Are you a Pharmaceutical Business Administration, Health Care, Chemistry or Life Sciences student? And are you keen on a future in the pharmaceutical industry? Our Minor International Pharmaceutical Studies (IPS) enhances your knowledge by focusing on both the business and drug development side of new drugs. You will work in small groups (teams of 4), allowing for an intensive, international learning environment. Excursions are part of the program.

Content

The International Pharmaceutical Studies (IPS) minor program is aimed at understanding business aspects as well as drug development processes within the pharmaceutical industry and affiliated businesses. It covers all phases and aspects of the drug development process, both pre-clinical and clinical.

You will work in project teams to discover, develop, and bring to the market a (fictive) new medicine. There will be English classes to improve your professional English. You will also attend guest lectures from experts from the pharmaceutical industry and other affiliated businesses. In addition, there are several excursions, including a 3-day international excursion. Guest lectures and excursions are mandatory parts of the Minor.

Additional costs:
Approximately €100,- (for overnight stay and meals during international excursion).

Courses

The programme consists of the following courses:

Term A: Pharmaceutical Industry & Pre-clinical Drug Development - 15EC

Term B: Clinical Drug Development, Registration & Marketing - 15EC

Term A provides an overview of pharmaceutical businesses across the world, defining recent movements and trends. You will also study the pre-clinical drug development process and start your Minor project: the design and development of a new drug.

Term B covers clinical drug development, international clinical studies, and trial management. You will also learn about registering and marketing pharmaceutics. All will be done within the Minor project: the development of a new drug.

After completing this minor, you will be able to describe all aspects of the drug development process:

• Pre-clinical: target identification, compound screening, pharmacological and toxicological testing.
• Clinical: phase 1, 2, 3 registration and (post) marketing.

Next to this, you will work on and improve your professional communication skills in English (speaking as well as writing), as well as your professional attitude and collaboration skills which you have displayed by your work within a team.

To enter the IPS minor programme, you must have the propaedeutic diploma.

As this Minor is a full-time in-house program, it is not suitable for part-time and/or flexstudents (exceptions may be possible after consultation with the Minor coordinator).

The following literature will be used during the minor.

• Hill, R.G. and Richards, D.B. (2021). Drug Discovery and Development (3rd edition). Elsevier.
  (mandatory to have)

This is a full-time program. Contact hours at HU are Wednesdays and Fridays. On other days, project teams will work on weekly assignments. Excursions may be on other weekdays. Classes will not be after 7 p.m.

Due to the nature of the Minor (group work, mandatory guest lectures/excursions, full-time program) following the minor in an adapted form needs to be discussed with the Minor coordinator (programma op maat).

With the exception of the first teaching period of the academic year (starting September), the lesson and test schedules are always posted on Mijn Rooster four weeks before the start of each teaching period. The schedule for the first teaching period of the academic year can be found on the site three weeks before the start. The most up-to-date schedule is always visible on Mijn Rooster.

Your grades will be based on individual assignments and project group (n=4) assignments. The final grade per term will be based on 4 (term A) or 5 (term B) different grades:

• individual grade for presentations;
• group grades for presentations (only term B);
• individual grade for part of written portfolio;
• group grade for part of a written portfolio;
• a grade for professional conduct/collaboration will also be part of the final grade.

Signed learning agreements can be uploaded up to and including 28 June 2024 in Osiris Registration, see the instructions on the learning agreement or check our site. Learning agreements that are received after 28 June will not be processed. 

Please note: Learning Agreements will be considered in order of entry in Osiris Application (first come, first serve). A submitted learning agreement will not entitle you to a spot within a minor unless the following is the case:

* the minor is not yet full: each minor has a maximum number of places per period;
* the student has submitted the learning agreement in full (including his/her own details and signature and the stamp of the examination board);
* HU has signed and stamped the learning agreement.