Vassilios Papadopoulos is the dean of the USC Alfred E. Mann School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, a position he has held since 2016. He holds the John Stauffer Dean’s Chair in Pharmaceutical Sciences and is a professor of pharmacology and pharmaceutical sciences at the University of Southern California. He currently serves as the interim dean of the USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work.

Since coming to USC, Papadopoulos has been a prominent national voice on the topic of re-envisioning the future of pharmacy education for the 21st century and expanding the role of the pharmacist on the health care team. Under his leadership, the School launched two new degree programs, recruited outstanding new faculty, expanded the School’s state-of-the-art research and educational facilities, and launched diversity, equity and inclusion and wellness initiatives. Further, the School’s students, staff, faculty and alumni played a key role in the COVID-19 mass vaccination efforts in the city of Los Angeles.

A noted scientist and innovative leader, Papadopoulos has published over 300 papers, holds numerous patents and serves on many national and international advisory committees. He is an elected foreign member of the National Academies of Medicine and Pharmacy in France, fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, fellow of the American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists, and fellow of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences.

Prior to coming to USC, Papadopoulos served as executive director and chief scientific officer at the Research Institute of McGill University Health Centre in Montreal, Canada, where he led initiatives including “Translational Research and Intervention across the Lifespan,” which resulted in over $300 million in federal and provincial grants to build a state-of-the-art facility for clinical and biomedical research.

To foster the development of future scientists and clinicians at McGill University Health Centre, Papadopoulos established the institution’s Desjardins Centre for Advanced Training and established a Business Development Office to facilitate knowledge transfer and assist in the commercialization of technologies. Under his leadership, the Research Institute of McGill University Health Centre launched numerous international collaborations.

In 1988, he joined the faculty of Georgetown University School of Medicine, rising to become professor and chair of the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. In 2004, Papadopoulos was appointed associate vice president for research and then director of the Biomedical Graduate Research Organization at Georgetown University Medical Center.

A School of Pharmacy graduate of the University of Athens in Greece, Papadopoulos holds a Ph.D. in health and life science from the Université Pierre et Marie Curie in Paris, France.