Pharmaceutical Sciences BSc

This module provides you with the skills and knowledge of chemistry that will underpin your studies. Emphasis is placed on building a knowledge base around key academic concepts using examples from health to reinforce ideas. You will acquire a range of laboratory skills and learn to analyse and interpret experimental results and relate to theoretical concepts.

This module aims to provide you with an introduction to the biomolecules of life, including structure and function. This leads to an overview of molecular processes involved in disease and associated targets for therapeutic drugs.

This module aims to provide you with the knowledge and understanding of human anatomy and physiology required to underpin your future learning. The unifying theme of homeostasis is used to show how a healthy structure and function are maintained and how failures of homeostasis can result in disease.

This module explores the cell as the basic functional unit of life investigating the structure and function of cell components and introducing the cell cycle and the biology of disease. Concepts of evolution and the principles of inheritance are explained at the molecular level.

This module aims to provide a number of key skills used widely by chemists and pharmaceutical scientists such as mathematics, communication and employability skills. The mathematics component of this module will give you the basic mathematical techniques needed to support your studies. In addition to providing the necessary tools to solving quantitative problems in chemistry, it also helps you better understand chemical concepts such as, how and why reactions happen. The communication and employability skills component will aim to develop communicational, organisational and interpersonal skills and promote career awareness in the field of the chemical and pharmaceutical sciences.

This module provides an introduction into pharmaceutical chemistry. It examines the essential biochemistry on which understanding of medicinal chemistry is built and discusses strategies involved in developing an effective drug.

This module explores pharmacology, from a physiological systems and regulation, cellular and molecular perspective, with particular emphasis on the mechanisms of drug action, clinical application, toxicology and pharmacokinetics.

The module aims to provide you with comprehensive knowledge of medicines design, synthesis and utilisation of some classes of pharmaceuticals. The first part of the module focuses on understanding drug discovery processes and the essential concepts involved in the development of pharmaceutical products. The second part of the module focuses on the study of some of the most important classes of pharmaceuticals.

The module aims to provide you with comprehensive knowledge of the principal concepts involved in pharmaceutical product design and development. The first part of the module focuses on the traditional techniques that are used to analyse, separate, and characterise pharmaceutical compounds. The second part of the module focuses on investigating the main aspects of formulating and manufacturing an active principle ingredient (API). The legislation concerning the production, delivery and control of medicinal products produced by industries will also be explored

The module aims to provide you with the skills necessary to plan, implement, analyse and report project-based work, with the focus on preparation for the final year project module. The module also develops core research skills fundamental to a scientific research design, irrespective of discipline. Specific research skills include analytical techniques appropriate to individual programme requirements.

The module aims to provide you with an insight into the translation of science into real-world solutions and the factors affecting innovation, and knowledge production and transfer. It also aims to give students an understanding of factors influencing the adoption of an innovation and the role played by stakeholders such, as companies, consumers, research institutions and governments in the wider innovation system.

This module is designed to provide you with knowledge of all the key processes involved in bringing a drug to the market and the associated challenges. The first part of the module focuses on the science and technology involved in the discovery process i.e. from identifying a medical need to the discovery of a drug candidate and the second part of the module focuses on the steps required to turn the drug candidate into a product on the market. This module is supported by external speakers covering specialist topics such as, preclinical and human clinical trials, economics of drug discovery, regulatory controls and manufacturing processes.

The module aims to provide the students with an understanding of the action of drugs on the nervous system and when drugs are used. It also provides an appreciation of steps required to develop a new drug.

This module aims to introduce students to the computational approaches to drug design frequently used in the pharmaceutical industry. It is designed to help students gain experience in computational tools used in drug discovery how to interpret results from such experiments with an eye for providing insight to optimising biologically active molecules. This is a practical module comprising weekly workshops where students can learn and practice various methods of computational drug discovery tools.

The module aims to examine advanced bioanalytical techniques that are used in biomedical research, for the analysis of products for improving disease understanding and for the analysis of disease biomarkers. It also provides a detailed understanding of the principles, theory and practice of bioanalytical techniques, including safety, instrumentation, sample preparation techniques together with analysis and interpretation of analytical data.

This module builds on the skills you acquired when undertaking the research methods module in year 2, and from the knowledge gained throughout the programme to date. Further development of analysis, critical thinking and scientific literary style is promoted. You will be enabled to pursue areas of individual interest within the area of pharmaceutical and chemical sciences and will have the opportunity of gaining increased theoretical and practical knowledge in your chosen specialist field.

You will be studying at our leafy north London campus in Hendon and be taught in our Ritterman, Hatchcroft and College buildings.

Whether you are studying full or part-time – your course timetable will balance your study commitments on campus with time for work, life commitments and independent study.

We aim to make timetables available to students at least 2 weeks before the start of term. Some weeks are different due to how we schedule classes and arrange on-campus sessions.

Typical weekly breakdown

During your first year, your weekly timetable will typically consist of:

• 4 hours of lectures
• 2-3 hours of tutorials
• 5-6 hours of supervised practicals
• 1 hour per fortnight of one-to-one meetings
• 1 hour of group work
• Up to 1 hour of support from a Student Learning Advisor
• Up to 2 hours of additional drop-in classes, timetabled as required.

Independent learning

Outside of teaching hours, you’ll learn independently through self-study which will involve reading articles and books, working on projects, undertaking research, and preparing for assessments including coursework, presentations and exams.

Teaching vs independent learning

Here is an indication of how you will split your time:

Year 1

Year 2

Year 3

Our excellent teaching and support teams will help you develop the skills relevant to your degree from research and practical skills to critical thinking. Our Sheppard Library is open 24 hours a day during term time. And we offer free 24-hour laptop loans with full desktop software, free printing and Wi-Fi to use on or off campus, even over the weekend.

Your learning will be assessed regularly and is made up of 100% coursework.

We'll test your understanding and progress with informal and formal tests.

The informal tests usually take place at least once per module, from which you’ll receive feedback from your tutor. The grades from these tests don’t count towards your final marks.

There are formal assessments for each module, usually at the end, which will count towards your module and your final marks.

Assessments are reviewed annually and may be updated based on student feedback or feedback from an external examiner.

To help you achieve the best results, we will provide regular feedback including on formative assessment and summative assessments.