About Victoria H. Barbosa, MD

Victoria Holloway Barbosa is a board-certified physician, researcher and educator with a unique set of experiences and talents that bridge the fields of dermatology, science and the cosmetics industry. Through Dermal Insights, Dr. Barbosa has advised several cosmetics companies and suppliers in the areas of business strategy, research and development, and market trends. This work stems naturally from her seven years as a cosmetics industry executive. As a former Vice President in Research & Development at L’Oreal, Dr. Barbosa built and directed the L’Oréal Institute for Ethnic Hair & Skin Research. In this one-of-a-kind facility, she led a team of physicists, chemists and biologists conducting basic science research to discover the distinguishing properties of the hair and skin of people of African descent. During that time, she also chaired four International Ethnic Hair and Skin Research Symposia. She currently serves on the board of directors of the company Dr. Susan Taylor’s Rx for Brown Skin. Dr. Barbosa’s work in the cosmetics industry is built on her foundation as a dermatologist. She is an Assistant Professor in the Rush University Department of Dermatology, where she sees patients and teaches residents and medical students. Dr. Barbosa enjoys treating diseases of the hair, skin and nails in patients of all ages and ethnic backgrounds. In addition to general dermatology, her areas of expertise include hair disorders and managing disease in skin of color. She is a founding board member of the Skin of Color Society and a frequent lecturer at dermatology meetings in the U.S. and around the world, including the American Academy of Dermatology, the European Association of Dermatology and Venereology, and the National Medical Association Dermatology Section. She has published in the areas of ethnic hair and skin characterization, cosmetic products and clinical practice guidelines. Dedicated to promoting education, science and health, Dr. Barbosa serves on the Board of Trustees of Dillard University, on the Board of Directors of National Medical Fellowships, and as an External Advisory Board member to Delaware State University’s HBCU-UP program. She is a member of the American Association for the Advancement of Science’s Committee on Opportunities in Science and is a member of the Institute of Medicine’s Roundtable on Health Disparities. She has previously served on the Board of Trustees of the Dermatology Foundation, an organization that supports dermatological research. As both a respected authority and a gifted communicator, Dr. Barbosa has appeared on numerous local and national radio and television broadcasts. She has also been quoted in dozens of magazines and newspapers in the United States and around the world, including multiple quotes in the New York Times, the Chicago Tribune, the Chicago Sun Times and Essence Magazine, to name a few. She is a frequently requested keynote speaker at industry meetings and on university campuses. Dr. Barbosa has repeatedly been honored for her work in science. She has been named a Fellow of the Association for Women in Science, a Trailblazer by Science Spectrum Magazine, and received the Savoy Professional Publisher’s Award as well as the Women of Color in Health, Science and Technology’s Professional Achievement Award. Dr. Barbosa received her bachelor’s degree in biology from Harvard University and her medical degree cum laude from Yale University School of Medicine, where she was inducted into Alpha Omega Alpha, the national medical honor society. She completed an internship in internal medicine at the Massachusetts General Hospital and a dermatology residency at Yale, where she also served as chief resident. Dr. Barbosa then attended Johns Hopkins School of Hygiene and Public Health, where she received a Master of Public Health degree, and was a Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholar at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. Most recently, she completed her Master of Business Administration degree in Kellogg’s executive MBA program. Dr. Barbosa is a native of White Plains, NY, and currently resides in Chicago, IL with her husband, Valdir Barbosa, their daughter and their standard poodle.