Meet Recent Graduates

Building the Future of Health and Biomedical Research

Graduate programs in the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Toronto train the future leaders in health and biomedical research. Over the past decade enrolment in doctoral research programs has increased by 74%. Significant enrolment expansion, in absolute numbers 334 PhD and 149 Masters' students, has occurred because of the increasing opportunities for research training not only for students from Ontario, who constitute the majority of our MSc and PhD registrants, but also for students from across Canada and around the world. The total full time enrolment for 2001-02 offered within our 15 Graduate Departments in the Faculty of Medicine includes 784 PhD and 719 MSc students. Outstanding graduate supervision is provided by faculty both on campus and in the nine affiliated teaching hospitals¹ and their associated research institutes.

Ongoing support to the Faculty of Medicine from the Government of Ontario has been essential for growth and development in these research training programs. Specifically, two Ministries (the Ministry of Training Colleges and Universities and the Ministry of Health and Long Term Care) have sustained investments in a healthy future by supporting these graduate programs. Their contribution through grant support to the Faculty of Medicine as well as new graduate student awards have made enrolment expansion and enhancement of research training a reality.

Completion of the MSc requires 2 years and PhD requires not less than 4 years full time study. Some of our graduates will enter the workforce directly following completion of their MSc or PhD, while others will do further postdoctoral research training. The job market for these graduates is expanding rapidly. Many choose to become academic university-based health and biomedical research scientists, predominantly in Ontario. However, the number of opportunities in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical sectors is growing. As well, our graduates are increasingly attracted to less traditional roles in the investment, communication, and health sectors.

Training MD Researchers

A unique feature of graduate studies in our Faculty is the training of MDs to become scientists and the future academic leaders of our medical schools. The MD/PhD program at the University of Toronto has doubled enrolment in the last 10 years and is the largest program in Canada with 36 students now enrolled. MDs who have completed clinical training, enter our Clinician-Scientist programs which include completion of a research thesis PhD. The Faculty of Medicine has over 130 Canadian-trained MDs currently in graduate studies, the largest number in Canada and with few rivals in the USA. Their research training spans the 4 pillars of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) including: health services/systems; clinical research; population health; and, basic biomedical science. The training of MD research scientists is important for the translation of new knowledge into clinical practice. In every realm of health and biomedical research, trans-disciplinary teams of investigators including PhD Scientists, and research-trained health professionals focus their collective attention on problems such as the vaccine development for HIV/AIDs and malaria, new models of tissue regeneration for organ transplantation, early detection of susceptibility to cancer through genetic screening and many more areas at the frontier of discovery. The breadth and depth of the teams of investigators has created a very exciting environment for health research, and, above all, a fertile training ground for top-flight MD graduate students covering the entire spectrum of disciplines.

PhD Student Profiles from each Graduate Department in the Faculty of Medicine

The following summarizes PhD student profiles from each Graduate Department in the Faculty of Medicine, as well as the MD/PhD program and the MD-Scientist training programs: