Undergrad PhD Future Professor + Researcher

Meet Casey McCarthy, a College of Pharmacy PhD student whose work in medicinal chemistry is already making an impact. With research published in multiple scientific journals, Casey is helping shape the future of medicine as he works toward a career in academia. Scroll to learn about his journey […]

James Moon’s work has shown that a new plant-based fiber formulation may dramatically boost the tumor-fighting power of anti-cancer drugs. Now, he is collaborating with Michigan Medicine colleagues on a clinical trial to see if it can help patients fight kidney tumors.
A class of drugs called immune checkpoint blockers (ICBs) can spur the immune system […]

Bringing a new drug to patients is one of the most complex challenges in modern science. It can take 10 to 15 years and cost billions of dollars. On top of that, nearly 90% of drug candidates fail during clinical testing stages.
To confront this harsh reality, the University of Michigan has launched the Institute for […]

As a student in Novara in Italy’s Piedmont region, Francesca Brunelli was not sure what she wanted to do with her future until she took some medicinal chemistry classes as an undergraduate. It was after taking these courses that she was hooked and pursued her master’s and PhD in drug innovation at the Università degli […]

As we celebrate 150 years of U-M College of Pharmacy, it’s only fitting that our first story spotlights the person who set the entire journey in motion, Albert B. Prescott, MD. A name you may have seen in a textbook or in the portrait on the second floor of our pharmacy building, but behind that […]

Millions of people worldwide suffer from neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) that damage neurons in the brain. The need for therapies that can repair the damage—or prevent it—is enormous.
Treatments developed so far have had limited benefits, and one of the reasons is that it’s difficult to get a therapeutic dose […]

A global pandemic, a job that clicked, and a lucky break that let him explore the pharmacy profession all added up to a turning point that has led Caleb Knisley to pursue a PharmD degree.
Knisley was in his first year of college at Eastern Michigan University with plans to study computer science when COVID interrupted […]

Before she even arrived on campus for her first year at the College of Pharmacy in August, freshman Rashika Balakrishnan knew she had a circle of peers and mentors who could show her the ropes.
Balakrishnan and her fellow freshmen are off to a smooth start thanks to their BSPS Buddies – peer mentors who volunteer […]

Photos Courtesy of Brady Kendall and Michigan Athletics
Brady Kendall loves science and swimming — and she’s racing towards big goals in both.
She’s on the fast track toward her PharmD degree, finishing her bachelor’s degree in just three years and launching into her graduatestudies a year early. All the while, she has been a force […]

In May 2025, during his first year of pharmacy school, Andrew Aboona took a quick trip to New York to visit a friend and take in an electronic dance music (EDM) festival. Just as his favorite act hit the stage in an explosion of lasers, lights, and sound, he felt a bump in his back—and […]