Biological Chemistry - Master of Science Degree Programme

The Master program in Biological Chemistry has two specializations, Biological Chemistry and Chemistry. This is an international program, and the teaching language is English. The principal aim of the program is for the student to obtain advanced knowledge in Biological Chemistry / Chemistry. The study program comprises 120 credit points (ECTS) in total, taken over 2 years.

Content, structure and composition of the program

The study consist of a course part and a research part. The course part consists of a basic core of 30 credit points of Biologic Chemical / Chemical courses, and 30 credit points advanced courses in each specialization. The research part, resulting in a master thesis, has 60 credit points. The student is to perform a supervised original scientific research; including planning, experiments, data collection, theory and method development, evaluation, analysis and discussion, as appropriate for the field of study. The student shall also acquire knowledge in how to report and present scientific results.

The course descriptions on the web informs about:

- Literature

- Working and teaching methods

- Evaluation method

- Topic evaluation method

Learning outcome

A candidate who has completed his or her qualification should have the following learning outcomes defined in terms of knowledge, skills and general competence:

Knowledge

1. The candidate has acquired advanced knowledge within the basic areas in Biological chemistry/Chemistry, and specialized knowledge within a focused area through working on the thesis.

2. The candidate has a broad knowledge of the field's scientific and instrumental methods and theories, and can apply his/her expertise with respect to new scientific problems and challenges within the subject area.

3. The candidate can use databases and search tools/engines to obtain relevant information about a subject, technique, or problem within the field.

Skills

1. The candidate can conduct and present a larger scientific project within the field.

2. The candidate can work independently in the laboratory, use standard laboratory equipment, modern instrumentation and classical techniques to conduct experiments.

3. The candidate has knowledge of timely laboratory techniques and can apply them; such as cloning techniques, cell-tissue culture methods, methods to analyse metabolites, DNA, RNA, and proteins, immunological methods (western blotting), microscopy, mass spectrometry, real-time PCR, isothermal micro-calorimetry, absorption- and fluorescence spectroscopy.

4. The candidate is able to understand the aim of various analytical methods, conduct experiments and document and analyse results.

5. The candidate has knowledge of appropriate procedures for keeping healthy and secure conditions in a laboratory.

6. The candidate is able to communicate research results both orally and in written form in a precise and efficient way.

General Competence

1. The candidate has developed a general competence/expertise within Chemistry/ Biochemistry, Biotechnology/ Bioinformatics/Molecular biology, Biomedicine, and how environmental factors influence organisms and their physiology.

2. The candidate has the ability to reflect over central ethical and scientific issues in relation to her/his own and others work.

3. The candidate is capable of developing new competence/ expertise within the field's subject areas and contribute to innovation processes within these areas.

Career prospects

Course assessment