MPhil in Therapeutic Sciences

University of Cambridge

The course aims to select a cohort of students with the skills, motivation and ability to excel to create the next generation of scientific and business leaders in the therapeutics and healthcare sector. This highly multi-disciplinary course is co-developed and co-delivered with industry experts. Students will develop an understanding of the mechanisms underlying normal function and subsequent dysfunction in human diseases and their amelioration or cure with advanced therapeutic regimes. The program provides students with the tools and skills necessary to understand, develop and implement modern cutting-edge techniques in therapeutic sciences and covers a range of conventional and novel therapeutic modalities, including understanding biological pathways and therapeutic mechanisms, diagnostic and prognostic tools, identifying novel targets, and characterizing the pharmacologic profiles of new compounds, including adverse effects and toxicity. The close industry partner involvement in the development and delivery of the course sets it apart from others in the UK and internationally. Students will benefit greatly from the academic expertise and real-world insights which will be brought together in the proposed academic-industry partnership. The course covers conventional small molecule drugs and novel therapeutics approaches from recombinant protein technologies, gene therapy, to cell-based therapies, regenerative medicine and others. Students will also learn the social, financial, ethical, legal and policy implications of the introduction of new therapies, and we therefore propose to link this training very closely to industrial, entrepreneurial, and regulatory activities to encourage students to consider their studies in a society-wide context. The aims of this one-year, full-time, training course are to: Give the student relevant teaching of modern therapeutic science research and translation Expose them to a variety of research and commercial environments at different developmental stages, instilling the drivers and decision making required at each stage Introduce them to the basic theoretical and quantitative skills of experimental design, project management, time management etc. needed in research Familiarise the student with the practicalities of scientific research Introduce them to basic analytical techniques needed to understand and contextualise their research Train students, by practice, in effective teamwork and basic scientific writing and presentation skills Instil within students the importance of the scientific method and the diligence required in the planning and execution of research in an academic or industrial environment The course will also: Attract students from a wide range of science, medicine and technology backgrounds by providing taught modules and interactive sessions Give students the necessary broad understanding of current therapeutic developments and trends to prepare them for future employment within appropriate sectors Provide students with adequate experience and mentoring in therapeutic sciences to enable them to make an informed choice of PhD project or to move into an appropriate commercial environment.

Faculty of Biology