UNIVERSITY OF BRADFORD:
Postgraduate Programme specificationSchool of Management, Faculty of Management and Law with Faculty of Life Sciences
Programme title: MSc Science and Entrepreneurship
Awarding and teaching institution: / University of BradfordFinal award and interim award(s): / MSc [Framework for Higher Education Qualifications level 7]
PGDip [Framework for Higher Education Qualifications level 7]
PGCert [Framework for Higher Education Qualifications level 7]
Programme title: / Science and Entrepreneurship
Programme approved / accredited by:
Relevant subject benchmark statement(s):
FHEQ Level: / QAA Master’s degree in Business and Management (2007)
7
Duration: / 1 Year (full-time)
UCAS code:
Date produced: / May 2013
Last updated : / 14th November 2014
Introduction
Life Sciences continue to advance rapidly across all disciplines with rapid rates of innovation, often multidisciplinary, in chemistry, healthcare, clinical diagnosis, drug development and drug delivery. The introduction of such innovations however needs to mesh with the regulatory requirements of the global market. Industry needs postgraduates and entrepreneurs who can operate in an innovative and rapidly changing environment whilst understanding the need to meet regulatory and quality needs.
This exciting interdisciplinary MSc programme equips forward thinking graduates with skills that are in high demand by combining entrepreneurship with advanced understanding of technology and practical implementation. It provides you with a profile of skills and knowledge that will enable you to be more enterprising and innovative in your future career in science, either as an entrepreneur in your own business or as a professional working either in large organisations or small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs). SMEs are increasingly the drivers of innovation in science. By their nature they need enterprising staff with a wide range of skills and knowledge.
The MSc builds on our expertise within the School of Life Sciences and at the School of Management. Students will benefit from strong partnerships with entrepreneurial organisations, including our own spin out companies, external companies linked to our BioIncubator programme and other innovative commercial activities of the Schools. Our range of expertise and partnerships will provide real life examples of the practicalities of business start-up in highly competitive and highly regulated markets.
The MSc in Science and Entrepreneurship will enable you to advance your specialist knowledge and understanding of a particular area of science whilst also learning how to identify opportunities and turn ideas into reality. The science specialties available include Analytical Chemistry, Biomedical Science, Cancer Pharmacology, Cancer Drug Discovery, Pharmaceutical Technologies and Toxicology and Safety Pharmacology.
Experts in the School of Management will teach you the fundamentals of business as well as how to identify opportunities, research markets and develop commercialisation plans. You will also have the opportunity to gain an understanding of the global regulatory framework and how innovations can be protected through the patenting process.
The capstone of the MSc is an Entrepreneurship Project which is a practical exercise in bringing forward innovative ideas supervised by experts from the School of Life Sciences and from the School of Management. Learning objectives for the Entrepreneurship Project are negotiated to suit your individual needs and interests. Whether you are looking to set up your own business or have ambitions to be an innovative science professional in an SME, the MSc in Science and Entrepreneurship will set you apart.
The programme is one of a suite of ‘Entrepreneurship Science and Technology’ programmes that is offered by the University of Bradford, linking Management and Entrepreneurship with Media, Design and Technology, Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, and Life Sciences. You will benefit from working with students from other disciplines which will engender creativity, cross-fertilisation of ideas and testing of concepts from alternative viewpoints. On graduation from this programme you will be able to apply your new knowledge and skills in a wide range of business and entrepreneurial environments.
The programme is commensurate with the UK QAA Benchmark for a Type 1 specialist Master’s degree in business and management and is suitable for students from a wide range of backgrounds with first degrees in science disciplines from a recognised higher education institution or equivalent professional qualifications and relevant work experience. Structured in three distinct stages (see below for further details) the programme represents 1800 hours of study or 180 UK credits, necessary for the award of a Master’s degree.
Programme Aims
This programme is intended to:
A1. Develop you as an enterprising professional with a sound understanding of technology driven organisations, including the external and internal scientific and regulatory contexts within which they operate
A2. Help you to develop competences to realise your entrepreneurial ambitions and act as an “agent for change” either as an entrepreneur or as an enterprising employee, who understands the functions and environment of organisations and can shape the technology management agenda
A3. Build on your background in science and technology to develop your knowledge and understanding of the interrelationship between scientific project design and entrepreneurship including resource and financial planning, innovation management and intellectual property
A4. Provide training in discipline skills to enable you to pursue a career in technology, science, management or entrepreneurial practice
A5. Develop personal transferable skills to enable you to work co-operatively, constructively and effectively so that you can encourage innovation in business or academic environments
A6. Develop your reflective skills to enable you to reflect on your own performance and the impact of your actions in order to manage your own professional development.
Programme Learning Outcomes
When you have successfully completed the programme, you will be able to:
L01. Work co-operatively and effectively within a cross-disciplinary team to creatively develop and evaluate original entrepreneurial ideas (PGC2&3, PGD, MSc)
L02. Explain the context in which technology driven organisations conduct their business and how the business environment influences entrepreneurial decision making in a national and international context (PGC 2&3, PGD, MSc)
L03. Understand how scientific development and project planning link to business planning and regulatory compliance in entrepreneurial practice (PGC3, PGD, MSc)
L04. Demonstrate a critical and detailed awareness of the functional activities of a business and the difficulties and management complexities that arise because of the interrelationships that exist between them (PGD, MSc)
L05. Explain and critically evaluate the key issues in technology management and in establishing, financing and sustaining new ventures (PGD, MSc)
L06. Demonstrate understanding and critical awareness of how innovation and intellectual property drive the development of science and technology based companies (PGC1, PGD, MSc)
L07. Synthesise and critically appraise emerging information and knowledge using quantitative and qualitative techniques to generate creative solutions to a range of technology based entrepreneurial opportunities (PGD, MSc)
L08. Design, conduct and manage research into a range of technology and business management issues/activities to inform the development of business ventures and strategies (PGD, MSc)
L09. Identify issues and opportunities and develop solutions to complex problems through the application of appropriate scientific techniques, theories and principles and entrepreneurial models. (PGD, MSc)
L10. Effectively communicate complex ideas clearly, both orally and in writing to a broad range of recipients. (PGC 1, 2 &3, PGD, MSc)
L11. Demonstrate the knowledge and skills required to innovate and act entrepreneurially through critical self-awareness, networking and reflective practice (PGC 2 &3, PGD, MSc)
If you complete an MSc in Science and Entrepreneurship by carrying out the project, in addition to the above, you will be able to:
L12. Demonstrate an in-depth and rigorous understanding of the subject of your entrepreneurship project. (MSc)
L13. Identify and critically evaluate the key issues for entrepreneurship in your subject area. (MSc)
L14. Formulate strategies for successful research and implementation of an innovative or entrepreneurial idea that is relevant to the current context.(MSc)
L15. Demonstrate the organising and project management skills to manage a large, complex task. (MSc)
L16. Identify and collect relevant data, analyse them rigorously and communicate findings effectively. (MSc)
Curriculum
The Masters degree in Science, Technology and Entrepreneurship will build specialist knowledge of science from the School of Life Sciences alongside the suite of entrepreneurship and innovation modules offered by BRITE (Bradford Research on Innovation Technology and Entrepreneurship) in the School of Management.
Semester 1 emphasises advancing knowledge of scientific specialisms along with developing a broad understanding of key areas of management. In Semester 2, you will take further modules in your specialist subject alongside three compulsory modules in entrepreneurship, innovation and intellectual property. All of the Life Science options include development of transferable research skills.
The core module in Entrepreneurship Issues and Context runs throughout the year to develop advanced problem solving skills and understanding of real issues in an entrepreneurial context. This module underpins all the other subjects and provides opportunities to work together with entrepreneurship students from other disciplines, supporting you to develop practical skills, such as problem solving, presenting, project management, collaboration, communication and research. The module will help you to understand real world issues from an entrepreneurial perspective and will prepare you for your Entrepreneurship Project. The training introduces you to the methods, tools and techniques of business research and project management so that you are able to design, define, scope and plan your Entrepreneurship Project. Entrepreneurship Issues and Context is a 30 credit module and runs across all semesters but the assessment demands increase through the year with 10% of the assessment in Semester 1, 30% in Semester 2 and 60% in early Summer.
In the final part of the MSc programme you will be required to undertake a personal Entrepreneurship Project, jointly supervised by experts from the School of Management and School of Lifesciences. The idea for the project will come from you, and your supervisors will help you to shape it into a manageable project. The project could include, for example, an original and in-depth investigation of an entrepreneurial idea or innovation, or a plan of how to turn an idea into a sustainable business. The project will be assessed on an individual basis and you will be able to negotiate individual objectives that are appropriate to you. The 40 Credit Entrepreneurship Project will represent approximately 400 hours of study time.
On completion of this element of the programme you will have demonstrated the ability to conduct research into real entrepreneurial problems, to negotiate terms and to pitch ideas. Throughout the programme, you will be engaged with real companies, entrepreneurs and innovators.
Each 10 credit module represents approximately 100 hours’ study time of which typically 24 hours is contact time with the course tutor(s) and the remaining 76 hours is made up of reading, research, project work and assessment. Modules will be taught by School of Lifesciences and School of Management staff, assisted by guest entrepreneurs, innovators and media specialists.
Postgraduate Certificate [FHEQ Level 7]
Students are eligible for three different types of Postgraduate Certificate (PGC) depending on the credits associated with the learning outcomes they achieved at the exit of the programme.
In order to qualify for a PGC (1) in Science, you must pass modules totalling 60 credits or more but less than 120 credits in science modules.
In order to qualify for a PGC (2) in Entrepreneurship, you must pass modules totalling 60 credits or more but less than 120 credits in Entrepreneurship.
In order to qualify for a PGC (3) in Science and Entrepreneurship, you must pass modules totalling 60 credits or more but less than 120 credits to include at least 30 credits from Entrepreneurship modules and 30 credits from Science modules.
Postgraduate Diploma [FHEQ Level 7]
The programme provides six options through the School of Life Sciences which align with the scientific disciplines of Analytical Science, Biomedical Science, Cancer Drug Discovery, Cancer Pharmacology, Toxicology and Safety Pharmacology and Pharmaceutical Technologies. A Postgraduate Diploma will be awarded to candidates who successfully complete one hundred and twenty (120) credits with a minimum of 60 credits in Life Science modules and 30 credits from the Entrepreneurship Issues and Context module, with the remaining credits from the following core modules.
Module Code / Module Title / Type / Credits / Level / Study periodMAN4154M / Finance and Accounting / Core / 10 / 7 / 1
MAN4146M / Marketing, Planning & Strategy / Core / 10 / 7 / 1
MAN4516J / Entrepreneurship Issues and Context / Core / 30 / 7 / 1, 2 and 3
MAN4284M / Entrepreneurship and Innovation / Core / 10 / 7 / 2
MAN4302M / Technology and Innovation Management / Core / 10 / 7 / 2
MAN4320M / Applied Intellectual Property and Environmental Law / Core / 10 / 7 / 2
Life Sciences Module options
Option 1: Analytical Sciences
Module Code / Module Title / Type / Credits / Level / Study periodLIF-4003D / Fundamentals of Analytical Science / Core / 20 / 7 / 1
LIF-4013M / Project Management / Core / 10 / 7 / 1
LIF-4008L / Professional Development / Core / 20 / 7 / 1 and 2
Choice of applied instrumentation modules / Core / 10 / 7 / 2
Option 2: Biomedical Sciences
Module Code / Module Title / Type / Credits / Level / Study periodAR-7001M / Quantitative Methods for Life Sciences / C / 10 / 7 / 1
BM-9146V / Personal & Professional Development in Biomedical Science / C / 30 / 7 / 1 + 2
BM-9132L / Research & Analytical Methods / C / 20 / 7 / 1 + 2
Option 3: Cancer Pharmacology
Module Code / Module Title / Type / Credits / Level / Study periodCR-4008L / Research and analytical methods / Core / 20 / 7 / 1
CR-4001D / Preclinical models in pharmacology / Core / 20 / 7 / 1
CR-4009D / Experimental design / Core / 20 / 7 / 2
Option 4: Cancer Drug Discovery
Module Code / Module Title / Type / Credits / Level / Study periodCR-4008L / Research and analytical methods / Core / 20 / 7 / 1
CR-4016D / Principles of drug discovery / Core / 20 / 7 / 1
CR-4009D / Experimental design / Core / 20 / 7 / 2
Option 5: Toxicology and Safety Pharmacology
Module Code / Module Title / Type / Credits / Level / Study periodCR-4008L / Research and analytical methods / Core / 20 / 7 / 1
CR-4006D / Toxicology and safety pharmacology / Core / 20 / 7 / 1
CR-4009D / Experimental design / Core / 20 / 7 / 2
Option 6: Pharmaceutical Technologies
Module Code / Module Title / Type / Credits / Level / Study periodPH-4035D / Fundamentals of pharmaceutical formulation development / Core / 20 / 7 / 1
PH-4037D / Science of solid dosage forms and pharmaceutical technologies / Core / 20 / 7 / 1
PH-4040D / Process analytical technology and quality by design / Core / 20 / 7 / 2
Masters [FHEQ Level 7]