Pharmaceutical Technology: Discovery, Development and Production - Master's Programme

The Master’s programme in Pharmaceutical Technology will prepare you for an exciting career in pharmaceuticals, no matter if you aim for working in the pharmaceutical industry, regulatory authorities or for future PhD studies. The programme is one of few with a broad approach that includes the entire pharmaceutical process; from discovery and identification of the active substance, to the development and production of the final drug, covering both biomolecules and small organic pharmaceutical molecules. The programme aims to expose students to as authentic industrial development scenarios as possible, with strong emphasis on laboratory practice and project-based learning.

Programme focus areas

• Small organic molecule drug discovery including pharmacology
• Biological drug discovery including pharmacology
• Product development, production and quality assurance

The programme engages teachers from several strong interdisciplinary research departments at Lund University. It builds on well-established collaborations with the pharmaceutical industry as well as with other national and international, highly ranked, universities. For the final Master’s thesis project, these collaborations will provide excellent opportunities for research at Lund University and beyond, within a wide range of pharmacy-related research areas, in either academia or industry. Students in this programme will become part of a strong international research environment with access to excellent lab facilities and key equipment utilised within the pharma industry.

Programme structure

Compulsory courses will secure that all students, independent of specialisation later on, gain general and sufficient in-depth knowledge for the discovery and product development of both small organic molecules and biologic pharmaceuticals as well as in formulation and production. During project courses, the students will choose to focus on either biologic pharmaceuticals or small organic molecules therapeutics and obtain more detailed, in-depth knowledge and skills in the respective area. Skills related to team work, project planning and management, practical lab work and documentation will be trained. Furthermore, the project courses will cover other aspects of the drug development chain, such as patents, preclinical and clinical trials as well as regulatory questions. GMP basics are included in the programme and students also have the possibility to gain deeper insights into quality assurance. 
The programme is concluded with a Master degree project.

Full list of courses in this programme: https://www.lth.se/english/study/talak

Career prospects

The pharmaceutical industry experiences a continuing and growing demand for the recruitment of highly skilled employees with insight and knowledge covering the entire development process leading to a drug. Graduates of the programme will be well-prepared to meet future challenges in an international, multidisciplinary pharmaceutic environment.

The programme is closely connected to one of northern Europe’s strongest biotech regions, the Medicon Valley, hosting at least 200 international pharmaceutical companies and affiliates. Globally, the trend of small companies delivering lead compounds, analytical methods, and advanced formulation solutions to large pharmaceutical companies is widely spreading. This is a rapidly growing industry in need of qualified employees.

A likely first position for a student from this programme would be as organic or analytical chemist, as biochemist developing new biological pharmaceutical substances, as formulator of new drug products, at a position in the quality assurance field or within a regulatory authority. Alternatively, graduates could aim for further specialised studies as a PhD student.