Pharmaceutical Chemistry BSc/MSci

Course content

What will you study on the BSc/MSci Pharmaceutical Chemistry?

Our Pharmaceutical Chemistry programme is divided into four learning themes that are developed through the course of your study:

Core chemistry knowledge
Chemistry subjects are taught throughout the course of the programme with special emphasis given to organic and analytical chemistry. Year 1 begins with foundations of chemistry and analytical chemistry followed by applied physical and inorganic chemistry in year 2 as well as advanced organic chemistry which is further developed in years 3 and 4 (MSci only).

Practical skills
Laboratory work is an integral component in the career of a pharmaceutical chemist and therefore an integral component of your study. Year 1 begins with foundations of practical chemistry, followed by advanced practical chemistry in year 2, specialised organic synthesis techniques and a dissertation project in year 3 and MSci project in year 4.

Pharmaceutical knowledge
Broad understanding of biological functions in diseases and how drugs work will be developed from year 1 with biochemistry, followed by pharmaceutical chemistry in year 2, pharmacology and toxicology in year 3 as well as a dedicated module on drug discovery.

Numeracy and computational skills
Numeracy is an essential skill in chemistry developed from year 1 through the professional development module followed by research methods and statistics in year 2. These modules also provide you with generic computational skills such as processing data, using spreadsheets, word-processing and internet communication. Specialised computational skills related to chemistry and drug discovery are developed in year 3 through the computational chemistry module and in year 4 through cheminformatics (MSci only).

What will you gain?

Upon completion of this course you will have gained the following experience and abilities:

• Analytical instrumentation application
• Synthetic organic chemistry skills
• Compound purification and characterisation proficiency
• Computational skills with drug discovery tools
• Research methods and statistics
• Collection and interpretation of experimental data
• Enhanced teamwork and interpersonal capacities
• Communication skills including advanced literacy and presentation skills
• Problem solving capability
• Independent thinking, creativity and innovation

BSc Modules

This module will introduce you to fundamental laboratory techniques that underpin the study of pharmaceutical chemistry. You will develop skills in practical chemistry and improve your knowledge and understanding of the core areas of chemistry. This module integrates learning from the other first year chemistry modules; Fundamentals of Chemistry and Analytical Chemistry.

This module provides you with the skills and knowledge of chemistry that will underpin your future studies in biochemistry. Emphasis is placed on building a knowledge base around key academic concepts in chemistry and biochemistry using examples from health and the environment to reinforce ideas. You will acquire a range of laboratory practical skills and learn how to analyse and interpret experimental results and put these into context with theoretical concepts.

The aim of this module is to provide you with the theoretical knowledge that underpins fundamental concepts in analytical chemistry as well as the traditional and modern techniques that are used to analyse, separate, and characterise compounds. Emphasis is given to the chemical analysis of pharmaceutical materials and approaches used for green analytical chemistry. Those taking this module will have the opportunity to apply theoretical principles of analytical chemistry to other modules; Foundations of Practical Chemistry and Practical Chemistry.

This module will introduce you to the key metabolic pathways of energy metabolism. You will acquire the skills and underpinning knowledge to pursue further studies in biochemistry.

The analysis and communication of scientific knowledge is an integral component of chemistry and this module aims to provide a number of key skills used widely by chemists such as mathematics for chemists, communication skills and employability skills. The mathematics component of this module will give you the basic mathematical techniques needed to support your studies in Pharmaceutical Chemistry. In addition to providing the necessary tools to solving quantitative problems in chemistry, it also helps you better understand chemical concepts such as, how and why reactions happen. The communication and employability skills component will aim to develop communicational, organisational and interpersonal skills and promote career awareness in the field of the chemical sciences.

This module builds upon the principles and concepts of inorganic and organic chemistry developed through previous modules. In this module, you will develop a more complete appreciation of the chemical reactions relevant to biochemistry with emphasis on common reactions in metabolic processes, integrating mechanisms and arrow pushing.

This module provides an introduction into pharmaceutical chemistry. It examines the essential biochemistry on which understanding of medicinal chemistry is built and discusses strategies involved in developing an effective drug.

This module builds upon the practical skills acquired during the first year studies in Pharmaceutical Chemistry. It aims to provide essential skills in experimental techniques in inorganic and physical chemistry, as well as a variety of modern techniques in instrumental analysis.

The module will provide you with the skills necessary to plan, implement, analyse and report project-based work with focus on preparation for the final year project module. The module also develops core research skills fundamental to a scientific research design, irrespective of discipline. Specific research skills will be explored to meet individual programme requirements.

The module provides a comprehensive grounding in inorganic chemistry with reference to metal-based drugs. It builds on concepts learned in Year 1 in the Fundamentals of Chemistry module and further explores topics in basic inorganic and organometallic chemistry from a pharmaceutical or biological perspective.

< This module provides a wide-ranging knowledge of physical chemistry with a view of providing insight into biochemical phenomena. It builds on concepts learned in Year 1 in the Fundamentals of Chemistry module and explores in more depth thermodynamics, molecular structure and kinetics from a biochemical perspective.

The placement aims to develop your employability skills by achieving the set of agreed learning outcomes in the Three Way Negotiated Learning Agreement and other skills learned in placement. This practical experience module provides the means for you to link academic work with a 'real world' situation in order to conceptualise the meaning of theory in the wider world context. This module facilitates the embedding of transferable and graduate skills necessary for future career paths and employment. It is envisaged you will reflect upon areas of knowledge relevant to the placement learning experience and develop personal knowledge through a review of your own learning. The placement learning experience provides the opportunity to enhance your skills of self-expression, communication, self-reliance and co-operation.

This module aims to introduce the fundamental theory that underpins computational chemistry. It is designed to help students understand what molecular modelling programs do and how to interpret results from such experiments with an eye for providing insight to discovery chemistry. This is a practical module comprising of weekly workshops where you can learn and practice various methods of energy calculations along with workshops devoted to drug discovery tools.

This module aims to provide an understanding of processes involved in regulation of gene expression and current laboratory methods available for investigation. It also aims to provide an understanding of how gene expression may be modulated according to changes in the cellular environment, how environmental conditions can trigger changes in these processes and how aberrations in gene expression can lead to disease.

This module is designed to provide knowledge of all the key processes involved in bringing a drug to the market and the associated challenges. The first part of the module focuses on the science and technology involved in the discovery process, from identifying a medical need to the discovery of a drug candidate. The second part of the module focuses on the steps required to turn the drug candidate into a product on the market. This module is supported by external speakers covering specialist topics such as preclinical and human clinical trials, economics of drug discovery, regulatory controls, and manufacturing processes.

Organic synthesis is a practical module that aims to provide you with advanced skills in a synthetic laboratory. You will apply a range of important organic reactions seen in Years 2 and 3 and thus strengthen your existing knowledge and understanding of organic chemical transformations.

This module will build on the skills you have acquired in previous modules, and from the knowledge gained throughout the programme to date. Further development of analysis, critical thinking and scientific literary style will be promoted. You will be enabled to pursue areas of individual interest in the subject area appropriate to your target award and will have the opportunity of gaining increased theoretical and practical knowledge in a chosen specialist field. Individual research experience will be gained in an area that may provide future employment opportunities. Personal responsibility for own learning through self-directed study and supervised preparation will be fostered. It is an integral part of the degree programme, furthering the development of skills in critical analysis and reflection.

The primary aim of this module is to evaluate the principles of drug development from natural products (including plant species and microorganisms) and their derivatives. It also aims to evaluate the molecular mechanism of action of diverse groups of natural compounds in relation to their molecular features.

This module discusses pharmacology, from a cellular and molecular perspective, with particular emphasis on the mechanisms of drug action, clinical application, toxicology and pharmacokinetics.

The module aims to extend the coverage of core inorganic and physical chemistry by expanding on topics.

MSci Modules

This module will introduce you to fundamental laboratory techniques that underpin the study of pharmaceutical chemistry. You will develop skills in practical chemistry and improve your knowledge and understanding of the core areas of chemistry. This module integrates learning from the other first year chemistry modules; Fundamentals of Chemistry and Analytical Chemistry.

This module provides you with the skills and knowledge of chemistry that will underpin your future studies in biochemistry. Emphasis is placed on building a knowledge base around key academic concepts in chemistry and biochemistry using examples from health and the environment to reinforce ideas. You will acquire a range of laboratory practical skills and learn how to analyse and interpret experimental results and put these into context with theoretical concepts.

The aim of this module is to provide you with the theoretical knowledge that underpins fundamental concepts in analytical chemistry as well as the traditional and modern techniques that are used to analyse, separate, and characterise compounds. Emphasis is given to the chemical analysis of pharmaceutical materials and approaches used for green analytical chemistry. Those taking this module will have the opportunity to apply theoretical principles of analytical chemistry to other modules; Foundations of Practical Chemistry and Practical Chemistry.

This module will introduce you to the key metabolic pathways of energy metabolism. You will acquire the skills and underpinning knowledge to pursue further studies in biochemistry.

The analysis and communication of scientific knowledge is an integral component of chemistry and this module aims to provide a number of key skills used widely by chemists such as mathematics for chemists, communication skills and employability skills.The mathematics component of this module will give you the basic mathematical techniques needed to support your studies in Pharmaceutical Chemistry. In addition to providing the necessary tools to solving quantitative problems in chemistry, it also helps you better understand chemical concepts such as, how and why reactions happen.The communication and employability skills component will aim to develop communicational, organisational and interpersonal skills and promote career awareness in the field of the chemical sciences.

This module builds upon the principles and concepts of inorganic and organic chemistry developed through previous modules. In this module, you will develop a more complete appreciation of the chemical reactions relevant to biochemistry with emphasis on common reactions in metabolic processes, integrating mechanisms and arrow pushing.

This module provides an introduction into pharmaceutical chemistry. It examines the essential biochemistry on which understanding of medicinal chemistry is built and discusses strategies involved in developing an effective drug.

This module builds upon the practical skills acquired during the first year studies in Pharmaceutical Chemistry. It aims to provide essential skills in experimental techniques in inorganic and physical chemistry, as well as a variety of modern techniques in instrumental analysis.

The module will provide you with the skills necessary to plan, implement, analyse and report project-based work with focus on preparation for the final year project module. The module also develops core research skills fundamental to a scientific research design, irrespective of discipline. Specific research skills will be explored to meet individual programme requirements.