Admission requirements
Only for master students of Bio-Pharmaceutical Sciences.
Description
This course aims to introduce students to the master programme Bio-Pharmaceutical Sciences (BPS) and the Leiden Academic Centre for Drug Research (LACDR), provides tools to get the best out of their BPS programme and prepares them for drug research at master level, including writing a research proposal.
The course is composed of 3 parts:
1. General introduction via a variety of classes to introduce the students to the master’s programme, including introduction lectures, lab safety, which is concluded by an exam and a lecture biosecurity.
2. Introduction to the research at the LACDR division hosting the Research Project 1 (RP1) via interactive lectures by principal investigators of the division and student-led literature discussions. An active attitude and completion of a written reflection assignment are part of the overall assessment of the course. Details on the written reflection assignment can be found on Brightspace.
3. Preparation for RP1 by gaining background knowledge from relevant literature in the field, defining study objectives, designing a research plan taking relevant responsible research conduct considerations into account and writing a research proposal.
This course aims to:
Introduce the student to the BPS master programme, its content and their possibilities within it.
Introduce the student to the standards and facilities of division of their RP1 and their supervisor(s).
Provide the student an overview of the state-of-the art research at the LACDR division of their RP1.
Teach the student about lab safety and responsible research conduct (including biosecurity and, if applicable, responsible use of animals in research).
Allow the student to gain the theoretical background and skills to write an original and well-structured research proposal.
Provide the student an overview of the variety of career opportunities after completion of the BPS master programme via a introduction of the Career Services.
Note that the division-specific lectures are expert lectures and that hence the content might change every year.
Course objectives
At the end of the course, the student:
Is familiar with the content of the master programme and the options to tailor the programme to their own interests and related career opportunities.
Is familiar with the research conducted at and possibilities within the LACDR, CHDR and the BioScience Park.
Has gained knowledge and understanding of the research standards and facilities at the LACDR division of their RP1.
Has gained knowledge and understanding of lab safety rules and is able to make a Task Risk Assessment (TRA) to eliminate risks and take proper safety measures to work safely in a laboratory setting.
Has gained knowledge and understanding about responsible research conduct, including biosecurity and the concept of dual-use research and, if applicable, responsible use of animals in laboratory research.
Has gained knowledge and understanding in a particular drug research field and the ability to develop original ideas for a research project.
Is able to write a well-structured research proposal.
Timetable
The Introduction course is scheduled in semester 1, period 1.
In MyTimetable, you can find all course and programme schedules, allowing you to create your personal timetable. Activities for which you have enrolled via MyStudyMap will automatically appear in your timetable.
Additionally, you can easily link MyTimetable to a calendar app on your phone, and schedule changes will be automatically updated in your calendar. You can also choose to receive email notifications about schedule changes. You can enable notifications in Settings after logging in.
Questions? Watch the video, read the instructions, or contact the ISSC helpdesk.
Note: Joint Degree students from Leiden/Delft need to combine information from both the Leiden and Delft MyTimetables to see a complete schedule. This video explains how to do it.
Mode of instruction
Lectures, tutorials, tutoring and self-study.
Assessment method
The course will be concluded with several forms of assessment:
Part 1: Exam Lab Safety (a digital exam (pass/no pass). A pass is mandatory for starting the RP1.
Part 2: Attendance and active attitude of lectures and a written reflection assignment (Pass/No Pass).
Part 3: Research proposal (graded 1-10, a minimum of a 6.0 must be obtained). A sufficient grade is mandatory for starting the RP1.
A pass needs to be obtained for all individual forms of assessment to successfully complete the course. The final grade will be based on the grade for the research proposal.
The final grade is expressed using an integer between 1 and 10 and can be rounded off/up to a half integer, with the exception of the grade 5.5. Final grades between 5.50 and 5.99 will be rounded up to 6.0. The final grade should be 6.0 to successfully complete this course.
Reading list
A reading list specific for each division and its Principal Investigators will be announced on Brightspace at the start of the course.
Registration
For this course, students will be enrolled automatically. Students do not have to do anything. Students who started the master in February 2024 will also be enrolled.
Students who started the master before February 2024 and need to complete this course, please contact the course coordinator.
Contact
Coordinator: R.M.A. de Vree MA.
For general questions: onderwijscoordinator@lacdr.leidenuniv.nl.
For questions about the division specific lectures:
Cell Systems and Drug Safety: Dr. R.J.P. Bouwman (r.j.p.bouwman@lacdr.leidenuniv.nl).
Medicinal Chemistry: dr. S.J. Pomplun (s.j.pomplun@lacdr.leidenuniv.nl).
Systems Pharmacology and Pharmacy: Dr. A. Mashaghi Tabari (a.mashaghi.tabari@lacdr.leidenuniv.nl).
BioTherapeutics: Dr. B.A. Slütter (b.a.slutter@lacdr.leidenuniv.nl).
Centre for Metabolomics and Analytics: dr. A.M.A.M. Ali (a.m.a.m.ali@lacdr.leidenuniv.nl).
Remarks
Students who started in February 2024 will have to follow this course as well, joining the students starting in September 2024.
This information is without prejudice. Alterations can be made for next year.
Software
Starting from the 2024/2025 academic year, the Faculty of Science will use the software distribution platform Academic Software. Through this platform, you can access the software needed for specific courses in your studies. For some software, your laptop must meet certain system requirements, which will be specified with the software. It is important to install the software before the start of the course. More information about the laptop requirements can be found on the student website.