MPS5101 · Overview of drug discovery and development

Overview

This unit introduces you to the principles of modern drug discovery and development and foundational laboratory skills required for ongoing studies in pharmaceutical science. You will be assigned with colleagues to a virtual pharmaceutical company, where you will undertake a semester-long project to discover and develop a new medicine. Working with the pipeline that underpins modern medicines development, you will undertake a range of individual and team-based enquiry activities, presenting your findings in a variety of written and oral modalities. In doing this, you will be able to articulate how the interplay between the pharmaceutical sciences – operating in a sustainable, socially-responsible and ethical framework – contributes to the discovery, development, formulation, manufacture and regulated clinical use of new drugs. In parallel, you will undertake a series of practical exercises to give you a solid platform to develop laboratory-based research skills. Upon completing this unit, you will have a sound foundation of knowledge and skills on which to base further advanced studies in pharmaceutical science.

Offerings

Assessment

The Handbook does not list a final examination among the assessment items. That is not a guarantee there is none.

This unit contains one or more competency hurdle assessment tasks that you must successfully complete to be able to pass the unit. You have one attempt, plus an additional assessment capped at 50% of the available marks for the task, to demonstrate your competency in the competency hurdle assessment task. If you fail to meet the hurdle requirement, you will receive a fail grade for the unit regardless of the total marks you achieve.

Assessment details may change. Please refer to the assessment information in Moodle closer to the start of the teaching period.

Requisites

The Handbook lists no prerequisite, corequisite or prohibition for this unit.

Learning outcomes

1. Investigate and critically analyse how modern medicines are discovered in the context of the discovery and development pipeline
2. Critically evaluate the impact of sustainable and socially responsible practices in drug discovery and development
3. Use effective written and oral communication skills to present outcomes of enquiry-based research in aspects of drug discovery and development to diverse audiences
4. Demonstrate effective teamwork practices in carrying out group enquiry-based research in pharmaceutical science
5. Demonstrate the development of communication and critical thinking skills via effective reflective practice
6. Demonstrate mastery of foundational laboratory techniques relevant to pharmaceutical science.

Workload

• 24 hours of online modules • Eight 2-hour workshops • 12 hours of laboratory work • Twelve 1-hour Q&A applied sessions • 20 hours of team-based collaborative work • 60 hours of independent study

Student experience, not official rules. Nothing here changes what the Handbook says.