BioPharma Management Initiative Curriculum

About this Concentration

Fast-paced advancement in the life sciences is opening new management career paths in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries. The new BioPharma Management MBA Concentration is designed to provide students the in-depth knowledge they will need to deal with both the scientific and management challenges facing this emerging industry.

The new concentration was designed for students with a solid life sciences background, gained either through academic studies or extensive work experience in the field. It was developed in collaboration with the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences at NC State, with input from leading companies in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries. Feedback from our advisors indicated that our students need to possess leadership skills, ethical awareness, and a global outlook all from the perspective of the BioPharma industry.  The key general skill sets need to include:

• a realization that the life sciences industry is complex, ambiguous, fast-moving, highly entrepreneurial, science-driven, highly-regulated, expensive and ethically-charged
• a fluency in the biotechnologies and understanding of how they impact the constantly-evolving business models 
• an understanding that management of impact of these technologies occurs across the entire company; not just R&D

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Curricula and Course Information

This concentration will uniquely prepare students for managerial careers in finance, marketing, supply chain, or research and development functions, working in either established or start-up biotechnology or pharmaceutical firms.  Full-time students are required to complete an additional concentration in finance, marketing, supply chain, innovation management, or entrepreneurship.  Following are the required and elective courses and the recommended course sequences for completing the BioPharma Management concentration and the Joint Masters of Microbial Biotechnology and MBA degree requirements.

Full-Time MBA
Required
BUS 590W Current Topics in BioPharma Management
BUS 590 Legal/Market Dynamics in Pharmaceutical and Biotechnology Commerce

Select one of the following:
BUS 579 Entrepreneurship
BUS 590 Advanced Topics in Corporate Finance
BUS 590 Supply Chain Logistics
BUS 590 Product and Brand Management

Select one of the following:
BUS 565 Product Design and Development
BUS 576 Technology Evaluation and Commercialization
BUS 590 Practicum in Life Sciences Management
BUS 590 Supply Chain Management Practicum

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Part-Time MBA
Required
BUS 590W Current Topics in BioPharma Management
BUS 590 Legal/Market Dynamics in Pharmaceutical and Biotechnology Commerce

Select one of the following:
BUS 565 Product Design and Development
BUS 576 Technology Evaluation and Commercialization
BUS 590 Practicum in Life Sciences Management
BUS 590 Supply Chain Management Practicum

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Joint Masters of Microbial Biotechnology and MBA

Required
BUS 590W Current Topics in BioPharma Management
BUS 590 Legal/Market Dynamics in Pharmaceutical and Biotechnology Commerce
BUS 590 Practicum in Life Sciences Management

Semester	Course Number and Course Title
Fall One	ACC 580 Survey of Accounting MB 714 Microbial Physiology and Regulation MB 590C Case Studies in Microbial Biotechnology
Spring One	BIT 510 Core Techniques in Biotechnology MB 751 Immunology MB 590C Case Studies in Microbial Biotechnology
Summer	MB 620I Industrial Internship
Fall Two	BUS 590 Legal/Market Dynamics in Pharmaceutical and Biotechnology Commerce MB 590C Case Studies in Microbial Biotechnology Microbiology elective BioPharma elective 1 (2 hours)
Spring Two	BUS 590X Current Topics in BioPharma Management MB 590C Case Studies in Microbial Biotechnology BioPharma elective 2 (2 hours)
Summer	MB 620I Industrial Internship
Fall Three	ECG 507 Economics for Managers BUS 520 Managerial Finance BUS 530 Managing the Global High-Tech Workforce BUS 550 Statistics and Quantitative Methods BUS 574 Management of Technology BUS 590 Managerial and Career Effectiveness I BUS 590 Simulation
Spring Three	BUS 500 Strategic Management BUS 560 Marketing Management and Strategy BUS 570 Production & Operations Management BUS 590 Information Technology Management BUS 590 Managerial and Career Effectiveness II BUS 590 Practicum in Life Sciences Management BUS 590 Case competition Elective (3)

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