Message from the Chair

Welcome to "BMED," the Department of Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Sciences.  Our department is housed within the Skaggs School of Pharmacy on The University of Montana campus in the beautiful Rocky Mountain community of Missoula.  Given its curricular mission in the basic health sciences for the Pharm.D. degree in Pharmacy and the lack of a medical school in Montana, it is not surprising that BMED has grown to become a leading site for biomedical research on campus, as well as across Montana.  Research interests of our faculty are truly multidisciplinary, with strengths in Molecular Pharmacology, Toxicology, Neuroscience and Medicinal Chemistry.  Indeed, the SkaggsSchool of Pharmacy has ranked among the top 10 of all US Schools of Pharmacy for total research funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in eight of the past ten years.

BMED faculty are committed to the concept of the "teacher/scholar", believing that research and education are inseparable.  A high priority is placed on individualized training and mentoring of students at every level, from undergraduates to our professional pharmacy program to graduate students seeking Ph.D.s in any of four disciplines: Biomedical Sciences, Neuroscience, Toxicology, or Medicinal Chemistry.  These efforts even reach off campus through a variety of K-12 science outreach programs.  In particular, the unique combination of our size, our multidisciplinary focus, the presence of three NIH campus Centers of Biomedical Research Excellence and our collaborative environment provide exceptional opportunities for graduate students to pursue highly innovative programs of study and research leading to their Ph.D.s.

We invite you to explore our web site in hopes that is conveys the excitement and quality of our research and graduate training programs, as well as the rich environments of The University of Montana and the community of Missoula.

Sincerely,

Elizabeth Putnam, PhD

Professor and Department Chair