Master in Medical and Pharmaceutical Biotechnology

Master in Medical and Pharmaceutical Biotechnology is one of 6 English-taught Biotechnology programmes at master’s level in the register, offered by 6 institutions. 6 of them list an annual fee for students from outside the EU, EEA and Switzerland, from EUR 727 to EUR 1,453; this programme lists EUR 727 a year. 3 are at a public university, where EU, EEA and Swiss students pay no tuition within the standard duration plus two semesters.

What you study

This master's builds on a natural sciences background and shifts the focus to methods and problem solving. You look at how biopharmaceuticals are identified, characterised and manufactured, and at the legal framework and quality assurance that go with that. The curriculum covers Health, Disease and Therapeutical Strategies, Process Design, Bioprocess Technology and Analytical Methods in Life Sciences. You also take modules in bioethics, legislation for drugs and medical devices, quality management and regulations, pharmaceutical project management, and integrative methods such as biostatistics, structural bioinformatics and systems biology. The programme uses techniques like shotgun proteomics for computerised bioinformatic analysis of a cell's proteins, and culturing "mini tumours" to predict how cancer treatments will work. You also get training in development, application and production methods for quality-assured tissue and organ replacements.

How the programme is organised

The degree runs full time over four semesters and 120 ECTS. You choose one of two electives from the first semester: Bioprocess Engineering or Advanced Therapeutics Development. Bioprocess Engineering covers process automation and fermentation, with practicals using analytical techniques from online methods to LC-MS for proteomics. Advanced Therapeutics Development looks at active ingredients and their mechanisms, with a lab course reproducing early drug development stages and a journal club. The research semester is a core element. Lectures in semesters three and four are online, so you can spend up to a year at a biotech company or research facility in Austria or abroad, for example MIT or Karolinska Institutet, working on a project that forms the basis of your master thesis. You return to university only for the final master examination. About 40 lecturers from research and industry teach on the programme, and there is plenty of lab work. The Institute Krems Bioanalytics, which does contract research in immunogenicity and biomedical mass spectrometry, offers internships and PhD opportunities. A dual degree with Linköping University in Sweden is available, adding the Experimental and Medical Biosciences programme there.

Who it suits

You should have a bachelor's in a related field, such as the Medical and Pharmaceutical Biotechnology bachelor at IMC Krems or another natural sciences programme. The master suits people who want to work in the pharmaceutical industry or research, and who are ready to take more responsibility for their own specialisation. If you want to spend a long stretch in industry or a research institute before you finish, the research semester is built for that. The international mix of study groups, joint lectures and exchange options through Erasmus+ and the Marshall Plan Foundation also suits students who want experience abroad.

Admission, language and next steps

The teaching language is English. Applications go directly to IMC Krems, not through a central portal. The programme page gives the application period, with a deadline of 15 May and an earlier date of 15 April for non-EU nationals. As a university of applied sciences, IMC Krems sets its own fees. The programme page lists a study fee of 363.36 EUR, and you should check the current figure and what it covers on the institution's site. The degree awarded is Master of Science in Engineering, MSc.

On the master programme, students enhance your methods-based and problem-solving competencies, putting them in a position to overcome the challenges associated with developing and producing innovative treatments for cancer, autoimmune conditions and neurodegenerative diseases. They will use cutting-edge and interdisciplinary methods, such as culturing “mini tumours” to help predict the effects of cancer treatments.

There is no central application portal in Austria: you apply to the institution, here IMC Krems University of Applied Sciences. Universities of applied sciences set their own application periods and admission procedures, so read them on the programme page. Entrance examination, as the register states it: Admission procedure. Entry requirements and language tests are set by the institution, so start from the official programme page. Our guides cover tuition fees, the student residence permit and housing.