Drug Development Science

This programme is for those working in or seeking to work in the field of clinical drug development. It covers all aspects of the clinical development process through from the earliest studies to post marketing activities. It will enhance knowledge and skills in all aspects of clinical research, drug regulation and drug safety

Pharmaceutical Medicine is the medical scientific discipline concerned with the discovery, development, evaluation, registration, monitoring and medical aspects of the marketing of medicines for the benefit of patients and the health of the community.

In this rapidly expanding field of medicine there is a need for high quality education programmes that are compliant with the PharmaTrain initiative of the European Commission, but also with the Bologna Process. The programmes at King’s are the first in the UK that meet both of these requirements. This, plus the opportunity to study at a world class university makes King’s the ideal place at which to study for one of these MSc subjects.

Clinical Pharmacology is the study of how drugs influence human physiology and the way the body handles drugs. It is a vital part of the early clinical development of new medicines. It requires an understanding of preclinical science, ethical and legal requirements for clinical research programmes and how to design and interpret individual clinical trials. A well designed clinical pharmacology programme informs the final regulatory of a new medicine. Generating skilled clinical pharmacologists is therefore vital to ensure that new medicines are efficiently developed.

Translational Medicine is an emerging and highly topical discipline that involves the translation of science from the bench to the bedside, and much of this is focussed on novel drug therapies. The bank of in vitro, pre-clinical and human testing required to do this often leaves scientists bemused, but experts in translational medicine can plot a pathway to enable the very best therapies to be tested in human subjects.

The MSc programmes will not only equip the students with a broad knowledge and understanding of the whole of the drug development process and the medical aspects of the marketing of pharmaceutical products but also give them the opportunity to undertake a research project that will enable them to apply these skills and should lead to one or more publications.

Each module in this programme is delivered as a distinct, intensive 4 or 5 day taught course, plus pre and post-course reading and assignments. Each module can also be taken as a standalone module.