PhD candidate Kevin Daze is a PhD student in the department of Chemistry. He has a BSc in cell and molecular biology and spent two years working in a drug synthesis lab before coming to UVic.

A place of community

Unlike larger institutions he's attended, Kevin feels a great sense of community at UVic and enjoys how tight knit and research-ready the undergraduates are. He says, "I really appreciate the camaraderie with my fellow graduate students and the support I get from my supervisor, Fraser Hof."

Being in the graduate program at UVic has allowed Kevin to attend conferences and travel throughout North America sharing his research. He’s collaborating with great researchers in academia and industry.

Working in med-chemistry

What’s the most exciting thing about his research work? Kevin replied, "Working in med-chemistry means I’m at the vanguard of biochemical understanding of a certain cellular process, and we work to design and make new drugs to affect a certain clinical outcome. With that comes the constant competition from industry programs that could be spending billions working on the same target. It's an exciting and challenging field to be working in."

Kevin's prostate cancer research project has received funding from Prostate Cancer Canada, The Prostate Centre (Victoria), and the Prostate Cancer Foundation of BC (PCFBC).

Post-doctoral plans

Once he's completed his PhD, Kevin plans on working as a post-doctoral fellow for a couple of years then taking advantage of the ability to work in Europe.

Advice to incoming graduate students

Kevin advises, "Avoid becoming overwhelmed by keeping a good balance of all the projects you may have on the go at one time—teaching, TA duties, meetings, research, and course work—and know that, occasionally, something will have to give. Always be open to learning new skills and techniques. It always pays to be the person who is the most trained and knowledgeable."

Learn more about chemistry at UVic.