Pharmacology and Toxicology
Pharmacology and Toxicology are biomedical sciences that explore the effects of chemicals on biological systems. Pharmacology focuses on the desirable or therapeutic effects of drugs and other chemicals while toxicology examines their adverse effects and how to improve them. Both sciences examine the mechanisms by which chemicals exert their beneficial or harmful effects.
Admission Information
- Apply to the Life Sciences admission category on the St. George campus
- Six Grade 12 U or M courses, including English and Calculus and Vectors are required
- Senior high school credits in Biology and Chemistry are required for first-year courses
- Senior high school Physics is recommended preparation
- Students outside of Ontario should have the equivalent senior high school credits
Honours Bachelor of Science Programs
- Pharmacology and Biomedical Toxicology (specialist)
- Pharmacology (specialist and major options)
- Biomedical Toxicology (specialist and major options)
- Environment and Toxicology (specialist)
First-Year Courses
- PCL 102H1 - The Art of Drug Discovery
- Please note that the foundation course for the specialist and major programs in pharmacology and toxicology is PCL 201H - Introduction to Pharmacology and Pharmacokinetic Principles, which is offered at the second-year level.
Advice for First Year
PCL 102H1 is designed to introduce students to the real world of drug discovery. It focuses on current and emerging approaches for the rational design of drugs and the modern toxicological techniques that examine their safety. PCL 102H is a science course that is open to all students. It can be used by non-science students toward their science distribution (breadth) requirement and is not required for admission to programs in pharmacology or toxicology.
Students who are interested in studying pharmacology and/or toxicology should take biology (BIO120H -- Adaptation and Biodiversity and BIO130H -- Molecular and Cell Biology), chemistry (CHM 138H -- Introductory Organic Chemistry I and CHM 139H1 -- Chemistry: Physical Principles (two half-courses) or CHM 151Y1 – Chemistry: The Molecular Science).
Students wishing to enrol in the Specialist programs must additionally complete courses in math (MAT 131H1/132H1 or MAT 135Y1 – Calculus I), and physics (PHY 131H1 and PHY 132H1 – Introduction to Physics, or PHY 151H1 and PHY 152H1 – Foundations of Physics).
Careers
Qualified pharmacologists are usually in demand by the pharmaceutical industry, universities, large hospitals, and government agencies, both within Canada and abroad. Students often continue their studies at the graduate level (MSc or PhD) if they are interested in research or teaching at universities and colleges.
Direct career options include:
| Biochemist | Medical lab technician |
| Biological technician | Microbiologist |
| Chemotherapist | Pharmacy technician |
| Clinical chemist | Research assistant |
| Forensic specialist | Scientist |
| Laboratory technician | Toxicologist |
Pharmacology/Toxicology/Pharmaceutical Chemistry Internship
The Pharmacology/Toxicology/Pharmaceutical Chemistry (PTP) Internship program is associated with U of T’s Professional Experience Year Office. The program provides students an opportunity to apply the knowledge they have acquired in the first three years of their university training to a business/government environment during a 12-16 month project-based professional placement.
Students accepted into the Internship program have an excellent academic record with a minimum 3.0 CGPA (B average) following their 3rd year of study and be well-rounded individuals with a variety of non-academic interests, excellent social skills and a high degree of motivation.
