Educational goals

The Master's degree course in Medical and Pharmaceutical Biotechnologies sets out to prepare highly qualified graduates to devise and conduct analysis and research activities, both technological and experimental, as well as R&D in biotechnology in the various biomedical and pharmaceutical areas of interest. The first year of the Course is the same for all students, in which the specific objectives are to enable the student, through classroom lecturing and significant experience in experimental work, to acquire competences and knowledge on the fundamentals of biotechnology and the causes of disease. Knowledge will be imparted in the following areas: stem cells and their use in various fields of research; - genetics under normal conditions and modifications in diseases; - engineered proteins and RNA technology, as well as their dynamic interaction (system biology); - biotechnological applications in biochemical/biomolecular diagnostics and the development of biological markers; - biochemical and physiological aspects of human cells, tissues and organisms; - human pathological processes, be they infectious, metabolic, degenerative or tumourous in nature, with reference to their cellular and molecular mechanisms; In the second year of the Course, given the numerous applications of biotechnology in the field of human health, students are offered a choice between two different study paths: one medical, the other pharmaceutical. The medical, or rather biomedical, path is oriented towards the study of subjects referring to the pathogenetic mechanisms of human diseases, non-pharmaceutical (vaccines, biological drugs, gene and cell therapy) and pharmaceutical treatments. The pharmaceutical pathway, on the other hand, is oriented towards the study of biotechnology applied to the design, research and development and analysis of innovative biotechnological drugs. In the second semester of the second year, students may explore very specific aspects of biotechnology, being given a limited opportunity to customise their educational path. The medical part of the Course may for instance include in-depth knowledge of human reproduction techniques, imaging, molecular techniques and forensic toxicology, tissue engineering, histopathology as well as advanced statistics and bioinformatics studies. On the pharmaceutical side, possible studies include the basics of 'synthetic biology', biomacromolecule analysis techniques, experimental design and the scientific method. The Course consists of lectures, seminars, practical sessions in the laboratory, and an internship for the preparation of an original thesis. The student may decide to undertake the internship in a laboratory of his or her choice: in University departments, companies, scientific research institutes, research institutes and foundations. Finally, the Master's degree course in Medical and Pharmaceutical Biotechnologies has introduced a considerable number of laboratory hours, conducted in small groups in laboratories equipped with state-of-the-art instrumentation.

Career opportunities

Medical/Pharmaceutical Biotechnologist. Graduates in Medical and Pharmaceutical Biotechnologies will, for example, be able to seek employment in the following organisations: - Pharmaceutical/biotechnological/biomedical companies, including those operating in the regenerative and molecular medicine sectors - Public or private hospital laboratories - Pharmaceutical industries - R&D laboratories and industrial production units - Biotechnological service centres - Biotech companies - Public and private universities and research institutes

Admission requirements

For admission to the Medical and Pharmaceutical Biotechnologies Master’s degree course, students must hold a bachelor’s degree (which may be a bachelor’s degree obtained according to the regulations in force prior to Ministerial Decree 509/1999), or a three-year university diploma, or another qualification obtained abroad, recognised as suitable by the competent bodies of the University. Furthermore, as the entire course is taught in English, the student must have a knowledge of English corresponding to level B2 or higher of the CEF (Common European Framework). The curricular requirements for direct enrolment are a bachelor's degree awarded in Italy in one of the following classes under Ministerial Decree 270/2004 and corresponding classes pursuant to Ministerial Decree 509/1999: L-2 Biotechnology, L-13 Biological Sciences, LM-13 Pharmacy and Industrial Pharmacy (including single-cycle degree in Chemistry and Pharmaceutical Technologies), LM-41 Medicine and Surgery. Graduates holding a foreign degree will be assessed for equivalence with the above-mentioned classes. If the prospective student is not a graduate of one of the above-mentioned classes, the curricular requirements are nevertheless deemed to have been met if the student has acquired a minimum number of CFUs in the following scientific-disciplinary sectors listed below: - a minimum of 10 CFUs in the subjects of mathematics, physics, computer science and statistics, corresponding to the following scientific-disciplinary sectors: from FIS/01 to FIS/08, from MAT/01 to MAT/09, INF/01, MED/01, SECS-S/01, SECS-S/02; - a minimum of 10 CFUs in chemistry and biology subjects corresponding to the following scientific-disciplinary sectors: CHIM/01, CHIM/02, CHIM/03, CHIM/06, BIO/01, BIO/10, BIO/11, BIO/13, BIO/17, BIO/18, BIO/19; - a minimum of 20 CFUs in biotechnology subjects corresponding to the following scientific-disciplinary sectors: from BIO/01 to BIO/07, BIO/09 from BIO/12 to BIO/19, from CHIM/01 to CHIM/05, from CHIM/08 to CHIM/11, MED/03, MED/04, MED/05, MED/07, MED/09, MED/13, MED/15, MED/42. The readiness of students will be verified in a selection process, the contents and methods of which will be described in the specific Call for Applications, in accordance with the provisions of the Course's Academic Regulations. The Evaluation Panel may refer candidates with serious knowledge gaps to ad hoc tutor support.