Alumni Spotlight: Kushal Gohil, Master’s in Drug Development Graduate

UC MS Drug Development Graduate at Top Global CRO

Kushal Gohil is the Vice President of Corporate Strategy and Innovation at Parexel, a leading global clinical research organization based in Boston with 20,000 employees worldwide where he leads corporate strategy and much more.

UC Online recently talked with Kushal about his career and experience at the University of Cincinnati and the Drug Development Program. He provided his perspective on what he enjoyed about the program and how it helped his career in the drug development industry.

Q: Why did you select UC?

I am a proud Bearcat. I have two MS degrees from UC and have been an adjunct faculty at the College of Business, where I taught courses on competitive intelligence and healthcare marketing. The faculty at UC is fantastic and includes some of the key opinion leaders in their respective fields.

Q: What motivated you to seek your Master’s degree in Drug Development?

I had just completed my Master’s in Marketing degree from the University of Cincinnati and was honestly not looking for a second MS degree. However, the stellar program and the faculty inspired me to apply for the MSDD program.

Q: Were you already working in Drug Development when you started the program?

Before joining the MSDD program, I worked as a business analyst at INC Research (then Kendle International). I wanted to get some in-depth knowledge of the Pharma industry, and the MSDD program is well-designed for that purpose.

Q: How did you handle the school, work, life balance while in the program?

I have always strongly believed you should never wait for the right time to do the things you want to do. If you want anything, you need to make time for it, and that is what I did.

Q: What is a favorite memory or a proud moment you had during the MSDD program?

I enjoyed spending time with the esteemed faculty. My favorite class was with Dr. Dan Shelly. I first met Dr. Shelly when I enrolled in the MSDD program at the UC College of Pharmacy in 2011-13 and was immediately impressed with his techno-commercial background and humility. Dr. Shelly’s expertise lies in Biopharmaceuticals (protein therapeutics, vaccines, gene/cell therapies, and other biologics-based products) regarding product and clinical/regulatory development with an emphasis on biologics manufacturing. He also taught us Biotechnology Business and Financial Management.

Q: Who is the MSDD program a good fit for?

Anyone trying to gain knowledge of the full spectrum of drug development outside their silo. I came from a marketing background and this program helped me better understand the world of Drug Development.

Q: For someone who may have never taken an online course before, how would you describe the experience?

Online courses are different from in-person classes, but if you are committed to the learning process, you can get a lot out of the online format.

Q: How has your degree helped you in your career?

The program really helped me understand the end-to-end drug development process in detail. After completing the program, I started working in commercial sales operations and then shifted to corporate strategy and innovation. Now I support the CCO, CMO & CEO, and the Board of Directors to drive corporate strategy at Parexel.

Learn More About the Drug Development Programs with UC Online

The Pharmaceutics and Drug Development program from the University of Cincinnati James L. Winkle College of Pharmacy is truly flexible and fully online. Accelerate your career while gaining a clearer vision of drug development for all phases of research from regulatory, pre-clinical to clinical, and beyond with a program built for busy working professionals in the field.

Learn More about the Drug Development program with UC Online