We are a leader in therapeutic innovation, pharmaceutical education, and clinical pharmacy. Driven by scientific curiosity and an entrepreneurial spirit, our vibrant community of faculty, staff, scholars, and learners are united behind our mission to expand knowledge and improve the health of people everywhere.
No. 1
For 46 consecutive years, our school has led the nation in competitive funding that drives research discoveries.
64
37%
California’s trailblazing spirit is embodied in our students who are the first in their families to earn a college degree.
Our academic programming across PharmD, Master’s, PhD, and postdoctoral education prepares you to become innovative leaders in pharmacy, precision medicine, and science. Join our school’s community of critical thinkers and help shape health care.
The UCSF doctor of pharmacy (PharmD) degree curriculum is a science-based, integrated, experiential course of study that prepares ambitious minds for diverse and dynamic careers in pharmacy and beyond.
Our Master of Science in Artificial Intelligence and Computational Drug Discovery and Development program trains students to apply computer science, data science, statistical analysis, machine learning, and other data-driven methods to redefine the discovery and development of new drugs and therapies. This program is offered with the Graduate Division.
We administer five PhD degree programs, all of which promote an interdisciplinary approach to science and education. The programs are delivered by faculty members in the School of Pharmacy and the School of Medicine. All are offered by the Graduate Division.
Our postdoctoral programs are pharmacy residencies, fellowships, and postdoctoral research. We also offer career-development courses in medical product development, pharmacokinetics, and tobacco cessation.
Research
Our school is comprised of three departments and the Quantitative Biosciences Institute that work together to advance health.
Exploring the complex processes of biology and applying what we learn to the development and rational use of therapeutics to improve health.
Advancing the safe and effective use of therapeutics to improve health.
Exploring fundamental biological mechanisms and molecules of therapeutic relevance for better health, empowered by novel technologies at the interface of chemistry, physics, and computational sciences.
Fostering collaborations across the biomedical and the physical sciences while seeking quantitative methods to address pressing problems in biology and biomedicine.
At the UCSF School of Pharmacy’s annual Vaccinate the Dean event, Dean Kathy Giacomini, PhD, BSPharm, rolled up her sleeve to receive her flu vaccine from a student pharmacist — a tradition that puts the profession’s role in protecting community health into practice.
Balyn Zaro, PhD, an associate professor in the Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, is one of four UCSF faculty members named to the 2026 class of NIH New Innovators, part of the NIH Common Fund’s High-Risk, High-Reward Research program.
Steven Parella, PharmD ’19, is a clinical pain pharmacist with Kaiser Permanente in Roseville, CA. He manages the Opioid Safety Tapering Program, conducting telephone consultations with patients taking high-dose opioids and gradually tapering their medications while introducing non-opioid treatments for additional pain relief. He also provides coverage for a hospice clinic one day a week.
