Curriculum

Oregon State’s online master’s in pharmaceutical sciences emphasizes basic and applied research in drug delivery and targeting, medicinal and computational chemistry, pharmaceutics, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, immunology, and molecular and cell biology. This is a non-thesis master’s degree that does not require traditional lab work. Additionally, you'll gain a deeper understanding of how regulatory agencies and organizations intersect within the legal and regulatory processes of drug development.

Learn more about this program's curriculum and view sample program schedules on the College of Pharmacy’s website.

Licensure information

A degree from this program does not lead to licensure as a pharmacist and is not a direct pathway to a pharmacist degree (Pharm.D.). To learn about Oregon State’s in-person Pharm.D. program, please visit the College of Pharmacy website.

Degree requirements

A total of 45 quarter credits are required to graduate with your master’s degree in Pharmaceutical Sciences. Degree requirements and curriculum information are available on Oregon State's academic catalog.

Sample course topics

• Biochemistry
• Natural products chemistry
• Drug formulation
• Manipulating the human genome
• Pharmacokinetics in drug development
• Nanomedicine and nanotherapeutics
• Immunology and biological drug development
• Cancer biology and therapeutics
• Vaccines and vaccine development

Complete a capstone project

Your capstone project will give you hands-on experience in reading, analyzing, interpreting and presenting pharmaceutical science data. The project will also demonstrate your ability to interpret research literature and present scientific information, which is very important to prospective employers. Once you are enrolled in the capstone course, a faculty mentor will be assigned to you and will support you throughout your project. They will also help you workshop and develop your résumé, so you can transition smoothly into a career upon graduation.