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MSc Drug Development

G

I've been offered a place at Aberdeen Uni for a masters in drug development, there is only one week to decide if I shall join the course or not. I'm on the cusp of rejecting the offer as I am not convinced it is worth it. Can anyone please, advise if such degree would help my employability in the pharmaceutical industry. I'd most likely enjoy working in the regulatory/pharmacovigilance sector where I've also gained some experience since finishing uni last year. Any useful ideas or comments would be of great assistance!!!
Thanks!

H

Hmm. I know very little about Pharma, but the industry does seem to struggle more than it used to, and not just because of the economy. It's hard to come up with new 'best seller' drugs that recoup the costs ploughed into R&D. There seems to be an awful lot of trying to license existing drugs for new indications, or making small molecular tweaks to enable new patents to come out, rather than brand new drug development. But that is my partially-informed, outsider's perspective, so I could be wrong!

If you're interested in Pharmacovigilance, you might be better off pursuing an epidemiology/medical stats route. Essentially that kind of research requires working with large data sets and hunting for patterns. I have colleagues who do that kind of thing, and confidence with stats/data handling seems more important than pharmacology knowledge. Might be worth checking out the MHRA website to see whether you can get a feel for the skills and qualifications they deem important in regulatory/'post marketing surveillance' roles.

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