Master of Science by Coursework in Pharmacology

• 1. The Divisional Board of Medical Sciences shall appoint for the supervision of the course an Organising Committee, which shall have the power to arrange lectures and other instruction.

• 2. The Organising Committee shall appoint for each candidate an academic advisor (mentor).

• 3.    Candidates shall:

  • (a) follow a course of study in Pharmacology for at least three terms and for a substantial part of the three subsequent vacations, as determined by the course timetable;

  • (b) attend compulsory practical classes (a record of attendance will be kept);

• 4.    Candidates shall be examined in all of the following ways:

  • (i) each candidate must pass a computer-based qualifying examination at the end of Michaelmas Term. The test shall consist of multiple choice questions on the topics covered by the Pharmacology Introductory Course, as set out in the Schedule, and must be completed in two and a half hours. Candidates who fail the qualifying examination once shall be permitted to take it again before the end of the Hilary Term of the year of the final examination.

  • (ii) each candidate will sit a three-hourtheory and data handling and experimental design examination (also known as the quantitative examination) before the end of Hilary term. Candidates who fail once (<50% of the maximum mark) shall be permitted to sit the examination on one further occasion before the end of the Trinity Term of the year of the final examination.

  • (iii)  each candidate will completesit an Advanced Pharmacology paper as a two part examination.

    • Part A: An essay examination at the beginning of Trinity Term:

      • Part A: essay paper on the material covered in the Advanced Pharmacology courses. The mark will contribute to the final course mark according to the pre-specified weighting.;

      • Part B: critical Eachanalysis of a research paper.

    • (iv) each candidate will be required to submitcomplete a dissertation and upload this to the examinersUniversity threeapproved copiesonline ofassessment aplatform, printedby dissertationdates ofto notbe morespecified thanby 10,000the wordsOrganising (excluding bibliographyCommittee and appendices) on the research project selected for study as set out in the Schedule. The mark will contribute to the final course mark according to the pre-specified weighting. The arrangements for approvalwhich will be notifiedpublished toin candidatesthe University Gazette not later than the start of Michaelmas Term of the academic year in which the examination is taken. The dissertation should be of not more than 10,000 words on the research project selected for study as set out in the Schedule.  

  • Those who fail shall be permitted to re-sit Part A and submit a rewrite of Part B on one further occasion. The resit and resubmission will occur with the following year's examination cycle.

  • (ivv)  each candidate will be required to keep a record of practical work using the designated electronic system for review by the examiners.

• 5. Each candidate shall be examined  by giving an oral presentation (viva voce) on their research project to the examiners. The viva voce examination will normally be conducted in September in the year in which the candidate is examined on dates to be determined by the examiners.

• 6. Each candidate must pass all assessment units, or a resit, in order for the degree to be awarded.

• 67. Before being given leave to supplicate, candidates must have demonstrated understanding of and competence in the topics covered by the professional development programme as set out in the Schedule, to the satisfaction of the programme organisers, who shall submit a certificate to the examiners to this effect.

• 7.8  The dissertation must be submitted to the Chair of Examiners, M.Sc. in Pharmacology, c/o Examination Schools, High Street, Oxford by dates to be specified by the Organising Committee and which will be published in the University Gazette not later than the start of Michaelmas Term of the academic year in which the examination is taken.

  The submission must be accompanied by a certificate indicating that it is the candidate's own work.

• 8. The viva voce examination will normally be conducted in September in the year in which the candidate is examined on dates to be determined by the examiners.

• 9. The examiners shall retain one copy of each dissertation of each successful candidate for deposit in the Department of Pharmacology.

Schedule

The syllabus for study will include four principal components:

• (a) Professional Development Programme for Pharmacologists

  To provide transferable skills for a career in scientific research, this programme will consist of classes, exercises and interactive discussions in the following areas:

  • (i) Presentation skills, verbal and written;

  • (ii) Career planning, assessing personal skills and values, curricula vitae and interview techniques;

  • (iii) Exploitation of science: getting ideas to the marketplace, patents, intellectual property rights; the relationship between academic and industrial research; government science policy and research funding;

  • (iv) Ethical and social issues in science.

• Creativity and teamwork are integral components of the learning undertaken during the practical classes and research projects. Time management and learning skills are developed as part of the structured timetable of examinations and coursework submission deadlines throughout the year.

• (b) Introduction to Pharmacology

  Three module introduction to pharmacology, each consisting of lectures and practical classes. Candidates who have already received training in some of the topic areas covered may, at the discretion of the Organising Committee, be exempted from attendance at one or more of the introductory lecture series. Such candidates will be required to pass the qualifying examination, which will cover the topics covered in the Introduction to Pharmacology.

  • Module I: Cell && Receptor Pharmacology

  • Module II: Tissue and Organ Pharmacology

  • Module III: Neuropharmacology

  Candidates will also be required to take courses on experimental design, data interpretation, computing and statistics, approved by the Organising Committee. Candidates will have the option to obtain a Home Office licence. Those candidates who wish to carry out a research project involving animal work will be required to attend the Home Office Licence course for modules 1 to 4 in due time.    Students will not be permitted to carry out a project involving animal work without the licence should they change their mind at a later stage.

• (c) Advanced pharmacology courses

• This will consist of the following five taught courses consisting of lectures, seminars and practical classes: Cardiovascular && Systems Pharmacology, Cell Signalling, Neuropharmacology I, Neuropharmacology II, Drug Discovery.

• (d) Research Project Dissertation

  Candidates shall submit a dissertation on a research project undertaken under the supervision of a research supervisor. The subject of each dissertation and the supervision arrangements for each student must be approved by the Organising Committee. The research project will normally be laboratory-based, but in exceptional circumstances students may undertake a library-based project, subject to approval fromby the Organising Committee.