1) What is iPIDD?

• A unique opportunity for multidisciplinary research in drug discovery at USC, centered on cooperation between the Department of Chemistry (College of LAS, University Park Campus (UPC) and the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences (School of Pharmacy, Heath Sciences Campus (HSC), the new (September, 2004) Interdisciplinary Program in Drug Discovery at USC (iPIDD) offers students a unique opportunity in graduate education. Classical drug discovery entails synthesis of lead compounds, study of their pharmacological properties, and evaluation of promising candidate drugs in clinical trials.  The emerging research areas of genomics, proteomics and metabolomics, which rely on advances in bioinformatics, NMR and mass spectroscopy, augmented by computer-aided drug design and advances in drug delivery, promise to revolutionize medicine in coming years. iPIDD will be an innovative vehicle for training students in these emerging fields. Interested students who apply to either the Chemistry or Pharmaceutical Sciences Ph.D. programs will be considered for participation in iPIDD. State of the art videoconferencing-via-internet technology will be exploited to facilitate educational, research, and organizational program activities across the two USC Campuses (UPC and HSC). Students will be provided with their own individual copies of videoconferencing software!

2) I'm not yet in your PhD Program (Chemistry or Pharmaceutical Sciences), how can I be considered for iPIDD?

• Chemistry: Fill out the online application: http://chem.usc.edu/prospective/domestic_student.html, checking the iPIDD interest box linked just below the "Area of Interest" section. You will receive a response concerning your interest shortly. Potential iPIDD participants for the F/07 class, selected from among the current applicant pool, will be contacted directly by one of our faculty.
• Pharmacology and Pharmaceutical Sciences: email the Pharmaceutical Sciences co-director, Prof. Ian Haworth: ihaworth@usc.edu.

3) What courses can I take with iPIDD?

• iPIDD students elect four courses (16 units) from within their home departments, and will normally take up to two courses (8 units) in their secondary department. For example, Chemistry iPIDD students might include Chem 519 (Biochemistry and Molecular Biology) or a graduate course in Bio-Inorganic Chemistry or Biophysical Chemistry in addition to two core organic / inorganic courses, plus one or two of the following: PSCI 664 (Drug Discovery and Design), PSCI 665 (Drug Transport and Delivery), PSCI 599 (Proteomics), or PSCI 599 (Pharmacogenomics). A new course in Modern Methods in Drug Discovery is currently under joint development.

4) How do I select my primary (home department) and secondary research advisor? What are their roles?

• Students select their home department advisor following departmental procedures, usually formalizing their selection by the end of the first semester. Chemistry students in concert with their primary advisor will select a secondary advisor from participating iPIDD faculty in the School of Pharmacy. The secondary advisor will be a member of the student's Screening, Qualifying Examination and Ph.D. Dissertation Committees. Where possible via cooperative research projects, the student may also have an opportunity to conduct some research in the secondary advisor's laboratory.

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