Minor in Pharmaceutical Science

Overview

The pharmaceutical industry in Singapore is undergoing a phase of expansion, as more pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical companies set up new manufacturing and research facilities here. Along with this expansion plans, manpower with relevant knowledge and skills will be sought after by the industry. In addition to the requisite domain knowledge which may be science, engineering, law or business; the employers are also seeking to hire graduates with supplementary knowledge relevant to the pharmaceutical industry.

The relevant adjunct knowledge is based on foundation in pharmaceutical sciences. Having an understanding of pharmaceutical sciences will enable these graduates to quickly immerse in the environment of the industry and may ease the initial learning phase.

With this Minor in Pharmaceutical Science, graduates may also choose to pursue further studies either in the coursework MSc (Pharmaceutical Science and Technology) or pursue other Ph.D. or MSc research programmes in their own majors at NUS or elsewhere. Together with a science or engineering based major, graduates will have a broader spectrum of technical knowledge and skills which will become useful in the research activities undertaken during their graduate study.

Objectives

To build a fundamental technical language, knowledge and skill set relevant to the pharmaceutical industry.
To help raise the awareness among undergraduates from different majors the potential applications of their domain knowledge in the pharmaceutical industry.

Entry Requirements

Prospective undergraduates, with the following qualifications and pre-requisites, may apply for the Minor in Pharmaceutical Science. Enrolment into this restricted minor programme is subject to approval.

Singapore-Cambridge GCE A-Level	A very good pass in H2 Chemistry and A very good pass in PHS1101 The Billion-Dollar Pill – Bench to Bedside Drug Development
International Baccalaureate	A very good pass in HL Chemistry and A very good pass in PHS1101 The Billion-Dollar Pill – Bench to Bedside Drug Development
National University of Singapore High School Diploma	A very good pass in Chemistry and A very good pass in PHS1101 The Billion-Dollar Pill – Bench to Bedside Drug Development
Polytechnic Diploma	A very good pass in Chemistry related course and A very good pass in PHS1101 The Billion-Dollar Pill – Bench to Bedside Drug Development
For a student who has not taken any Chemistry course before, he/she will need to take a Chemistry bridging course in NUS. A very good pass for the Chemistry bridging course and A very good pass in PHS1101 The Billion-Dollar Pill – Bench to Bedside Drug Development are required.

Programme Requirements

The target applicants for this minor programme are students who are pursuing science or engineering-based majors. In addition, students who major in law, economics, computing, marketing or business may also apply, provided the pre-requisites are met. Candidates reading the major in Pharmacy are precluded from taking the Minor in Pharmaceutical Science.

Students would need to take 4 to 5 semesters to complete the minor programme.

Application

Interested applicants may apply for the Minor in Pharmaceutical Science during the application window via myEdurec for Restricted Minor from AY2022/23 Sem 1 onwards. The application will be opened every semester. The latest date for students to apply for the Minor in Pharmaceutical Science is by the end of 4th semester of their studies in NUS.

Students interested in applying for the Minor in Pharmaceutical Science should complete OR be in the midst of completing the pre-requisite gateway course PHS1101 The Billion-Dollar Pill – Bench to Bedside Drug Development in order to be considered.

Application Outcome

For Semester 1 application, the outcome of application for Restricted Minor will be updated after Examination Results Release for Semester 1 and latest before the start of CourseReg Registration Round 2 of Semester 2. Students who are approved to admit into the Restricted Minor programme can bid for the courses in CourseReg Registration Round 2 and 3.

For Semester 2 application, the outcome of application for Restricted Minor will be updated after Examination Results Release for Semester 2 and latest before the start of CourseReg Registration Round 1 of Semester 1. Students who are approved to admit into the Restricted Minor programme can bid for the courses in CourseReg Registration Round 1 to 3.

Programme Structure

(1) Student cohorts from AY2018/2019 and before are required to pass four (4) essential courses and two (2) elective courses as shown below. Some courses have practical components that will allow students to acquire basic and relevant laboratory skills.

Essential courses (Four Courses):

PR1110 Foundations for Medicinal Chemistry Or PHS1110 Foundation for Medicinal and Synthetic Chemistry Or PHS1101 Billion Dollar Pill – Bench to Bedside Drug Development
PR2114 Formulation and Technology I Or PHS1114 Principles of Pharmaceutical Formulations I Or PHS2105 Principles of Pharmaceutical Formulations I
PR2115 Medicinal Chemistry for Drug Design Or PHS2115 Basic Principles of Drug Design and Development Or PHS2102 Physicochemical and Biochemical Principles of Drug Action
PR3301 Pharmaceutical Dosage Forms Or PR3117 Formulation & Technology II Or PHS2117 Principles of Pharmaceutical Formulations II Or PR5304 Fundamental Topics in Pharmaceutical Science

Choose TWO from the following elective courses:

PR1301 Complementary Medicine and Health
PR2143 Pharmaceutical Analysis for Quality Assurance Or PHS2143 Analytical Techniques and Pharmaceutical Applications Or PHS2103 Essentials of Pharmaceutical and Synthetic Chemistry
PR2202 Cosmetics and Perfumes
PR3204 Medicinal Natural Products
PR4205 Bioorganic Principles of Medicinal Chemistry
PR4206 Industrial Pharmacy
CN4241R Engineering Principles for Drug Delivery
SP4263/FSC4203 Forensic Toxicology and Poisons

(2) Student cohorts from AY2019/2020 are required to pass one (1) essential course and four (4) elective courses as shown below. Some courses have practical components that will allow students to acquire basic and relevant laboratory skills.

Essential course (One Course):

PR1110 Foundations for Medicinal Chemistry Or PHS1110 Foundation for Medicinal and Synthetic Chemistry Or PHS1101 Billion Dollar Pill – Bench to Bedside Drug Development

Choose FOUR from the following elective courses (at least one at Level 3000 and above):

PR1301 Complementary Medicine and Health
PR2114 Formulation and Technology I Or PHS1114 Principles of Pharmaceutical Formulations I Or PHS2105 Principles of Pharmaceutical Formulations I
PR2115 Medicinal Chemistry for Drug Design Or PHS2115 Basic Principles of Drug Design and Development Or PHS2102 Physicochemical and Biochemical Principles of Drug Action
PR3117 Formulation & Technology II Or PHS2117 Principles of Pharmaceutical Formulations II Or PR5304 Fundamental Topics in Pharmaceutical Science
PR2143 Pharmaceutical Analysis for Quality Assurance Or PHS2143 Analytical Techniques and Pharmaceutical Applications Or PHS2103 Essentials of Pharmaceutical and Synthetic Chemistry
PR2202 Cosmetics and Perfumes
PR4205 Bioorganic Principles of Medicinal Chemistry
SP4263/FSC4203 Forensic Toxicology and Poisons

(3) Student cohorts from AY2020/2021 are required to pass one (1) essential course and four (4) elective courses as shown below. Some courses have practical components that will allow students to acquire basic and relevant laboratory skills.

Essential course (One Course):

PR1110 Foundations for Medicinal Chemistry Or PHS1110 Foundation for Medicinal and Synthetic Chemistry Or PHS1101 Billion Dollar Pill – Bench to Bedside Drug Development

Choose FOUR from the following elective courses (at least one at Level 3000 and above):

PR1301 Complementary Medicine and Health
PR2114 Formulation and Technology I Or PHS1114 Principles of Pharmaceutical Formulations I Or PHS2105 Principles of Pharmaceutical Formulations I
PR2115 Medicinal Chemistry for Drug Design Or PHS2115 Basic Principles of Drug Design and Development Or PHS2102 Physicochemical and Biochemical Principles of Drug Action
PR3117 Formulation & Technology II Or PHS2117 Principles of Pharmaceutical Formulations II Or PR5304 Fundamental Topics in Pharmaceutical Science Or PHS3101 Principles of Pharmaceutical Formulations II
PR2143 Pharmaceutical Analysis for Quality Assurance Or PHS2143 Analytical Techniques and Pharmaceutical Applications Or PHS2103 Essentials of Pharmaceutical and Synthetic Chemistry
PR2202 Cosmetics and Perfumes
PR4205 Bioorganic Principles of Medicinal Chemistry
SP4263/FSC4203 Forensic Toxicology and Poisons

(4) Student cohort from AY2021/2022 and after are required to pass two (2) essential courses and three (3) elective courses as shown below. Some courses have practical components that will allow students to acquire basic and relevant laboratory skills.

Essential courses (Two Courses):

PHS1101 Billion Dollar Pill – Bench to Bedside Drug Development
PHS2102 Physicochemical and Biochemical Principles of Drug Action

Choose any TWO of the following Level 2000 PHS courses:

PHS2103 Essentials of Pharmaceutical and Synthetic Chemistry
PHS2104 Macromolecules in Pharmaceutical Science
PHS2105 Principles of Pharmaceutical Formulations I

Choose any ONE of the following Level 3000 PHS course:

PHS3101 Principles of Pharmaceutical Formulations II
PHS3102 Principles of Drug Design and Development

Careers

Career Prospects

There are many career opportunities in the pharmaceutical and allied industries for graduates who have a background in pharmaceutical sciences. Graduates, who major in biology, chemistry, mathematics, statistics, food science, material science, computing and engineering, are needed to fill positions in research laboratories, manufacturing plants and quality assurance laboratories of pharmaceutical companies.

In addition, those with degrees in law, economics, marketing or business may not only develop rewarding careers in finance, human resource, intellectual property and legal, but also, in business and market development in the industry. It definitely takes multi-disciplinary teams with a variety of skills to develop and produce effective and safe health products.