NIH grant application format (see Written Proposal Guidelines). The University Oral Qualifying Examination consists of defending the proposal to the doctoral committee.
Advancement to Candidacy
Students are advanced to candidacy upon successful completion of the written and oral qualifying examinations.
Doctoral Dissertation
Every doctoral degree program requires the completion of an approved dissertation that demonstrates the student’s ability to perform original, independent research and constitutes a distinct contribution to knowledge in the principal field of study.
Final Oral Examination (Defense of Dissertation)
Not required for all students in the program. The decision as to whether a defense is required is made by the doctoral committee.
Time-to-Degree
(1) Students must select an adviser by the beginning of the second academic year.
(2) Students must complete all course requirements by December 20th of the third academic year.
(3) Students must take the written and oral qualifying examinations and pass by December 1st of the third academic year.
(4) The time to final completion of the graduate program is expected to be 15 quarters.
| DEGREE | NORMATIVE TIME TO ATC (Quarters) | NORMATIVE TTD |
MAXIMUM TTD |
| Ph.D. | 7 | 15 | 21 |
Termination of Graduate Study and Appeal of Termination
University Policy
A student who fails to meet the above requirements may be recommended for termination of graduate study. A graduate student may be disqualified from continuing in the graduate program for a variety of reasons. The most common is failure to maintain the minimum cumulative grade point average (3.00) required by the Academic Senate to remain in good standing (some programs require a higher grade point average). Other examples include failure of examinations, lack of timely progress toward the degree and poor performance in core courses. Probationary students (those with cumulative grade point averages below 3.00) are subject to immediate dismissal upon the recommendation of their department. University guidelines governing termination of graduate students, including the appeal procedure, are outlined in Standards and Procedures for Graduate Study at UCLA.
Special Departmental or Program Policy
A student’s progress is evaluated on performance in course work and on the qualifying examinations. A total of three grades below B in any of the required courses results in recommendation to the graduate dean for dismissal. Performance on the examinations is graded Pass, Fail and Deferral. Deferral means that a student is asked to repeat some part or all of the examination. All deferrals must be completed by December 20th of the third academic year. If a student receives a Fail, the student may appeal the decision in writing to either the Graduate Training Committee or the departmental chair. The written appeal is reviewed by either the Graduate Training Committee or an ad hoc committee within the department.