Master of Science in Drug Innovation
Utrecht University
Key Information
Campus location
Utrecht, Netherlands
Languages
English
Study format
On-Campus
Duration
2 years
Pace
Full time
Tuition fees
EUR 2,209 / per year *
Application deadline
Request info
Earliest start date
Request info
* EU/EEA, Surinam or Swiss students. €20,750: International students
Scholarships
Explore scholarship opportunities to help fund your studies
Introduction
Drug Innovation: A Unique Program
Drug Innovation is about:
- Developing new drugs to combat drug-resistant microorganisms;
- Using gene or protein technologies to create therapies targeted at individual patients;
- Finding a way to imprint the immune system to increase tolerance;
- Exploring the relationship between gut microbes and brain disease;
- Learning how to use proteomics to study stem cell development;
- Reducing the side effects of treatment by finding new ways to deliver drugs directly into the tumor;
- Updating and speeding up the drug regulatory process.
The Master’s in Drug Innovation program focuses on diagnostics and the improvement and management of small molecule and biomolecular drugs. Drug innovation covers many topics such as the development of new vaccines and the study of antibodies, gene therapeutics, and medical nutrition. Once developed, a new drug then needs to go through approval, which raises a whole new set of challenges, for example, the establishment of new methods and criteria for evaluating the quality, efficacy, safety, and performance of the drug.
Interdisciplinary Program
This broad, interdisciplinary program is open to graduates from a wide range of disciplines such as chemistry, biology, pharmaceutical sciences, biomedical sciences, or medicine.
Many Elective Courses
Our program offers a diverse suite of elective courses. This means you can concentrate on the topics of most interest to you. You will also take an internship with one of the research teams working on drug innovation at Utrecht University. This work may lead to publication in scientific journals within the field or new drug patents or protocols.
Graduates of this program may go on to undertake research in drug innovation at universities, in the pharmaceutical or biotechnology industry, or to work in science or healthcare.
Program Outcome
Drug innovation is an interdisciplinary field, which pulls together expertise from chemical, biological, and medical sciences. This interdisciplinarity is central to the search for new solutions to currently incurable diseases. You will contribute to this field by undertaking two internships over a total of 15 months and submitting a writing assignment.
Graduated?
After graduation, you will have the skills needed to translate a drug-related problem into a relevant research question and will also be able to design and perform the research needed to solve this question. Finally, you will also be able to critically reflect on your own research and report on it, both verbally and in writing. These skills are highly transferable and will enable you to work independently within a competitive labor market.
Curriculum
Tracks
Experimental Pharmacology
A general definition of pharmacology is the science of drug action on biological systems. If you choose this track, you will take a theoretical course (course DI-411) and will submit two research projects (a major and minor project) and a writing assignment. You will be able to address a wide range of pharmacological issues in your research projects, which should each focus on a different subject e.g. you could focus on molecular pharmacology in one project and cellular pharmacology in the other. The projects and the writing assignment should also cover different research fields such as psychopharmacology, immunopharmacology, cardiovascular pharmacology, or another field in which pharmacology plays an important role.
Drug Regulatory Sciences
Drug Regulatory Sciences concerns the initial application phase for a new or generic drug, as well as the licensing and marketing of these drugs. All activities relating to the development of a drug, as well as the products themselves, need to comply with safety and efficacy standards set by national and international regulators.
In this profile, you will submit a minor research project, to be carried out at a pharmaceutical company, the Dutch Medicines Board (MEB), or the World Health Organisation (WHO), which will be guided by the profile coordinator. By the end of this specialization, you will be equipped with expertise in the regulatory affairs surrounding pharmaceutical products.
Career Opportunities
Graduates with an MSc in Drug Innovation will be eligible for many Ph.D. programs. As soon as you graduate with a Ph.D., and if you want to pursue a career in academia, you can aim for a post-doctoral fellowship. After that, you can then opt for either an assistant, associate, or full professorship role, which occurs mostly through tenure tracks. You can also choose to contribute to drug innovation within research institutes, any of the growing number of pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies (ranging from a small start-up to ‘big pharma’), or health care organizations. After completing the Drug Regulatory Sciences profile, you can find jobs in regulatory affairs, often even without a Ph.D. program. Other opportunities in the same institutes or companies include careers in business, administration, and education.
Academic careers
About 66% of the MSc graduates aim for a Ph.D. program. This is divided into 30% of the PhDs that stay in Utrecht, 19% that prefer other universities in the Netherlands, while 17% opt for international universities like Cornell University, Oxford University, Imperial College London, and others. Ph.D. graduates either wish to find a career in academia or they want to prepare for positions in institutes or industry.
Professional careers
About 30% of Drug Innovation students choose a profile in Communication and Education, Science and Business, or Drug Regulatory Sciences. They go on to pursue a career within research-intensive institutes and professionalize further in, for example, management, teaching, communications, or find employment in drug evaluation boards and health care (e.g. industrial regulatory affairs, clinical research, or policymaking).
The pharmaceutical and biotechnology industry is one of the most research-intensive industries, allocating up to 20% of budgets to R&D. This means that Drug Innovation students with an additional Ph.D. degree have excellent job prospects. Working in an industry without a Ph.D. degree is possible but occurs only occasionally.
Recent data show that approximately 9% of students choose a career in industry after their Master’s Drug Innovation. Others seek a career as a clinical research associate (7%), a consultant (4%), in government (4%), or as a teacher (2%).