Course Summary
Pharmaceutical science is the study of the formulation, development and manufacture of new drugs. Pharmaceutical scientists have the power to transform patients’ lives by developing new treatments for diseases.
This new and already popular course will take you inside this complex and ever-expanding field of discovery.
Pharmaceutical science encompasses chemistry, biochemistry, pharmacology, toxicology and physiology. It looks at how different drugs act on the human body and how their healing effects can be safely used.
We’ll introduce you to a diverse selection of subjects to help you gain an insight into the development, design, delivery and use of new drugs. This thorough background will ensure that a wide range of career choices will be open to you when you graduate.
You’ll be entitled to become a student member of the Academy of Pharmaceutical Sciences (APS), the professional body for Pharmaceutical Sciences in the UK.
This course offers the opportunity of year-long work placement between years two and three. If you choose to take this option, you’ll spend your third year working in the pharmaceutical industry, adding valuable practical experience to your growing academic knowledge.
The first year of this course is shared with other Biosciences degrees at UEL, giving you maximum flexibility if you decide to transfer to a different course for years two and three.
WHAT YOU'LL LEARN
You’ll gain an in-depth knowledge of the pharmaceutical chemistry, including the design and synthesis of new drug molecules. You’ll explore pharmacognosy (drug substances from natural origins), pharmaceutics (turning a new chemical entity or old drugs into a medication that can be used safely) and pharmacology (the effect of drugs on humans).
As with all our bioscience students, your first year will be spent developing knowledge in four key areas – essential chemistry, biochemistry, cell biology and anatomy and physiology.
Your second year is a chance to broaden your knowledge of pharmaceutical science by learning about the biology of disease, the way drugs are made, manufactured and delivered and how drugs work once they’re in the human body.
In your final year, you’ll specialise in areas such as natural sources of drugs and the way drugs are designed and developed and how they are analysed using sophisticated instruments.
You’ll also be working with one of our academic staff during your research towards the completion of your key individual project, which is usually lab-based.
HOW YOU'LL LEARN
One of the hallmarks of a University of East London course is the variety of ways in which you’ll be invited to learn. It could be through lectures, presentations or practical lab sessions in our dedicated pharmaceutical science lab.
You’ll hear from fascinating guest speakers, including industry experts. And you could find yourself, as our previous students have, presenting your own research work at the London BioNat Network Research meeting in front of eminent scientists.
Our supportive, friendly staff are experts in all areas of the subject. They’re led by Dr Mukhlesur Rahman, an internationally renowned expert in the field of drugs discoveries from medicinal plants. His research has been extensively published and he has lectured at major conferences in India and the United States.
Your third-year project will offer you exciting and stimulating research opportunities. Some of Dr Rahman’s students are currently working on projects on medicinal plants, looking for a new compound that might work against the ‘super bug’ MRSA.
We’re keen for you to see at first hand how the pharmaceutical industry works. So we have recently organised visits for our third-year students to the labs of GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), the science-led global healthcare giants.
We’ve also helped organise work placement opportunities for some of our students to work at Herbs in a Bottle – a pharmaceutical company that supplies herbal medicines.
“The way we've designed modular structures of the course, we aim our students to acquire the best possible intellectual and transferable skills for their life-long learning," says Dr Rahman.
"This will not only make them happy in securing a rewarding job but also develop their confidence in critical thinking and problem-solving in pharmaceutical sectors."
Each year you will spend up to 240 hours of timetabled learning and teaching activities. These may be lectures, workshops, seminars and individual and group tutorials. Contact hours may vary depending on each module.
The approximate percentages for this course are:
Year 1: 175 Hours – Taught Sessions, 70 Hours – Practical/IT Workshops, 960 Hours – Independent Learning
Year 2: 185 Hours – Taught Sessions, 55 Hours – Practical/IT Workshops, 960 Hours – Independent Learning
Year 3: 183 Hours – Taught Sessions, 57 Hours – Practical/IT Workshops, 960 Hours – Independent Learning
Who will teach on this course
Barbara Pendry
Dr Mukhlesur Rahman
The teaching team includes qualified academics, practitioners and industry experts as guest speakers. Full details of the academics will be provided in the student handbook and module guides.
YOUR FUTURE CAREER
You’ll find that your degree in pharmaceutical science will be an ideal entry point into a range of careers, giving you plenty of choice about the direction you take.
You could, for example, go on to work with a pharmaceutical company helping to develop new drugs and evaluating their effectiveness.
Pharmaceutical companies employ graduates to help advise customers on the technical aspects of the products they offer. Then there are chemical companies looking for graduates who understand how drugs are developed and have proven analytical skills.
If you’d rather pursue an academic or research-based career, you can build on your BSc with an MSc, MRes or PhD.
Outside the chemical industries, a degree in pharmaceutical science will open up teaching opportunities and careers in finance and accounting.
Whatever your next step, after the contacts you’ve made and the opportunities you’ve had to see the pharmaceutical industry up close during your course, you’ll leave us perfectly prepared to pursue a rewarding career.
The statistics back this up. The latest figures show 81 per cent of UEL’s bioscience graduates are in work within six months of finishing their degree.
How you'll be assessed
We’ll assess you with a mixture of coursework and exams. Coursework includes essays, research reports, group and seminar presentations and a final-year project. Most of the assessment in your first year is by coursework and we’ll give you as much feedback as possible.
In your third year, you’ll either take five core modules or undertake a work placement. We’ll assess you accordingly.
Year 1 – 50% Portfolio/Coursework, 50% Laboratory/Practical/ICT
Year 2 – 33% Written Exam/Timed Assessment, 33% Laboratory/Practical/ICT, 17% Portfolio/Coursework, 8.5% Group Project/Presentation, 8.5% Case Study/PBL
Year 3 – 42% Written Exam/Timed Assessment, 33% Portfolio/Coursework, 25% Laboratory/Practical/ICT
WITH THE PLACEMENT YEAR
This course offers the opportunity of year-long placement between years two and three. If you choose to take this option, you’ll spend your third year on a placement with a relevant company or organisation, adding valuable practical experience to your growing academic knowledge.
The extra placement year means it will take four years to complete your studies, instead of three.
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