Translational Medicine

In this tab you will find the financial information for this programme of study, including available financial support and scholarships.

To be considered for this course, you will need to:

• meet the entry criteria
• write a personal statement
• provide 2 suitable references.

Undergraduate degree or equivalent

You should have or be expected to achieve, a minimum of a second class degree (2:2). For healthcare graduates, a pass is required. All degrees must be awarded before 1^st August on the year of entry.

Experience of the research process and/or completion of an undergraduate dissertation is essential. 

We welcome applications from individuals from a range of backgrounds, including humanities, science and healthcare. 

We may invite you to interview if are unable to make a decision directly from your application.

International qualifications

We accept equivalent qualifications gained in other countries and use to UKNARIC to assess. Please see our International Student Support pages for more information. If you have any questions, you can contact us at study@sgul.ac.uk 

English language requirement

See details of English Language requirements here. This is a Group 1 course.

You can choose to study Translational Medicine at an MSc or MRes level.

Your modules will be delivered in lectures, tutorials, presentations, discussions, online activities.

MSc modules

On the MSc, you will study 7 taught modules, and then complete a 3-month research project. The MSc course will equip you for academic study and a career in research and development.

View the MSc module guide.

MRes modules

As the MRes has a greater focus on research, you’ll study four core taught modules during the first part of the year, with the remaining time focused entirely on project work. This course is designed to turn you into a resourceful researcher.

View the MRes module guide.

PGDip modules

The Postgraduate Diploma consists of seven taught modules listed for the MSc above, without a research project.

PGCert modules

Students entering the Postgraduate Certificate programme are required to complete the following two taught “core” modules:

• Case Studies in Drug Discovery and Development (15 credits)
• Clinical Trails (15 credits).

Furthermore, students on the PGCert programme have to complete additional modules worth 30 credits, to be chosen from the following list:

• Genomic Technologies in Clinical Diagnostics (15 credits)
• Big Data in Biomedicine (30 credits)
• Personalised Medicine (15 credits)
• Population Health Research (15 credits).

Our postgraduate courses in Translational Medicine equip graduates with expertise in bench-to-bedside pathways, genomic diagnostics and data analysis.

The MRes emphasises research and prepares you for transition to a PhD-level programme or to work in research and development in a pharmaceutical or biotechnology setting. 

By providing practical research experience and training in drug development, genomic diagnostics and data analysis, our Translational Medicine MRes equips you with skills that are in great demand in the life sciences sector. 

Access career pathways 

The pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries have helped us design the programme. This means you’ll be equipped with expertise in the relevant bioscience and bench-to-bedside development pathways. You’ll also gain technical knowledge to prepare you for a PhD-level programme and to participate in research and development in pharmaceutical and biotechnology settings.  

Address the skills shortage

According to the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry, there is currently a skills shortage in translational medicine which requires complex understanding to bridge the gap between bench and bedside.

Parisa Rahimnashat

What is your current role?

I currently work as a Research Assistant in Vector Design team at Freeline Therapeutics. Freeline is a liver-directed gene therapy company focused on developing and innovating gene therapies to create better lives for people with chronic monogenic diseases. As part of my role, I am responsible for the design and optimization of the recombinant Adeno-associated viruses (AAV) expression cassette and its production in large scales for testing. Vector design plays a crucial role in directing AAV-recombinant therapy to a specific tissue as well as regulating gene expression at therapeutic level.

Which aspects of your degree have been particularly useful in your current role?

Doing a Masters in Translational Medicine enabled me to gain expertise in molecular biology, bioinformatics, and genomics. Undertaking a 6-months research project allowed me to cultivate essential laboratory skills to become a more confident and competent researcher in cell and molecular biology. On the other hand, the taught modules introduced me to the computational side of science and research. Having a background in bioinformatics enabled me to implement and practice new innovating pipelines for improving AAV transgene expression.

Due to my enthusiastic approach to bioinformatics, Freeline Therapeutics have been supporting me to take on my second Master’s in bioinformatics as an apprentice at Cranfield University. Doing this course opened a prosperous working opportunity for me at Freeline Therapeutics with an excellent career development path in bioinformatics.

What did you enjoy?

The course director (Dr Axel Nohturfft) and other module leads are super friendly and supportive of their students learning. The university is well funded, and they always have PhD opportunities, scholarships, and grants for grabs! I was one of the lucky students who was granted a £10,000 scholarship to take on this amazing course.

Aurora Campagna

What is your current role?

I’m currently a PhD student at SGUL undertaking a research project aimed to investigate the role of a subset of non-conventional T lymphocytes, called gamma-delta T cells, in infiltrating and killing prostate cancer three-dimensional spheroids.

Which aspects of your degree have been particularly useful in your current role?

My MSc in Translational Medicine has been of great importance for continuing with my PhD. During my MSc I had the opportunity to considerably improve my scientific writing competency as well as my informatics and statistics skills. I also learned how to carry out a research project and how to work as a member of a research group. I’ve been using these skills from the first day of my PhD and I’ll certainly be utilising them for the whole duration of my project.

What did you enjoy most about studying Translational Medicine and why would you recommend the course to others considering applying?

I think that the field of Translational Medicine is extremely interesting and lets you combine wet-lab work with clinical practice, giving a more polyhedric aspect to research.

What I enjoyed the most about studying it was the possibility of acquiring competency and being exposed to different branches of this incredible medicine field. Gaining new knowledge in genetics, bioinformatics, personalised medicine techniques, and clinical trials has been helpful to understand what I most liked about this field and where I wanted to continue with my career.

I strongly recommend undertaking this course for the variety of taught programs as well as research projects it offers. This course and my research project have shaped my interests and led me to get passionate about research and undertake a PhD on the same topic!

Filip Djukicgna

What is your current role?

I am a Research Data Analyst for the Centre for Neonatal & Paediatric Infection (CNPI) team here at St George’s, University of London. A few of my responsibilities include performing extensive data analysis and generating analytical reports for various clinical trials. A project that I am currently involved in is known as the global accelerator for paediatric formulation network (GAP-f) which is hosted by the WHO and funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. This project aims at identifying gaps in current paediatric formulation to promote investigation, development, and delivery of new formulations.

Which aspects of your degree have been particularly useful in your current role?

Completing my MSc Translational Medicine has allowed me to acquire many vital skills pertaining to my current position. I have gained expertise on how clinical trials are conducted, from evaluating safety and effectiveness in phase I-III trials and applying them to larger scale populations. During the MSc, I have also learned to investigate and manipulate large clinical and genomic data with numerous statistical softwares such as R programming.

What did you enjoy most about studying Translational Medicine and why would you recommend the course to others considering applying?

I strongly believe the Translational Medicine field is an excellent area for any individual who has a desire to further explore the vast potential that science and medicine have to offer. Personally, from my clinical experience, I always wanted to do more and discover how I can make a change in the medical and research field. The MSc in Translational Medicine has allowed me to achieve this goal.

I enjoyed my time studying the MSc, as it has opened my eyes to many areas of research such as personalised medicine, genomics, clinical trials, drug discovery and development, and population health.

The professors and staff were incredible. Each one provided expertise in their respective field and allowed me to acquire a new perspective in the field of translational medicine on how to make an impact and take something from bench to bedside.