Course content
Our established programme in Biotechnology, which has been extensively updated, includes a wide range of modern molecular biology techniques and how biotechnology can be used by today's society. You will complement your theoretical studies with hands on experience of fully controlled fermenters that are up to pilot-plant scale, and are linked to modern monitoring and control systems.
You will study a range of subjects in considerable depth, including bioactive compounds, industrial bioprocesses, microbial physiology and fermentation technology, microbial production of novel metabolites, monitoring and control of fermentation, topics in biotechnology, and types of bioreactors.
Facilities
Our facilities include:
- Fermentation Suite equipped with fully instrumented and controlled bioreactors of all sizes ranging from 0.5 L to 72 L and bench top downstream processing rigs including Armfield’s chromatography and tangential flow filtration units.
- Tissue Culture laboratory
- Analytical Instrumentation Suite equipped with Gas Chromatographs with FID, TCD and MS detectors, HPLC equipped with UV, PDA, MSQ, fluorescence, evaporative light scattering and electrochemical detectors, spectrophotometers (absorbance and luminescence), multi-detection microplate reader, bio-imaging system, gamma and scintillation counters, Typhoon gel Imager, Clinical chemistry and Haematology analysers, FTIR analyser, Potentiostat, DGGE analyser.
- Flow cytometer, PCR machines, microscopes of all types including inverted microscopes, laser scanning confocal microscopes, fluorescence microscope etc.,
- Other equipment normally found in any lab including shaken incubators, bench top centrifuges, pH meters, freezers and biosafety cabinets
Career path
Students normally find employment in the biotechnology industry e.g.
- Upstream/Downstream processing
- Quality Assurance, Quality Control
- Process Development / Technology Transfer
- Research and Development, eg involving strain improvement
- Regulatory Affairs
- Sales e.g. Technical Sales Representatives / Account managers
- Academia, eg teaching or further study to PhD degree
Industry links
We have links with Sekisui Diagnostics, an international company that manufactures enzymes for diagnostic purposes and students get the opportunity to visit their facilities and experience first-hand how an industrial scale bioprocess operates.
Visit the
Applied Biotechnology (MSc)
page on the University of Westminster website for more details!
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