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Faculty of Science & Health

School of Biotechnology | Structured Doctoral Pathways 2023-2024

Overview

BioTranslate is the School of Biotechnology’s structured PhD programme. It is research-focused, flexible and student-centred. Graduate students registered on the BioTranslate programme will conduct a major laboratory research project, over a period of 3-4 years, in laboratories in the School of Biotechnology and/or associated Research Centres. In addition to acquiring discipline specific research knowledge over the period, BioTranslate students will partake in a range of generic and scientific support modules across multiple subject areas and will thus experience an individualised programme that is tailored to their specific needs.

Selection and Registration

Upon completion of the BioTranslate programme, the student’s original research work presented as a written thesis, is the sole means of assessment for the award of PhD. Graduates of the BioTranslate programme will also have accumulated at least 30 ECTS to be awarded following the successful completion of core and elective Graduate Training Element (GTE) modules, the latter chosen in conjunction with the student’s supervisory panel.

Module BE550 (5 credits), which concerns Induction/Laboratory Safety and Practice, is compulsory and is to be taken in year 1. It is also the policy of the School of Biotechnology that all students who are assigned teaching-related responsibilities must complete BT6071 and BT6072 Laboratory Tutoring, two 5-credit modules to be taken over at least two years. There is an expectation that module loads be evenly distributed across the first three years, with a minimum of 10 credits being taken in any one year. A typical overall balance consists of 1-3 generic (transferable skills) modules and 2-3 discipline-specific modules over the first three years, with year 4 focused exclusively on research. 

Once approval from the supervisor has been granted, students should register for their approved Faculty GTE modules during the online registration process. However, if you wish to take a non-FSH GTE module you MUST first email the module coordinator listed to check that you are eligible to register for this module, then email science@dcu.ie providing:

  • confirmation and proof of approval from module coordinator
  • module code and title
  • student id number
  • qualification code
Progression

Progress regarding GTEs will be monitored on an annual basis as part of the DCU PGR2 annual postgraduate progression process, however there will be no compulsory minimum number of modules required to be completed in order to progress to the next year.

Induction and Training 

In addition, students will be encouraged to engage with centrally-offered workshops & seminars on academic, software or transferable skills which align with their development needs. In year one, all students are required to attend the orientation sessions, the Graduate Studies Office (GSO) and library-run programme and other relevant induction sessions. GSO communicates details of the training schedule to each student at the beginning of each semester. Research students are also required to take the Online Research Integrity Module in year one of their studies.

 

Core Discipline Specific Modules | Year One

Induction and Laboratory Safety

  • BE550: Biosafety and Laboratory Procedures in Biotechnology (5 ECTS) 

 

Core Discipline Specific Modules | Years One to Three 

Teaching and Learning Skills

  • BT6071: Year 1 Laboratory Tutoring (5 ECTS)

  • BT6072: Year 2 Laboratory Tutoring (5 ECTS)

 

Elective Modules | Years One to Three

Research Skills and Integrity

  • TP602: Research Ethics (5 ECTS)

Communication Skills

  • TP609: Strategies for Getting Published (5 ECTS)

  • LC600: English for Academic Purposes (5 ECTS)

  • PSYC523: Science Communication for Graduate Researchers (5 ECTS)

Discipline-Specific Research Techniques

  • BE515: Fundamentals of Bioreaction Engineering (5 ECTS)

  • BE516: Bioseparation (5 ECTS)

  • BE517: Recombinant DNA Technology (5 ECTS)

  • BE519: Fundamental and Applied Immunology (5 ECTS)

  • BE533: Molecular Biology Methods & Genes; The Basics (5 ECTS)

  • BE535: Precision Medicine I (10 ECTS)

  • BE536: Precision Medicine II (10 ECTS)

  • BE537: Professional Skills for Scientists (5 ECTS)

  • BE538: Introduction to Cell Biology and Biotechnology (5 ECTS)

  • BE570: Computational Science (5 ECTS)

  • BE580: Introduction to Bioprocess Engineering (5 ECTS)

  • BE581: Bioprocess Scale Up and Technology Transfer (5 ECTS)

  • BE583: Biopharmaceutical Industry Regulations and Management (5 ECTS)

  • BE584: Bioreactor Design, Modelling and Monitoring (5 ECTS)

  • PS522: Microfluidics 2 (5 ECTS)

  • BE521AU: Applied Biostatics (5 ECTS)

  • BE539AU: Translation Bioinformatics (5 ECTS)

 

Non-accredited Training Workshops and Masterclasses 

  • Graduate Studies Office Orientation Programme

  • Research Integrity Online Training Module (Biomedical Science stream) (non - accredited)

Students are encouraged to take additional training opportunities offered by the School and GSO as appropriate throughout their PhD.

 

Approval Date