Masters Degrees (Pharmacogenetics)

The Genetics of Human Disease MSc aims to provide students with an in-depth knowledge of molecular genetics, quantitative and statistical genetics and human disease and how this can be applied to improve healthcare through the development and application of diagnostic tests and therapeutic agents.

Degree Information

The programme provides a thorough grounding in modern approaches to the understanding of the genetics of disease alongside the cutting-edge research methods and techniques used to advance our understanding of development of disease. Core modules provide a broad coverage of the genetics of disease, research skills and social aspects, whilst specialised streams in Inherited Diseases, Pharmacogenetics and Computational Genomics, in which students can qualify, and the research project allow more in-depth analysis in areas of genetics.

Students undertake modules to the value of 180 credits.

The programme consists of four core modules (60 credits) and two specialist modules (30 credits) and a research project culminating in a dissertation (90 credits).

A Postgraduate Diploma consisting of six modules (four core modules in term one and two modules within the selected stream in term two) is offered, full-time nine months.

A Postgraduate Certificate consisting of four core modules in term one (60 credits) is offered, full-time three months.

Core Modules
- Advanced Human Genetics: Research Principles
- Human Genetics in Context
- Core Skills
- Basic Statistics for Medical Sciences

Specialist modules
In term two you will take specialist modules depending on the specialist stream you select: Inherited Disease (A); Pharmacogenetics (B); Computational Genomics (C).
- Applications in Human Genetics (A)
- Either Genetics of Cardiovascular Disease or Genetics of Neurological Disease (A)
- Clinical Applications of Pharmacogenetic Tests (B)
- Anti-Cancer Personalised Medicine or Pharmacogenomics, Adverse Drug Reactions and Biomarkers (B)
- Applications in Human Genetics (C)
- Statistics for Interpreting Genetic Data (C)

Dissertation/report
Students undertake an original research project investigating topical questions in genetics and genetics of human disease which culminates in a dissertation of 12,000 to 14,000 words and an oral presentation.

Teaching and learning
Students develop their knowledge and understanding of genetics of human diseases through a combination of lectures, seminars, tutorials, presentations and journal clubs. Taught modules are assessed by unseen written examination and/or, written reports, oral presentations and coursework. The research project is assessed by the dissertation and oral presentation.

Careers

Advanced training in genetic techniques including bioinformatic and statistical approaches positions graduates well for PhD studentships in laboratories using genetic techniques to examine diseases such as heart disease, cancer and neurological disorders. Another large group will seek research jobs in the pharmaceutical industry, or jobs related to genetics in healthcare organisations.

Employability
The MSc in Genetics of Human Disease facilitates acquisition of knowledge and skills relevant to a career in research in many different biomedical disciplines. About half of our graduates enter a research career by undertaking and completing PhDs and working as research associates/scientists in academia. Some of our graduates go on to jobs in the pharmaceutical industry, while others enter careers with clinical genetic diagnosis services, particularly in molecular genetics, in healthcare organisations and hospitals around the world. Those graduates with a prior medical training often utilise their new skills as clinical geneticists.

Why study this degree at UCL?

UCL is in a unique position to offer both the basic science and application of modern genetics to improve human health. The programme is a cross-faculty initiative with teaching from across the School of Life and Medical Sciences (SLMS) at UCL.

Students will be based at the UCL Genetics Institute (UGI), a world-leading centre which develops and applies biostatistical and bioinformatic approaches to human and population genetics. Opportunities to conduct laboratory or computational-based research projects are available in the laboratories of world-leading geneticists affiliated to the UGI.

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This Clinical Pharmacology degree programme offers focused training which integrates basic and clinical sciences, and equips students with the essential skills required to function effectively as a clinical pharmacologist in the 21st century. As a student on the MSc Clinical Pharmacology programme, you will acquire core skills, enabling an appreciation of how to apply clinical pharmacological, regulatory and ethical principles to the optimisation of therapeutic practice and clinical research. Crucially, in addition to a firm grasp of the principles of molecular pharmacology, you will also gain foundational knowledge in the emerging science of pharmacogenomics and personalised medicine.

Why this programme

◾This Clinical Pharmacology MSc is one of only a few UK postgraduate programmes that cover clinical pharmacology in sufficient detail to allow you to make an informed choice about pursuing clinical pharmacology as a career.
◾You will learn the basics of molecular genetics and population genetics as applied to pharmacogenetics and gene therapy.
◾You will have the opportunity to gain hands-on experience in molecular methods and analysis along with critical interpretation of genomic literature. This will enable you to analyse, synthesise and formulate an action plan for personalised patient care.
◾You will gain the knowledge and experience necessary to engage in and contribute to discussions about therapeutic issues in the commercial and academic research environments. As part of the MSc Clinical Pharmacology degree, you will undertake your own research project under expert supervision, which will allow you to consolidate your knowledge and apply the skills you have acquired.
◾At every stage of the MSc Clinical Pharmacology you will benefit from the close involvement of clinical academics and visiting lecturers from the pharmaceutical industry and national drug regulatory bodies: the programme is specifically designed to prepare graduate for future senior roles within the pharmaceutical medicine. Guest lecturers have recently included staff from Pfizer, Servier, Johnson & Johnson and the Scottish Medicines Consortium.

Programme structure

You will attend lectures, seminars and tutorials and take part in lab, project and team work.

Core courses
◾Principles of Pharmacology
◾Drug Disposition
◾Pharmaceutical Medicine
◾Topics in Therapeutics – General Topics and Cardiovascular Drugs
◾Topics in Therapeutics – Commonly Used Drugs
◾Medical Statistics 1
◾Medical Statistics 2
◾Pharmacogenomics & Molecular Medicine – Fundamentals of Molecular Medicine
◾Pharmacogenomics & Molecular Medicine – Applied Pharmacogenomics & Molecular Medicine

In addition you will undertake a dissertation/project.

Career prospects

Career opportunities include positions in academia, health care and the pharmaceutical industry; returning to more advanced positions within a previous clinical environment (eg pharmacicts, clinicians); and PhD study.

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The Department of Oncology and the Department for Continuing Education’s CPD Centre offer a part-time MSc in Experimental Therapeutics that brings together some of Oxford's leading clinicians and scientists to deliver an advanced modular programme designed for those in full-time employment, both in the UK and overseas.

The Programme draws on the world-class research and teaching in experimental therapeutics at Oxford University and offers a unique opportunity to gain an understanding of the principles that underpin clinical research and to translate this into good clinical and research practice.

Visit the website https://www.conted.ox.ac.uk/about/msc-in-experimental-therapeutics

The first deadline for applications is Friday 20 January 2017

If your application is completed by this January deadline and you fulfil the eligibility criteria, you will be automatically considered for a graduate scholarship. For details see: http://www.ox.ac.uk/admissions/graduate/fees-and-funding/graduate-scholarships.

Programme details

The MSc in Experimental Therapeutics is a part-time course consisting of six modules and a research project and dissertation. The programme is normally completed in two to three years. Students are full members of the University of Oxford and are matriculated as members of an Oxford college.

The modules in this programme can also be taken as individual short courses. It is possible to transfer credit from up to three previously completed modules into the MSc programme, if the time elapsed between commencement of the accredited module(s) and registration for the MSc is not more than two years.

Programme modules:

- The Structure of Clinical Trials and Experimental Therapeutics
- Drug Development, Pharmacokinetics and Imaging
- Pharmacodynamics, Biomarkers and Personalised Therapy
- Adverse Drug Reactions, Drug Interactions, and Pharmacovigilance
- How to do Research on Therapeutic Interventions: Protocol Preparation
- Biological Therapeutics

Course aims

The aim of the MSc programme is to provide students with the necessary training and practical experience to enable them to understand the principles that underpin clinical research, and to enable them to translate that understanding into good clinical and research practice.

By the end of the MSc programme, students should understand the following core principles:

- Development, marketing and regulations of drugs
- Pharmaceutical factors that affect drug therapy
- Pharmacokinetics, pharmacogenetics and pharmacodynamics
- Adverse drug reactions, drug interactions, and pharmacovigilance
- Designing phase I, II and III clinical trials for a range of novel therapeutic interventions (and imaging agents).
- Application of statistics to medicine
- Laboratory assays used to support trial end-points
- Use of non-invasive imaging in drug development
- Application of analytical techniques

By the end of the programme, students should be equipped to:

- demonstrate a knowledge of the principles, methods and techniques for solving clinical research problems and translate this into good clinical and research practice
- apply skills gained in techniques and practical experience from across the medical and biological sciences
- develop skills in managing research-based work in experimental therapeutics
- carry out an extended research project involving a literature review, problem specification and analysis in experimental therapeutics and write a short dissertation

Guidance from the UK Royal College of Physician's Faculty of Pharmaceutical Medicine

The Faculty have confirmed that if enrolled for Pharmaceutical Medicine Specialty Training (PMST), trainees may be able to use knowledge provided by Experimental Therapeutics modules to cover aspects of a module of the PMST curriculum. Trainees are advised to discuss this with their Educational Supervisor.

Experimental Therapeutics modules may also be used to provide those pursuing the Faculty's Diploma in Pharmaceutical Medicine (DPM) with the necessary knowledge required to cover the Diploma syllabus. Applicants for the DPM exam are advised to read the DPM syllabus and rules and regulations.

Members of the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Medicine who are registered in the Faculty's CPD scheme can count participation in Experimental Therapeutics modules towards their CPD record. Non-members may wish to obtain further advice about CPD credit from their Royal College or Faculty.

Assessment methods

To complete the MSc, students need to:

Attend the six modules and complete an assessed written assignment for each module.
Complete a dissertation on a topic chosen in consultation with a supervisor and the Course Director.

Dissertation:
The dissertation is founded on a research project that builds on material studied in the taught modules. The dissertation should normally not exceed 15,000 words.

The project will normally be supervised by an academic supervisor from the University of Oxford, and an employer-based mentor.

The following are topics of dissertations completed by previous students on the course:

- The outcomes of non-surgical management of tubal pregnancy; a 6 month study of the South East London population

- Analysis of the predictive and prognostic factors of outcome in a cohort of patients prospectively treated with perioperative chemotherapy for adenocarcinoma of the stomach or of the gastroesophageal junction

- Evolution of mineral and bone disorder in early Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD): the role of FGF23 and vitamin D

- Survey of patients' knowledge and perception of the adverse drug reporting scheme (yellow cards) in primary care

- The predictive role of ERCC1 status in oxaliplatin based Neoadjuvant for metastatic colorectal cancer (CRC) to the liver

- Endothelial Pathophysiology in Dengue - Dextran studies during acute infection

- Literature review of the use of thalidomide in cancer

- An investigation into the phenotypical and functional characteristics of mesenchymal stem cells for clinical application

- Identification of genetic variants that cause capecitabine and bevacizumab toxicity

- Bridging the evidence gap in geriatric medicines via modelling and simulations

Teaching methods

The class-based modules will include a period of preparatory study, a week of intensive face-to-face lectures and tutorials, followed by a period for assignment work. Attendance at modules will be a requirement for study. Some non-classroom activities will be provided at laboratory facilities elsewhere in the University. The course will include taught material on research skills. A virtual learning environment (VLE) will provide between-module support.

The taught modules will include group work, discussions, guest lectures, and interaction and feedback with tutors and lecturers. Practical work aims to develop the students' knowledge and understanding of the subject.

Find out how to apply here - http://www.ox.ac.uk/admissions/graduate/applying-to-oxford

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This course is for graduates of biological sciences who want to extend their studies into the professional field of dietetics. Dietetics is the management of diseases that are amenable to dietary intervention and the prevention of nutrition related disorders.  A dietitian influences food selection and eating behaviour of an individual based on specific nutritional or food requirements.

With a clinical and health promotion focus, this course includes three blocks of integrated practice placements of 4, 12 and 12 weeks duration within a hospital and/or primary care setting.

Teaching, learning and assessment

The emphasis is on student-centred learning where your previous knowledge and skills are used to develop your new subject area. Learning activities include lectures, tutorials, workshops and practical classes and are guided using web-based supported materials.

You will also attend three practical placements to enable the integration of theoretical knowledge with practical experience. A variety of assessment methods are used across the course.  Normally, there are 12 – 15 students on this course. This ensures that individuals receive excellent support and benefit from sharing their experiences with classmates.

Teaching hours and attendance

Each module is equivalent to a notional 150 hours of work which is made up of attendance in class and independent work. The structure of each module is different with different attendance requirement  for each timetabled module. Over an average semester the expectation is that during 14 weeks of teaching this will equate to approx. 40 hours per week of student effort (contact classes plus independent study time). Students normally complete the course via a full time route but part-time routes are available and can be discussed with the Programme Leader.

All placements are completed on a full-time basis, normally Monday – Friday, 9am – 5pm.

Links with industry/professional bodies

This course provides eligibility to apply for registration as a dietitian with the Health and Care Professions Council. It is also accredited by the British Dietetic Association.

Modules

15 credits: Food and Nutrition/ Principles of Nutrition Science/ Clinical Sciences/ Therapeutic Interventions/ Professional Studies/ Professional Practice/ Evaluation of Practice/ Pharmacology and Pharmacogenetics. You will also carry out practice placements, which you must pass but which do not carry any credit. If studying for an MSc, you will also complete a dissertation (60 credits).

Careers

Career prospects on completion of the course are varied. Most graduates normally choose to work within the NHS as dietitians. Others will work in health education, health promotion, general practice, private healthcare and government advisory posts. Opportunities also exist in the food and pharmaceutical industries in, for example: food labelling; nutrient profiling; product and recipe development; product evaluation and special diet foods. Some graduates may apply for the opportunity to study for a higher degree (MPhil or PhD).

Quick Facts

• The MSc/ PgDip Dietetics course is well established, extremely popular, and well respected throughout the profession and has good graduate employability rates.
• The teaching team includes four registered dietitians who have strong links with the dietetic profession both within Scotland and across the UK. 
• The university’s clinically relevant research along with the broad range of experience of the teaching team ensures that the course remains current.

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About the course

This MSc gives students excellent postgraduate training, and leads to exciting careers in research, industry, the NHS and other clinical institutions. Many of our graduates have also gone on to study bioscience at PhD level.

You’ll develop an in-depth knowledge of medical and molecular genetics, and receive clinical genetics training to prepare you for a research project in a modern research facility. You’ll have the chance to collaborate with top genetics research laboratories and clinical partners.

This MSc was developed in partnership with the Sheffield Diagnostic Genetics Service (NHS), which is a world-renowned clinical genetics facility. This relationship is unique to this course and gives you the opportunity to be taught by the Director of the Sheffield Diagnostic Genetics Service, Sheffield Children’s Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, 
and their Head of Pharmacogenetics.

Where your masters can take you

Our graduates work in health care, pharmaceuticals, food safety and production, brewing and agrochemicals. Many of our masters students go on to do a PhD then pursue a career in research; others have gained entry to the prestigious NHS Scientist Training Programme (STP).

An international reputation

The 2014 Research Excellence Framework (REF) ranks Sheffield No 1 for biomedical research and in the UK top five for biological sciences generally. We have regular seminars from distinguished experts, and our motivated staff undertake collaborative research ranging from biotechnology to medicine.

Teaching and assessment

Our masters courses give you a solid grounding in experimental science, with personal supervision and tutorials by experienced scientists, based in modern and well-equipped labs, leading on to a research project in which you design and conduct your own research. You will learn cutting edge science from research leaders, and gain practice in reading the scientific literature and writing reports. Assessment is based on a combination of coursework, project work, formal examinations and a dissertation.

Modules

Genome Stability and Genetic Change; Human Genetics I; Human Genetics II; Advanced Research Topics; Laboratory Techniques in Molecular Bioscience; Literature Review; Research Project.

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The overall aims of the programme are to:

- provide professionally relevant teaching and learning informed by research in an integrated clinical and research environment;
- develop and create a cohort of doctors and other professionals allied to medicine able to pursue and develop their roles in a rapidly-changing and challenging environment of genomic medicine;
- prepare healthcare professionals for the adoption of genomic technologies and the increasing use of genomic information as part of the diagnostic and treatment pathway;
- develop a cohort of doctors and other professionals allied to medicine with the confidence to lead service improvement for safe and high quality patient care, and with the required knowledge, skills and capability to have a positive personal impact on the work of others;
- develop a cohort of doctors and other professionals allied to medicine with an understanding of research methodologies and clinical opportunities relevant to genomic medicine;
- encourage a commitment to intellectual challenge and evidence-based clinical practice informed by the latest conceptual and theoretical knowledge of genomic medicine;
- develop students' intellectual, practical and transferable skills related to genomic medicine;
encourage critical thinking related to genomic medicine;
- conduct systematic research relevant to their professional practice.

See the website http://www.graduate.study.cam.ac.uk/courses/directory/cvmgmpgnm

Learning Outcomes

The over-arching learning outcomes are:

- Knowledge and understanding -

- To enhance the students’ knowledge and critical understanding of recent developments in genomic medicine relevant to their present and future roles.
- To develop students’ knowledge and understanding of genomic medicine informed by research in a rapidly-changing integrated clinical and research environment.
- To enable deployment of new knowledge in their clinical practice, and to have a positive personal impact on the work of others in their clinical team and wider service.
- To develop an understanding of genomic technologies and to be able to use genomic information as part of the diagnostic and treatment pathway.
- To develop students’ knowledge so that they have the confidence to lead service improvement for safe and high quality patient care.
- To update and extend students’ understanding of research methodologies and clinical opportunities.
- To demonstrate knowledge, abilities and skills to engage in focused, professionally-relevant, independent learning, and through the production of a dissertation.

- Skills and other attributes -

- The skills necessary to locate, read, interpret and analyse primary and secondary sources of material enabling the development of a conceptual and theoretical understanding of recent developments in genomic medicine.
- Skills to evaluate current scholarship and research critically and to place this knowledge within the context of their own situation and practice as clinical leaders.
- The ability to formulate a research topic relevant to their clinical context, to collect and analyse primary and/or secondary sources of data, and to undertake professionally relevant research.
- The facility to communicate the results of their ideas, research and its conclusions in a written form acceptable as a work of scholarship potentially publishable in a professional or academic journal.

Format

The MPhil comprises either:

- eight modules, plus a research project and associated dissertation of 10-12,000 words, or
- ten modules, plus a literature-based research project and associated dissertation of 5-6,000 words.

Students must complete seven Core Modules and one/three further modules chosen from a range of Option Modules, with additional between-module reflection, study and assignment work.

The modules are structured as follows:

- Core Module 1: An introduction to human genetics and genomics
- Core Module 2: Omics techniques and the application to genomic medicine
- Core Module 3: Genomics of common and rare disease
- Core Module 4: Molecular pathology of cancer and application in cancer diagnosis, screening, and treatment
- Core Module 5: Application of genomics to infectious disease
- Core Module 6: Pharmacogenetics and stratified healthcare
- Core Module 7: Bioinformatics, interpretation, and data quality assurance in genome analysis

Option modules will be selected from the following list. Not all options may be offered every year.

- Option Module 1: Ethical, Legal and Social Implications in applied genomics (ELSI) **
- Option Module 2: Counselling skills for genomics
- Option Module 3: Professional and research skills
- Option Module 4: Advanced Bioinformatics – from genomes to systems
- Option Module 5: Epigenetics and epigenomics
- Option Module 6: Expanding the content of the MPhil in genomic medicine with a workplace-based module

Each core module will involve around 30 hours of contact time, including lectures, group work and online teaching.

Placements

The research project element of the course may be undertaken in a number of scientific institutions, within and without the University. This may include the University's School of Clinical Medicine, the School of Biological Sciences, the European Bioinformatics Institute, Welcome Trust Sanger Institute and, subject to approval, other suitable research institutions.

Assessment

Students must submit a dissertation of 5-6,000 words or 10-12,000 words, depending on the options selected. This will be worth 1/6th or 1/3rd of the overall mark for the course, respectively.

For each of the taught modules, students must complete summative assignments of 2500-3500 words or equivalent (except where other methods of module assessment are indicated in individual module descriptions)

Each student is allocated a named supervisor, who will meet regularly with the student to discuss progress and provide feedback and support as required. Written supervision reports are accessed via the online supervision system. Students are given feedback on the assessments conducted at the end of each module.

All students will meet with the programme director on a termly basis to discuss progress and to provide their feedback on the course.

How to apply: http://www.graduate.study.cam.ac.uk/applying

Funding Opportunities

Funding is available from Health Education England to pay course fees for NHS employees wishing to apply for this course. Prospective students wishing to apply for HEE funding should refer to the application process published by HEE at http://www.genomicseducation.hee.nhs.uk/msc-funding-info/and ensure that access to this funding is approved before applying for the course.

General Funding Opportunities http://www.graduate.study.cam.ac.uk/finance/funding

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The Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology offers graduate programs leading to the degrees of Master of Science and Doctor of Philosophy in Pharmacology. Faculty conduct research in the following areas:
-Biochemical and molecular pharmacology
-Cardiovascular pharmacology
-Clinical pharmacology
-Drug addiction
-Drug metabolism, distribution, and pharmacokinetics
-Endocrine pharmacology
-Immunopharmacology
-Neuropharmacology
-Pharmacogenetics
-Psychopharmacology
-Receptor pharmacology
-Second messengers and signal transduction
-Toxicology

All MSc and PhD students are expected to undertake self-directed study and to demonstrate proficiency in pharmacological principles throughout the course of their graduate program.

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Our Master of Research (MRes) in Translational Medicine provides high-quality research and training skills for students who want to use state-of-the-art biotechnologies to rapidly translate disease research into improved clinical healthcare.

With advances in technology, graduates are now faced with heightened expectations to conduct effective bioscience research.

Employers demand skillsets comprising biological, medical, physical and computational characteristics and this Masters is designed to provide this breadth of training.

The core aim is to train the next generation of scientists able to 'fast-track' biological and scientific data into advanced therapies and diagnostics tools.

Our understanding of the molecular basis of disease and drug mechanisms has improved dramatically in recent years, yet there is a distinct shortage of individuals able to apply this knowledge into effective clinical benefit.

Our MRes in Translational Medicine (Interdisciplinary Molecular Medicine) provides intense training in 'omics' skills and techniques such as genetics, genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics and metabolomics.

The training in metabolomic techniques is novel for a UK course, and teaching on the integration of different omic platforms and data in a systems medicine strategy is unique.

With its extended 35-week research project and broad training in biotechnology for medical healthcare, this MRes provides an excellent platform to progress into PhD research, or for a career in academia or the pharmaceutical or biotechnology industries, or as a clinical academic.

The MRes has substantial interdisciplinary focus; training comprises four taught modules before you undertake an extended 35-week research project within The University of Manchester, Waters or one of the Greater Manchester teaching hospitals.

A wide choice of projects are available, allowing individuals to focus on areas of interest such as the use of gene expression profiling, proteomics, metabolomics, stem cell research, tissue culture or pharmacogenetics in the biology of cancer, cardiovascular disease, infectious diseases, stroke or diabetes.

The MRes lasts for one year full-time, so it provides the ideal opportunity to experience the challenges of multidisciplinary research first-hand before committing to further training.

Over 85% of our graduates secure further research (PhD), pharmaceutical or biotechnology industry, or medical training posts upon completion.

Career opportunities

Our MRes, with its extended 35-week research project and broad training in biotechnology for medical healthcare, provides an excellent platform to progress into PhD research, or for a career in the pharmaceutical or biotechnology Industries or as a clinical academic.
-More than 50% of our graduates progress into PhD research (for example, within the Universities of Manchester, Cambridge, Imperial College London, Newcastle, Glasgow, Liverpool, Bristol).
-Around 15% pursue a career in the pharmaceutical or biotechnology industry in the UK or abroad.
-Approximately 25% are intercalating medics who complete their medical education.
-An estimated 10% pursue an undergraduate medical degree.

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