This unique professional training programme has been designed and developed in collaboration with the multinational Contract Research Organisation, Covance.
The course is 20 months long, covering campus-based taught modules in the first six months, followed by a 12-month guaranteed paid placement in industry where you can expect to earn around £20,000.
During your training you’ll gain an integrated understanding of the full biological drug development pathway and the regulatory framework. The focus will be on large molecule drugs: monoclonal antibodies like Herceptin, bio-similars and antibody-drug conjugates; gene therapies and the technologies that underpin the discovery and development pathway.
You’ll be taught by leading industrialists and internationally renowned academics working at the forefront of their fields in the areas of science that support drug development. The curriculum is delivered primarily via project work in teams, and is assessed with outputs that are commonplace in industry, including presentations and reports to clients, regulators, investors/sponsors etc.
To prepare you for work in industry, you’ll also have access to cutting-edge practical technologies and gain hands-on practical training in protein purification, characterisation, formulation and assessment of binding function. In addition, you’ll use cell-based assays to look at drug potency, all performed in a strict regulated environment.
This course will help give you the experience and skills to become highly employable. Many pharmaceutical companies are expanding their biopharmaceutical capability, which is creating demand and opportunities for talented, well-trained people. At the same time, these companies report difficulties in recruiting employees with relevant skill sets and those with broad industrial experience are greatly sought after.
This course will provide you with an understanding of biological drug development focusing on each of the major steps of the process:
The course is 20 months long, covering the campus-based taught elements in six to seven months, followed by a 12-month guaranteed paid work placement involving a research project where you’ll experience at first hand the working environment of this industry.
Work placement: an integral part of your training
An integral part of this course is your first paid job in industry. This is a 12-month guaranteed work and research experience in industry or placement hosted within the university research laboratories developed and co-supervised with industry. Students can expect to earn up to £20,000 over the duration of their placement.
The placements will all include a practical research project where you will gain in-depth practical experience of at least one technical function of the drug development process (discovery, manufacturing, pre-clinical testing, clinical safety and efficacy).
You will commence your project in May, six-months after the start of the programme and will be completed by the following April. Graduation is scheduled immediately thereafter, making you available for employment immediately after your placement.
These are typical modules/components studied and may change from time to time. Read more in our Terms and conditions.
Year 1
Over the first six to seven months starting in September you will study 100 credits worth of taught modules.
Compulsory modules:
Year 2
Seven months after the start of the course (April/May), you will start a 12-month industrial placement where you will undertake a research project worth 80 credits.
Compulsory modules:
The learning and teaching on the course has been constructed to align with activities performed in industry, preparing you to be work-ready immediately after you finish.
You’ll have access to the very best learning resources and academic support during your studies. We’ve been awarded a Gold rating in the Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF, 2017), demonstrating our commitment to delivering consistently outstanding teaching, learning and outcomes for our students.
This course will challenge you to think creatively, solve problems and develop strong communication and teamwork skills. You’ll experience a wide range of teaching methods, including formal lectures, interactive workshops, practical classes and industry site visits.
You’ll extensively use of real-life, industry specific case studies to illustrate theoretical and practical concepts and multiple opportunities to work in teams, including the opportunity to lead a team. A wide range of ‘authentic’ assessments will be used that students will experience in the workplace including submissions to regulatory authorities, client reports and presentations to industry panel members.
Your first steps into an industrial career
The course is designed to train talented scientists wishing to pursue a career in drug development in the international biopharmaceutical industry.
You’ll be exposed to senior industrialists working as tutors throughout the course and can take this opportunity to obtain career advice. You’ll also work in industry full time for 12 months, which is an outstanding opportunity for you to develop a competitive career plan.
With this degree, you’ll have the relevant knowledge and experience to fast-track your career as, for example, an analytical scientist, project manager, or coordinator, in areas such as research, quality control, manufacturing, project management, non-clinical, clinical, and market access.
As a student on this course you’ll have unique access to an industry-mentor and a personal tutor (academic member of staff) for the duration of your studies. You’ll also get support in planning your career through sessions that develop your CVs and applications.
The Biopharmaceuticals MSc is an advanced study programme that will provide chemical, life science and pharmacy graduates with the scientific knowledge and expertise in the areas of biopharmaceutical discovery and development needed for careers in the pharmaceutical and biotech industry, research institutes or regulatory authorities.
This course was designed to address the growing needs of the Biotech industry. The Biopharmaceuticals MSc course is an interdisciplinary course of study with the aim of developing medicines for the future. The subject areas will include drug delivery & disposition and pharmaceuticals analysis followed by more specialised studies on the discovery of peptides, proteins and antibody therapeutics and their development into medicines.
An integral component of the course is a laboratory research dissertation worth 60 credits where you will work in a research laboratory involved with independent research supervised by experts in the field.
Teaching
We use lectures, seminars and group tutorials to deliver most of the modules on the programme. You will also be expected to undertake a significant amount of independent study.
Assessment
You are assessed through a combination of the following methods:
Production of research paper (50%)
The study time and assessment methods detailed above are typical and give you a good indication of what to expect.
Regulating body
King’s College London is regulated by the Higher Education Funding Council for England.
Recent graduates have gone on to work in research and development laboratories in the Pharmaceutical and Biopharmaceutical Industries. Employers include Pfizer, GSK and Novartis and small Biotech companies. Overseas students have returned to similar positions in their home countries. Other graduates choose to continue to study towards a PhD.
This part-time programme is organised with the support of the Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service (SNBTS). In the fields of Transfusion, Transplantation and Tissue Banking, SNBTS has a leading international reputation and the programme is accredited by the Institute of Biomedical Sciences (IBMS), the professional body for Biomedical Scientists in the United Kingdom.
The programme has been designed to be aligned to the NHS requirements and stipulations relating to career progression for Biomedical Scientists, Clinical Scientists and other healthcare professionals working in these fields.
The programme will give you in-depth expertise and knowledge of the science, regulations and international practices in transfusion, transplantation and tissue banking, for those aiming for more senior management roles in healthcare organisations.
The programme covers the following areas:
The programme involves eight, one-week modules that combine lectures, tutorials and assessments. A variety of learning experiences and assessment tasks will stimulate interest, encourage participation and develop transferable skills. Self-directed learning between modules will require to be undertaken by students participating in this programme.
Throughout the programme, summative and formative assessment techniques will be employed.
After two years you will take three exams for the diploma qualification. If you are successful, you can carry out a research project in the third year to achieve your masters qualification.
This programme is designed to help you progress within health services in transfusion, transplantation and tissue banking fields.
The Drug Discovery Skills MSc course aims to equip you with the advanced skills to enhance your knowledge and technical expertise in the drug discovery process.
The Drug Discovery Skills MSc is a one-year advanced course that runs from September to September and you will study modules totalling 180 credits throughout the year, with 75 credits coming from the research project and a dissertation to complete the programme.
You will study a range of modules that include core skills and case histories in drug discovery. You will also complete an extended industry-based research project and dissertation relating to drug discovery.
On average teaching consists of:
Typically, one credit equates to 10 hours of work.
Assessment
The study time and assessment methods detailed above are typical and give you a good indication of what to expect.
Location
This course is primarily taught at the King’s College London Guy’s campus. The work placement for the Research Project in Drug Discovery is usually in the UK laboratories of a pharmaceutical or biotech company.
Our graduates mainly gain employment in the pharmaceutical industry, or go on to study for a PhD.
