Biochemistry
Biochemistry is the branch of science that explores the structures and chemical processes of molecules in living organisms that interact to form cells, tissues, and whole organisms. The Biochemistry program at Queen’s provides students with in-depth training in a wide range of important topics that are related to these processes, including the mechanisms of cancer progression, cellular communication, and the molecular and chemical basis of infection, inheritance, and disease. The program also offers opportunities for students to explore rapidly expanding fields in molecular genetics, metabolism of biomolecules, bioengineering, and regenerative medicine through hands-on training with professors in research labs.
The first two years of the program provides vital background preparation in Biology, Chemistry (organic, analytical, and physical), Molecular Biology, Math, and Statistical Analysis, to understand the molecules that make up all living things. In the upper years of the program, students receive in-depth exposure to all areas of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Cell Biology, including extensive hands-on laboratory experiences. The Biochemistry program has enough flexibility for students to take elective courses offered in other programs within the Faculty of Arts and Science, including the Life Sciences program, for which they are eligible.
Biostatistics
Graduates of this program will be capable of working as biostatistical data analysts within multi-disciplinary health research teams. This objective will be achieved through coursework that will equip students with a sound knowledge in observational and experimental study designs, statistical theory, statistical models for health data analysis, and statistical computing.
This program is jointly offered by the Department of Public Health Sciences and the Department of Mathematics and Statistics.
Health Studies
Health Studies strives to understand the complex factors that influence physical, mental and social health and overall well-being. Drawing largely from social science disciplines, our courses explore the social determinants of health, approaches to health promotion, health policy, health behaviour change, epidemiology, and program planning and evaluation. You’ll be expected to challenge yourself and to think critically about health in relation to social justice, politics and culture. And you will gain the skills you need to do that.
Kinesiology
Kinesiology is the science of the human body in motion. You will learn about the physiological, biomechanical, psychological and sociological factors that influence human movement, exercise and sport performance, along with health. From the structure of the cell to the structure of society, your studies in Kinesiology will expose you to the complex factors that influence health and wellness.
Life Sciences
The hallmark of the Life Sciences program is a unique blend of disciplines represented by basic and clinical biomedical science departments in the Faculty of Health Sciences. These departments include Biomedical and Molecular Sciences, Public Health Sciences, and Pathology and Molecular Medicine, in collaboration with the Cancer Research Institute, the Centre for Neuroscience Studies, the Cardiac, Circulation and Respiratory Group, and the Research Group in Reproduction and Development.
The subjects that fall under the umbrella of the Life Sciences program include traditional biomedical disciplines devoted to the anatomical, biochemical, epidemiological, immunological, microbiological, pathological, pharmacological, and physiological sciences. In addition, there are Sub-plans dedicated to contemporary trans-disciplinary themes in the cardiovascular and respiratory sciences, drug development and human toxicology, cancer biology and genetics, and neuroscience.
MD/PhD & MD/Master's
The combined MD/PhD and MD/ Master’s Programs provide benefits to both scholarship and to the professional development of physician-scientists by allowing better integration of clinical and research training experiences, and also provide better opportunities for fostering translational research.
Our programs are in keeping with the strategic directions of both the Canadian Institutes of Health Research Strategic Plan and Government of Canada's Science and Technology Strategy, which emphasize the need for providing increased trans-sectorial and multidisciplinary training, building research excellence, translating knowledge into practical applications and deepening the pool of highly skilled individuals. Students in combined MD/graduate programs bring a distinctive, clinical/translational perspective into their laboratories, and conversely, these students also bring a basic science perspective to share with their fellow medical students. This is especially relevant in the context of the greater emphasis now being placed on team-based learning approaches as an important component of the Queen’s medical curriculum.