Our biotechnology professional development courses are available to professionals without having to apply or pursue a degree. You’ll learn practical skills from UMBC faculty as well as other industry and regulatory experts. Choose from courses in areas like regulatory affairs, leadership, management, and financial management.
Professional development courses are open to the public and are offered in-person and live online. Ask your company’s HR department if they support professional development courses, or reach out to us about cohort programs.
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Biotechnology Professional Development Courses
BTEC 675: Business Principles of the Biotechnology Industry
This course is an overview of the life science industry, current and future trends. In depth discussions of the relationship between science and business and the process by which biotech products are designed, developed and brought to market. Course topics will include, biotechnology entrepreneurship, starting, leading and managing biotech companies, and comprehensive thesis on the workings of the biotechnology industry.
BTEC 661: Cell and Gene Therapy
An overview and network connection basis concluding with a case study for each team to present on the dynamic and emerging field of Cell and Gene Therapies. Students will learn about all the new modalities, companies, techniques, and future approaches to treating serious diseases worldwide.
BTEC 668: Introduction to Clinical Trials
This course introduces students to clinical trials research as it pertains to the development of a biotechnology product. Students will start by learning about the purpose of clinical trials, the clinical trial phases, pre-clinical trial activities, and key actors in the process. The remaining course will cover the primary elements of each phase, ethical and regulatory issues, and future trends. Students will gain a greater understanding of clinical trials for more productive engagement with such professionals in the biotechnology industry or to start on a path toward a career in clinical trials research.
BTEC 660: Development and Regulation of Biopharmaceuticals
This course provides a comprehensive coverage of all steps involved with the regulatory approval process for a biotechnology-derived product. Documentation preparation for IND, NDA, BLA. Pre-clinical safety data, clinical studies, facilities inspection and scientific and regulatory principles.
BTEC 656: Experimental Design
This course introduces the basic concepts which underlie the design of experiments. The use of statistical methods to discriminate between real effects (those caused by changes in controlled variables) and experimental error in systems which are inherently noisy are taught. Statistically designed experimental programs which can help test many variables simultaneously are very efficient tools for developing empirical mathematical models which accurately describe physical and chemical processes. These techniques are readily applied to production plant, pilot plant and laboratory systems, and should be a part of every practicing life science professional’s repertoire. At the end of this course, the student will be able to select an appropriate experimental design for the problem at hand, to set up, conduct and analyze the results of statistically designed experiments, and to understand the statistical basis for these techniques.
BTEC 691: Flow Cytometry
Flow Cytometry is a cornerstone technology of modern cellular immunology and immunotherapy, a key tool for both manufacturing QC and Research. In this course, we provide foundational training in flow cytometry theory and practical applications from a multidisciplinary perspective. Theory covered includes instrumentation technology, immunofluorescence, data processing and analysis, and cellular immunology with an emphasis on T-lymphocyte and cell cycle biology. Lab practical modules include hands-on laboratories with training in data analysis software applications, including operation and basic maintenance of the Beckman Cytoflex flow cytometer, and optimization and analysis for T-cell immunophenotyping, and cell-cycle assay protocols.
BTEC 670: Legal & Ethical Issues in the Science Professions
This course offers an overview of legal issues affecting biotechnology and other science-based industries and frames basic philosophical and ethical considerations regarding genetic data and manipulation. The course includes a discussion of intellectual property issues.
BTEC 665: Management, Leadership and Communication
This course teaches the fundamentals of management and managerial leadership and communication. Managers juggle operations, finance, information technology, strategy, and projects, yet much of their success depends less on their own direct input than on their ability to enlist the active involvement of others: direct reports, other managers, other team members, and those above them on the organizational chart. It is imperative, therefore, that managers be adept at influencing those over whom they have no formal authority as well as guiding and directing those who report to them.
BTEC 685: Project Management Fundamentals
Students learn the fundamentals of managing projects in a systematic way. These fundamentals can be applied within any industry and work environment and will serve as the foundation for more specialized project management study. Principles and techniques are further reinforced through practical case studies and team projects in which students simulate project management processes and techniques.
BTEC 664: Quality Control & Quality Assurance for Biotechnology Products
In-depth coverage of the key issues associated with adequate quality-control systems, assays and stability for novel biotechnology products: quality concepts, product release testing and specifications, in-process testing, product characterization, quality assurance documentation and audits and vendor certification.