Pharmacology is the study of how drugs work. Understanding how drugs work is not only important for the development of new safe therapies for disease, but also for our understanding of how the body works. Basic pharmacologists develop new drug molecules and study their mechanisms of action and side-effects, while clinical pharmacologists are more involved with the use of drugs in human health and disease.
Pharmacology plays a major role in human health and society.
Pharmacologists are responsible for the discovery of new molecules used in the treatment of disease and the relief of suffering in both humans and animals. The pharmaceutical and healthcare industries that are a major part of the current push into biotechnology rely heavily on pharmacology for their notable success. If your interest is in the science of how drugs work, or in the application of pharmacological knowledge in the community, then you can study pharmacology through the Faculty of Science as a major in the Bachelor of Science or as a major in several of the specialised Bachelor of Science programmes. You will begin your study of Pharmacology in second year. Pharmacology is available as a major within the Bachelor of Health Science and its combined degrees with Economics and Commerce.