Deadline:
December 01, 2024
Location(s)
Belgium France Netherlands Poland
Ghent, Lille, Groningen, Gdańsk
Overview
Our International Master in Sustainable Drug Discovery (S-DISCO) is a two-year full-time Master programme, organised by four European Universities: i.e. Ghent University, Medical University of Gdańsk, University of Lille and the University of Groningen. S-DISCO master degree has been built through close collaboration between the consortium and industrial players in the field in order to train high-level graduates with inter-and trans-disciplinary skills in the different fields of drug discovery, with a focus on sustainability. The partners will actively participate in the S-DISCO programme by i.a. teaching, holding seminars and providing internships to master thesis students.
Details
Master in short
- 2 years - The S-DISCO programme is a 2-year full-time Master programme.
- 4 universities - The programme is organized by 4 European universities, i.e. Ghent University, Medical University of Gdańsk, University of Lille and the University of Groningen.
- Master thesis - Students will perform a master thesis in one of the partner institutions or with one of the numerous associated partners (incl. industry, competent authorities and research institutions).
- Master degree - Successful students will obtain a common master degree of the partner universities.
Programme
The International master S-DISCO is a 2-year study programme (120 ECTS) in English: 90 ECTS (semesters 1-2-3) consist of face-to-face and on-line learning and 30 ECTS (semester 4) are dedicated to a master thesis.
The programme is preceded by a one-week summer school at Ghent University, starting with a half-day assessment of the selected candidates (compulsory), in order to help them identify sub-optimal starting competences. While one unit (i.e. Scientific communication) will be compulsory for all students, 2 additional units will be assigned to each student based on the results of the assessment.
The first semester follows immediately after the summer school at Ghent University and will introduce the students to the broad perspectives and basics of sustainable drug discovery. At the end of the first semester, students will go to Lille for the S-DISCO day, organized at the University of Lille. During this day, students will be exposed to the research activities of doctoral, postdoctoral and senior researchers.
The programme continues with the second semester when students move together to the Medical University of Gdańsk, where more in-depth courses on e.g. molecular modelling, omics and green analytics are given.
The third semester takes place at the University of Lille or the University of Groningen. The different stages in the drug discovery process up to drug development are discussed, i.e. screening, target identification and validation, hit-to-lead, preclinical studies up to first-in-human trials. By selecting the appropriate mobility track, students will be able to become more proficient in certain aspects of drug discovery by benefitting from the specific expertise of the selected partner university.
The final semester is dedicated to the execution and writing of the master thesis. The thesis is performed under the supervision of a lecturer of one of the four consortium universities and will preferentially take place at an international (incl. non-academic) partner worldwide.
S-DISCO Mobility
Learning Outcomes
The major educational objectives of the S-DISCO programme are to:
- Understand, evaluate and compare the different fundamental drug discovery concepts and processes, including common problems and possible solutions.
- Integrate key concepts of drug discovery to elaborate on specific drug discovery processes.
- Describe and apply sustainability principles within a drug discovery context.
- Understand the importance and impact of sustainability in drug discovery within local and global health-systems.
- Explain how and where ecologic and socio-economic systems interact to influence sustainability in the drug discovery process.
- Consider and include sustainability in drug discovery decision making.
- Analyse and explain regional and global sustainable drug discovery using a transdisciplinary and holistic approach.
- Possess a global collaborative culture by building upon others’ ideas and treating team members with respect.
- Integrate a sustainability attitude and participation in personal and professional life.
- Be able to clearly present (orally and in writing) and argument conclusions in dialogue with colleagues and laymen in international contexts.
Career Opportunities
Our graduates will be trained to find creative and innovative solutions for the various challenges in the pharmaceutical field. Emphasis is on the crucially important discovery phase, taking into account environmental, ecological and socio-financial sustainability aspects. Workforce shortages exist for almost every position within the pharmaceutical and related industries, and scientists with the skills offered by our master program are extremely in-demand by the industry. Moreover, both national medicine-competent authorities as well as international agencies, such as EMA, FDA or WHO, will look for our high-level graduates. The same is true for civil society organizations, such as NGOs, working in this field. Finally, our graduates will have acquired useful competencies for further academic studies, i.e. Ph.D., thereby deepening the drug discovery field while propagating the sustainability viewpoint in pharmaceutical research and education.
Timings (edition 2025-2027)
For scholarship and self-funded applicants:
- Applications open: 24 July 2024
- Online application submission deadline: 1 December 2024
- Online test: 3 – 5 December 2024
- Possible invitation for online interview, incl. topic selection: December 2024
- Possible online interview: January 2025
- Final selection of applicants (admission letter): January 2025
Opportunity is About
Eligibility
Candidates should be from:
Description of Ideal Candidate
Admission Requirements
Academic degree
- Candidates must hold a higher education diploma issued by a competent Higher Education authority attesting the completion of a degree equivalent to a first cycle (180 ECTS – or higher) in the field of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Chemistry, Biology (incl. Biochemistry), Bio-(incl. environmental, chemical and food) Engineering, Human or Veterinary Medicine, Biomedical sciences or equivalent (which then requires formal equivalency by an official body in one of the 4 consortium countries, e.g. ENIC-NARIC).
- Before the final selection of the applicant, the diploma and its transcripts have to be legalized according to the legalization procedure applicable. If these documents are not in Dutch, French, German or English, the applicant is required to add scans of these documents in one of these languages, translated by a sworn translator. Please have a look at the Ghent University website how legalization can be performed and start-up this process well in advance!
Note: Students in their last year of such a study programme at the time of application will also be considered for admission. It is the applicant’s responsibility that the required degree is obtained prior to the start of the S-DISCO programme.
English language
- S-DISCO is an English taught programme and an English language proficiency is therefore a basic requirement. Therefore, applicants need to provide a certificate of proficiency in English, which should be at least a B2 level according to the CEFR (Common European Framework of Reference).
Dates
Deadline: December 01, 2024
Cost/funding for participants
Scholarships
Erasmus+ scholarships
Students can apply for an Erasmus+ scholarship, by indicating this choice in the application form. An Erasmus+ scholarship has a value of EUR 1400 per month, for a total duration of 24 months. For these students, the tuition fee is waived. The scholarship covers the living costs incurred by the student, including travel, visa, installation, house-rent and other living costs.
Student selection for scholarships will be performed by the Selection and Admission Board (with representatives of all partner universities) after ranking all eligible applications based on (1) the quality and relevance of the previous Bachelor of Science programme in relation to S-DISCO, (2) the grades and ranking obtained in the Bachelor of Science programme, with emphasis on chemical and biology-related courses, (3) the curriculum vitae and motivation, and (4) the references. The highest ranked applicants are then invited for an online interview (week 3 or week 4 of March), that includes a scientific presentation (5 minutes) prepared by the student, followed by a questioning session. This interview score is then combined with the scores of the application documents (points 1-4), resulting in a final ranking of the candidates. Scholarship nominees will be notified in the first weeks of April.
Other funding
There are a few scholarship opportunities offered by the Belgian or Flemish government or Ghent University to finance this Master study. Note that competition is very fierce and that you need to fulfil many application requirements. Applying for a scholarship is no guarantee to obtain one! We strongly advise you to search and apply for other sponsorships (e.g. education ministry of your country) and scholarships portals too.
Other funding should be indicated in the application form (ongoing requests as well as granted funding).
Support for students with special needs
Within the Erasmus+ framework, support to students with individual needs is highly valued. Students with individual needs can therefore be supported by program funding. This funding will be used for enrolled students (with or without scholarship) with disabilities (e.g. long-term physical, mental, intellectual or sensory impairments), such as those related to the acquisition of special items or services (e.g. assistance by third persons, adaptation of work environment, additional travel/transportation costs). Please contact us to discuss such individual needs when applying to the program.
Un-save Opportunity
Internships, scholarships, student conferences and competitions.
