Dec 10, 2024  
2021-2022 Graduate Bulletin 
    
2021-2022 Graduate Bulletin [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Toxicology and Cancer Biology, PhD


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The Department of Toxicology and Cancer Biology is a multidisciplinary unit for research, graduate education, and professional training in the broad areas of Toxicology and Cancer Biology. The program was founded in 1969 in the Graduate School, as one of nation’s first Ph.D. programs in Toxicology and moved to College of Medicine (COM) in 2004. Our education mission is to provide students with an education in Toxicology and Cancer Biology that is based on an understanding of biochemistry, physiology, molecular/cell biology, genetics and metabolism, coupled with in-depth research experience on the mechanisms by which specific agents induce toxicity, and/or the basic cellular processes upon which environmental agents impact to cause disease. In addition, the department provides the only Master of Forensic Toxicology and Analytical Genetics (or degree of comparable nature) in the state and it is only the fifth such professional master’s degree in the field of forensics in the nation.  

The department is housed in the Health Sciences Research Building in the Medical Center within easy walking distance of all major research units and colleges. Excellent research support facilities are available, including transgenic mouse, macromolecular structure, mass spectrometry, nuclear magnetic resonance, proteomics, genomics, and metabolomics. 

Our department consists of tenured/tenure track Core Faculty with a primary appointment in Toxicology and Cancer Biology, and is enhanced by faculty who have Joint Appointments in the department, but whose primary appointments are in Departments and Colleges across the University. The Department of Toxicology and Cancer Biology has graduated more than 150 PhDs in Toxicology who have gone on to careers in academia, government, such as the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and in the pharmaceutical and chemical industry. The department maintains a robust extramurally supported training environment, including an NIEHS T32 training grant for doctoral students in toxicology, which has been continuously funded since 1990 and has been renewed for funding until 2021.  

The Ph.D. program in Toxicology is ranked in the top quartile in the National Research Council survey of doctoral programs in Toxicology. For more information on the Ph.D. program, please visit https://toxicology.med.uky.edu/graduate-program 

 

Admission Requirements 

Applicants must meet the following requirements for admission to the University of Kentucky Graduate School and the Toxicology and Cancer Biology program.  

  • An appropriate degree (e.g., Chemistry, Biological Sciences) from an accredited college or university. 

  • A minimum grade point average of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale.  

  • A Graduate Record Examination (GRE) score is not required.  

  • For international applicants, the minimum acceptable TOFEL score is 550 (paper-based), 213 (computer-based), or 79 (internet-based). The minimum IELTS score is 6.5.  

More information on how to apply can be found here https://toxicology.med.uky.edu/graduate-program 

 

Degree Requirements  

The Ph.D. degree has no formal course requirements. 

A proposed curriculum, prepared by the Chair of Advisory Committee (i.e., the student’s mentor) in consultation with the student, should be approved by the student’s Advisory Committee by December 15 in the students’ second year of study.

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