Dr. Bahaa Mustafa is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Pharmaceutics at the Faculty of Pharmacy, Applied Science University, Jordan. Prior to his current role, he served as an Assistant Professor at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) in the United States, where he was also a researcher in the Cancer Therapeutics Program at the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute.
Dr. Mustafa’s research is focused on the discovery of small peptide ligands for targeted drug therapy and diagnostic imaging. He is also interested in the development of peptide therapeutics for multiple applications including cancer and infectious diseases. His scientific contributions have been published in reputable peer-reviewed journals such as Journal of Medicinal Chemistry, Acta Biomaterialia, AACR Cancer Research, and Frontiers in Immunology. He presented his work at national and international conferences including the American Association of Cancer Research annual meeting 2025, and the American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists 360 annual meeting 2024.
Dr. Mustafa earned his Bachelor of Pharmacy from Applied Science University, Jordan, and his Master’s degree in Pharmaceutical Sciences from Petra University. In 2017, he was awarded the prestigious Fulbright Foreign Student Scholarship by the U.S. Department of State to pursue his Ph.D. in Pharmaceutical Sciences at the University of Missouri–Kansas City, where he also earned the Preparing Future Faculty graduate teaching certificate.
He is the recipient of multiple teaching and research awards, including the Rho Chi Teacher of the Year Award (2025), the Seeds of Science Research Award (2023), Preparing Future Faculty Award (2022) and the Graduate School Best Dissertation Award (2022). Dr. Mustafa is an active member of several international professional organizations, including the American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists (AAPS), the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR), the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP), and the American Peptide Society.