Pharmaceutics and Drug Delivery

Unique Features

• The University is strategically located within the Boston-area biomedical and pharmaceutical/biotech-industry ecosystem.
• The MS program provides opportunities for original research experience in department labs, and the option to do a literature or laboratory-based master's thesis for credit.
• Northeastern’s School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences is consistently ranked first in NIH funding among all private U.S. schools of pharmacy.
• The program offers opportunities for experiential learning through Departmental and off-campus co-ops and internships.
• Faculty includes industry-practiced scientists in drug discovery.
• Those already employed in pharmaceutical/biotechnology careers can take specific courses for advanced training.

Program Objectives

Upon completion of the MS in Pharmaceutics and Drug Delivery program, students will be able to:

1. Evaluate critical topics of contemporary focus in pharmaceutics and drug delivery, including how to:
   • Explain current research trends in pharmaceutics and drug delivery.
   • Apply pharmacological knowledge to inform drug action, application, discovery, or development.
   • Integrate cross-disciplinary knowledge about drugs and their therapeutic value.
   • Produce literature reviews encompassing retrieval, critical analysis, assessment, and written/oral presentation of current topics in the pharmaceutical sciences.
2. Execute experiments in pharmaceutics and drug delivery that advance our understanding of drugs and their therapeutic application, specifically how to:
   • Use methodology and instrumentation for research in the pharmaceutical sciences.
   • Apply experimental techniques to improve pharmacotherapeutic knowledge.
   • Maintain and use data, records, and notes/documentation according to ethical standards of research practice and academic integrity.
3. Identify major themes, knowledge gaps, and research problems regarding the action, application, and discovery/development of therapeutics:
   • Conceptualize and communicate to diverse constituencies in good oral and written English the principal concepts in pharmaceutics and drug delivery.
   • Judge how social, economic, and ethical issues may impact drug invention and application.
   • Recognize unsatisfied medical needs where new drugs could make a positive impact.
4. Improve healthcare knowledge and outcomes by applying the knowledge gained from the pharmaceutics and drug delivery program, including how to:
   • Use principles of pharmaceutics and drug delivery to facilitate drug knowledge/discovery.
   • Predict indications where additional pharmaceutical information is needed to improve disease treatment.

Career Outlook

Graduates of the Pharmaceutics and Drug Delivery program work in labs designing and applying ways to deliver drugs to increase their efficacy and reduce toxicity. Some graduates from the department have established careers as independent:

• Industry scientists and administrators (Big Pharma, biotech)
• Clinical laboratory staff
• Academic biomedical researchers
• Science teaching faculty
• Medical liaison specialists
• Pharmaceutical product representatives
• Medical writers