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Cell, Gene and Novel Therapies MSc

London, Bloomsbury

The Cell, Gene and Novel Therapies MSc provides you with an in-depth insight into the cutting-edge and rapidly developing field of biological therapies. This programme covers all aspects of cell, gene and novel therapies, including applied genomics, the molecular basis of disease, stem cell biology and tissue repair, current and developing technologies in biomedical research and therapeutic intervention, and clinical applications. You will also receive training in research methodology and statistics.

UK students International students
Study mode
UK tuition fees (2025/26)
£18,400
£9,200
Programme also available on a modular (flexible) basis.
Overseas tuition fees (2025/26)
£39,800
£19,900
Programme also available on a modular (flexible) basis.
Duration
1 calendar year
2 calendar years
5 calendar years
Programme starts
September 2025
Applications accepted
Applicants who require a visa: 14 Oct 2024 – 27 Jun 2025
Applications close at 5pm UK time

Applications open

Applicants who do not require a visa: 14 Oct 2024 – 29 Aug 2025
Applications close at 5pm UK time

Applications open

Apply for this course

Entry requirements

A minimum of an upper second-class Bachelor's degree in a relevant discipline from a UK university or an overseas qualification of an equivalent standard. Students who do not meet these requirements but have appropriate professional experience will also be considered.

The English language level for this programme is: Level 2

UCL Pre-Master's and Pre-sessional English courses are for international students who are aiming to study for a postgraduate degree at UCL. The courses will develop your academic English and academic skills required to succeed at postgraduate level.

Further information can be found on our English language requirements page.

Equivalent qualifications

Country-specific information, including details of when UCL representatives are visiting your part of the world, can be obtained from the International Students website.

International applicants can find out the equivalent qualification for their country by selecting from the list below. Please note that the equivalency will correspond to the broad UK degree classification stated on this page (e.g. upper second-class). Where a specific overall percentage is required in the UK qualification, the international equivalency will be higher than that stated below. Please contact Graduate Admissions should you require further advice.

About this degree

There are two routes on this programme: 

  • Cell and Molecular Therapies (CMT) 
  • Personalised Medicine (PM)

On the CMT route, you will learn the basics of stem cell and tissue repair and the preclinical/clinical applications of gene therapy/gene editing technologies.

On the PM route, you will be exposed to novel personalised therapies (e.g. RNA therapies), covering preclinical drug development and clinical translation. You will also learn how to apply genomic and multiomic information to personalised medicine.

Optional modules will provide you with the opportunity to explore areas within the field in more depth and enhance analytical and communication skills.

The broad range of skills acquired from the taught modules will underpin your development of an independent research project and critical analysis and reporting of data.
 

Who this course is for

This programme is designed for BSc graduates in relevant subjects, medics and scientists who would like to develop their knowledge and skills in this distinct and fast developing area, with a view to contributing to clinical and basic biomedical research, therapeutic developments in industrial settings, regulatory aspects of advanced therapies, or clinical trials in the field.

Read about what it takes to study for a Master's at UCL

What this course will give you

  • Study at one of the world's top ten universities. UCL is ranked 6th in the world for public health (ShanghaiRankings 2023), 9th in the world as a university (QS World Rankings 2025) and is rated No.1 for research power and impact in medicine, health and life sciences (REF 2021).  
  • The programme is delivered by scientists and clinicians researching, developing and testing advanced treatments for genetically inherited and acquired diseases using gene delivery technology, stem cell manipulation, DNA repair techniques and novel RNA based technologies.
  • Development of advanced therapies is rapidly expanding and poses different challenges to traditional drug development, hence the need for a new workforce with appropriate training for this task. This programme offers access to the breadth of expertise and cutting-edge research in this area available within UCL Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health (UCL GOS ICH), its clinical partner Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH), and UCL at large. 
  • This programme, taught by leading academics and clinicians in the field of cell, gene and novel therapies, prepares you to become a scientist or researcher in academia or industry, or join regulatory bodies, as well as for progression to a higher research degree. 
  • UCL has the largest concentration of clinicians and researchers active in cell, gene and novel therapies research in Europe. This is reflected by the many groups conducting high-quality research and clinical trials in the field including researchers at UCL GOS ICH, the Division of Infection & Immunity, the Institute of Ophthalmology, the EGA Institute for Women's Health, the Institute of Genetics and the Cancer Institute. 
  • Study at UCL GOS ICH, which together with GOSH, is the largest centre in Europe devoted to clinical, basic research and postgraduate education in children's health, including haematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT), RNA therapy and gene and cell-based therapies.
     
Read about what you'll get out of a graduate programme

The foundation of your career

This programme aims to equip students for careers in research, education, medicine and business in academic, clinical, industrial and regulatory settings. Examples of potential careers could include:

  • Academic research and/or lecturing in a university, research institution, or other higher education setting.
  • Developing new therapies or intellectual property in National Healthcare systems and pharmaceutical industry or other biomedicine-related business venture.
  • Conducting clinical trials as part of a team of clinicians, scientists and allied health professionals. 
  • Monitoring and analysing the results of clinical trials as part of a clinical trials unit.

Graduates of the programme have gone on to leadership roles in the NHS and other healthcare organisations in the UK and overseas. Some of our graduates have moved into roles in industry in pharmaceutical companies or consulting organisations. Others have gone on to further study, taking on PhDs or fellowships while others have launched their own businesses.

Our graduates have been employed by organisations such as Biologics, IQVIA, Clinigen, Datar Cancer Genetics, PPD Global Ltd., UK Biocentre and Fishawack Health, as well as universities in the UK and abroad.*

*Graduate Outcomes survey carried out by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), looking at the destinations of UK and EU graduates in the 2017-18, 2018-19, 2019-20, 2020-21 cohorts.

Employability

You will be provided with opportunities to develop specific scientific and analytical skills including:

  • data gathering,
  • critical appraisal,
  • scientific writing,
  • scientific presentation,
  • debating,
  • maintaining scientific dialogue,
  • experimental design,
  • clinical trial design,
  • decision making,
  • an awareness of topical as well as ethical and legislative issues.

You are encouraged to keep a portfolio of transferable skills learned through teaching practices and assessments, which will prepare you for progression to higher research degrees or the workplace.

Networking

The Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health offers seven MSc programmes as well as an MRes in Child Health encompassing a wide range of topics. Our students come from diverse academic and professional backgrounds, from the UK and overseas providing great networking opportunities within and across programmes. We hold social events throughout the year for the whole student cohort to enable networking between students. Students on the Master's programmes have the opportunity to join GOS ICH events such as the Otto Wolff lectures hosted by the research and teaching departments. These cover a variety of topics and provide an opportunity to hear from national and international experts and to network at the social event that usually accompanies these events. As an MSc Cell, Gene and Novel Therapies student, you may also have the opportunity to attend a relevant conference (e.g. Festival of Genomics) to engage and network with leading figures in the field.

Teaching and learning

Teaching includes lectures, seminars, problem-solving classes, workshops, and tutorials including individual and group activities.

Assessment varies depending on the module and aims at developing different skills; assessments across the differing modules include written coursework, multiple-choice questions, written examinations, oral presentations, a practical analysis examination and a dissertation of up to 8,000 words and its presentation/discussion at a viva.

Most modules are delivered as blocks of study, normally over five consecutive days. Face-to-face teaching for each of these days is typically from 9am - 5pm normally comprising 25-30 hours direct contact time including lectures, seminars, problem-solving classes, workshops, and tutorials.

Overall, we expect full-time students to spend a full 35-hour week studying, with time outside classes spent in self-directed study. Part-time and flexible students study at a pro-rata rate.

In the Third Term and the summer period students will be completing their own dissertation research, keeping regular contact with their dissertation supervisors. Research projects vary but we would expect students to perform project work under the guidance of your supervisor and their team for about 20-30 hours per week and self-directed study in the form of literature review, analysis and appraisal of data or outcomes for about five to 12 hours per week depending on the progress of your project. You would typically expect to spend about 600 hours in total working on your research project, including contact hours, self-directed study and research, and assessment.

Contact hours will vary depending on your choice of modules and your research project.

Modules

Students on each route will study six compulsory modules.  

Four compulsory modules are shared between the two routes:  

Students on the Cell and Molecular Therapies route will also study the compulsory modules:  

While, students on the Personalised Medicine route will study the compulsory modules:

Students on both routes then choose three optional modules:  

Students will also have the possibility to select a core module from the alternative route. 

In your Third Term, you are given ample opportunities to develop specific analytic research skills during your independent 16-week research project. This includes approximately 12 weeks for research and four weeks for writing up. Your research project will reflect the successful research being carried out at UCL GOS ICH and you will be offered a dynamic choice of topics from laboratory-based research projects to in silico data analysis projects and systematic reviews. 

Part-time students will complete eight 15-credit taught modules over two-year period. The 60-credit research project will take place in year two of the programme. 

Modular/Flexible students will complete eight 15-credit taught modules to include core modules plus the project (last module to be taken) worth 60 credits over a period of up to five years.

Compulsory modules








Optional modules









Please note that the list of modules given here is indicative. This information is published a long time in advance of enrolment and module content and availability are subject to change. Modules that are in use for the current academic year are linked for further information. Where no link is present, further information is not yet available.

Students undertake modules to the value of 180 credits. Upon successful completion of 180 credits, you will be awarded an MSc in Cell, Gene and Novel Therapies.

Accessibility

Details of the accessibility of UCL buildings can be obtained from AccessAble. Further information can also be obtained from the UCL Student Support and Wellbeing Services team.

Fees and funding

Fees for this course

UK students International students
Fee description Full-time Part-time
Tuition fees (2025/26) £18,400 £9,200
Tuition fees (2025/26) £39,800 £19,900

Programme also available on a modular (flexible) basis.

Additional costs

Fee deposit information to be confirmed.

There are no additional costs for this programme. 

UCL’s main teaching locations are in zones 1 (Bloomsbury) and zones 2/3 (UCL East). The cost of a monthly 18+ Oyster travel card for zones 1-2 is £114.50. This price was published by TfL in 2024. For more information on additional costs for prospective students and the cost of living in London, please view our estimated cost of essential expenditure at UCL's cost of living guide.

Funding your studies

Visit the funding and studentship pages of the UCL GOS ICH website for details of funding available to students, including the UCL GOSICH bursary.

For a comprehensive list of the funding opportunities available at UCL, including funding relevant to your nationality, please visit the Scholarships and Funding website.

See all the ways you can fund your studies

Next steps

When we assess your application we would like to learn:

  • Why you want to study Cell, Gene and Novel Therapies at graduate level.
  • Why you want to study Cell, Gene and Novel Therapies at UCL.
  • What particularly attracts you to this programme.
  • How your academic background meets the demands of this challenging programme.
  • Where you would like to go professionally with your degree.

Together with essential academic requirements, the personal statement is your opportunity to elaborate on your reasons for applying to this programme and how your interests match what the programme will deliver.

Please note that you may submit applications for a maximum of two graduate programmes (or one application for the Law LLM) in any application cycle.

Choose your programme

Please read the Application Guidance before proceeding with your application.

Year of entry: 2025-2026

Apply for this course

Got questions? Get in touch

UCL GOS Institute of Child Health
UCL GOS Institute of Child Health

cgt@ucl.ac.uk

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