A new postgraduate programme in precision medicine has been launched by RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences. The MSc in Technologies and Analytics in Precision Medicine will equip graduates with the knowledge and skills to pursue a career in the emerging field of precision medicine.

This innovative programme has been developed as part of the recent €7.8 million grant awarded from the Higher Education Authority (HEA) Human Capital Initiative to the RCSI School of Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences, to expand the School's focus on emerging and future pharma technologies.

The programme is being developed collaboratively with leading national and multinational bio-pharma companies as well as other enterprise partners, with expertise across a broad range of innovative healthcare technologies, including personalised medicine, genomics, machine learning, big data and data analytics and connected health.

Welcoming the launch of the programme, Professor Tracy Robson, Head of RCSI's School of Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences said: "The life sciences sectors is experiencing an evolution in health and healthcare, characterised by the fusion of the digital, biological and physical worlds, requiring an increasing need for certain specialised skills to enable and support future career pathways.

"Ireland has the opportunity to position itself at the forefront of a new wave of therapeutic technologies through the availability of an educated workforce," added Professor Robson.

Speaking about the new Masters, Deputy Head of RCSI's School of Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences, Professor Brian Kirby, said: "This programme is being developed and delivered collaboratively with enterprise partners to address the evolving healthcare needs. It will have a dual focus: developing technological capabilities and transversal skills including teamwork, communication, innovation and leadership. This combination of skillsets will aim to drive creativity and flexibility in modern workforce. We believe the programme will equip students to become leaders in the health and bio-pharmaceutical industries of the future. We look forward to welcoming students in September."

With a first intake of students beginning this September, the flexible programme will give students the option of one year full-time or two years part-time. The programme is delivered through blended learning using different modalities, including online lectures and face-to-face lectures.

For expressions of interest in the masters programme, click here.

This project has been supported by the Higher Education Authority under the Human Capital Initiative, Pillar 3. Grant agreement: 17796884 'Enabling Future Pharma'. The programme benefits from the expertise of a number of industry partners: Congenica Ltd, Novartis, Microsoft, Aerogen, S3 Connected Health, Inflection Biosciences, Phion Therapeutics and Almac.