LM061 - Bachelor of Science in Pharmaceutical and Industrial Chemistry
Course Details Course Code: LM061 Level: Honours Bachelor Degree Length: 4 Years CAO Minimum Points Entry 2011: 370 Course Leader: Dr Seamus McMonagle Phone: 00 353 61 202068 Email: seamus.mcmonagle@ul.ie Share	The Student Experience		Course Description

About You

Are you a person who:

• Is interested in a career that can really make a practical contribution to helping people and society address the challenges that presently face the world, e.g. the discovery and synthesis of new drugs to fight disease, or inventing new materials for biomedical devices?
• Has a flair for science and technology and would like to use these talents in a well-paid, intellectually satisfying and productive career as a professional chemist?

If so, then this may be the programme for you.

Why Study Pharmaceutical and Industrial Chemistry at UL?

The Pharmaceutical & Industrial Chemistry degree course qualifies you for employment in a variety of professional careers in the pharmaceuticals and chemicals sector. A number of features of the course structure ensure that you are well prepared for the challenges of a position in these fields immediately on graduation. Fundamental and applied aspects of organic, inorganic, physical and analytical chemistry are covered as well as key chemical engineering topics. In addition, you will spend eight months as a full-time paid employee of a pharmaceutical or chemical company during the work placement period (called Cooperative Education) in the third year of the programme.

There are significant employment prospects for our graduates in companies involved in the production, by chemical means, of numerous other items and goods that are essential to modern living:

• Food (production and processing)
• Fuels (including non-fossil, renewable fuels
• Plastics and polymers
• Computer components (including microships and integrated circuits)
• Synthetic fibres e.g. Lycra

Typical duties of pharmaceutical and industrial chemistry graduates include:

• Drug discovery and synthesis
• Formulation and production of active ingredients
• Scale up of drug synthesis from the laboratory to the production plant
• Laboratory quality analysis of pharmaceuticals
• Developing innovative processes for making chemicals and pharmaceuticals
• Quality assurance, validation and regulatory compliance e.g. FDA licensing
• Pollution monitoring/control and environmental remediation
• Chemical analysis work e.g. Forensic analysis or process troubleshooting

For further details, log on to www.ul.ie/~ces

Course Structure

The first year of the course deals with foundation material in a variety of science subjects: chemistry, physics, mathematics, information technology. In the second semester of year one and throughout year two, the focus is on the fundamental aspects of organic, inorganic, physical and analytical chemistry. Applied and advanced subjects as well as the main chemical engineering topics are covered in years three and four.

The Cooperative Education placement occurs in year three from early January to the end of August. You will conduct a research project during your final year. In some cases, this may involve continuing some work from your Cooperative Education placement, or perhaps working with a postgraduate research team on a topical research project.

Entry Requirements

Applicants are required to hold at the time of enrolment the Leaving Certificate (or an approved equivalent) with at least Grade C3 in two Higher Level subjects and Grade D3 in four Ordinary or Higher Level subjects (including Mathematics; Irish or another language; and English).

In addition, applicants are required to hold at least the following in the Leaving Certificate or an approved equivalent: Grade C3 in Higher Level Mathematics and a Grade D3 in a Higher or Ordinary Level paper in any one of the following: Physics, Chemistry, Physics with Chemistry, Engineering, Design & Communication Graphics, Technology, Agricultural Science, Biology.

OR Grade B3 in Ordinary Level Mathematics (Grade D3 in Higher Level Mathematics also suffices) and Grade C3 in one of the following Higher Level papers: Applied Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Physics with Chemistry, Biology, Agricultural Science.

Notes: (a) Only students who take a Science subject at Ordinary Level must have a Higher C3 in Mathematics.
(b) Leaving Certificate Chemistry is not a compulsory Science subject but without it some extra work will be required in the first year.

Students can also enter this programme of study via the Science Choice degree LM117. A Special Mathematics Examination will be offered at UL following the Leaving Certificate results for those students who did not achieve the Mathematics requirement.

Honours Maths is NOT an entry requirement – ordinary level B3 Maths will see you through the course if you have a C3 in any Higher Level science subject. Chemistry is NOT an entry requirement – you would have some catching up to do however, in the first year.

Career Prospects

Coming from the longest established applied chemistry programme in Ireland, our graduates have an extremely good reputation with employers. Over 95% work locally in Ireland, in jobs that are well paid and largely sustainable. Our graduates enjoy recognition as qualified chemists by professional bodies within Ireland, the EU, and worldwide. Typical job titles of recent graduates include: Research Chemist, Production Manager, QA Analyst, Process Chemist, Formulations Scientist, Validation Engineer, Environmental Chemist. Our graduates work in a wide range of employment sectors such as:

• Pharmaceutical drug production
• Clean chemical technologies
• Renewable fuels and sustainable energy generation
• Paints and plastics & textiles
• Drug discovery and development
• Mineral & metal processing
• Drug discovery & development
• Chemical Quality Control & validation
• Electronic materials & components

Follow-On Study

Numerous further training opportunities exist for students that have graduated from the programme at the appropriate level. Funded postgraduate research work to Masters or PhD level at UL or at other universities worldwide, specialist taught MSc’s, and professional add-on/ conversion courses (e.g. A Graduate Diploma in Chemical Engineering) are among the more popular options.

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Graduate Profile

Claire Rooney I chose the BSc in Pharmaceutical and Industrial Chemistry because I liked chemistry in school and was always interested in the pharmaceutical industry. The course offered a wide range of chemistry modules and UL’s tutoring programme meant that support was available to help me do well in what I found to be the tougher modules. My work here at Abbot is primarily project based. It is very varied and some of my daily tasks include: performing testing on raw materials and finished goods, dealing with representatives from contract labs, statistical trending of results, design of experiments, investigative work, presenting to management and many others. My four years at UL equipped me with many of the necessary skills I use at work everyday, such as planning, technical writing, communication and presentation skills. Claire’s tip If I was to give one piece of advice to school leavers it would be to do a course that you think you will like over one you think you will be good at. It is a lot easier to spend time working in college on something that is of interest to you. Enjoy your time in UL - it is a brilliant campus and would still be my choice of college if I were doing the leaving cert this year. Claire is currently employed as a Chemist on the graduate programme of Abbot Ireland