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Drug Design MSc

London, Bloomsbury

This one-year, campus-based MSc offers a comprehensive introduction to all aspects of modern-day drug design. Taught by UCL’s research scientists, clinicians, and industry experts, it will give you an invaluable understanding of the drug design process. Graduates progress onto PhDs or medical studentships or go into sought-after employment in this highly specialist field.

UK students International students
Study mode
UK tuition fees (2025/26)
£18,400
Programme also available on a modular (flexible) basis.
Overseas tuition fees (2025/26)
£36,500
Programme also available on a modular (flexible) basis.
Duration
1 calendar year
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 subject from a UK university or an overseas qualification of an equivalent standard.

The English language level for this programme is: Level 1

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


Drug design is an integral part of the pharmaceutical and biotech industries. The UCL Division of Medicine and Wolfson Institute for Biomedical Research are experts in training the next generation of drug discovery biologists and chemists in the field, particularly in drug discovery projects.

On this full-time MSc, you will develop the essential skills needed in this sought-after field, while exploring robust research methods and the most up-to-date drug design techniques.

The course covers all aspects of drug discovery, including genomics, bioinformatics, structural biology, cheminformatics, molecular modelling and fragment-based drug design, drug target selection, intellectual property and marketing. 

You will also deepen your knowledge and expertise of new therapies and research areas, such as antibodies, siRNA, stem cells and high throughput screening. Alongside this, you will develop your skills in translational research and apply these to your own research project for a minimum of three months.

The programme will equip you with the skills needed to establish a career in drug design/discovery and related industries, including biotech, pharma, national research laboratories and NHS agencies.

Who this course is for

This programme is suitable for life science graduates in biological sciences, chemical sciences, and pharmacy. It provides a solid foundation for establishing a career in drug design/discovery and related industries, or if you are an industry professional looking to gain a greater understanding of the latest drug design methodologies. You will also develop the knowledge and transferable skills needed to advance to a PhD or medical studies.

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

What this course will give you

This programme offers you the following benefits and opportunities.

  • An intensive course of study within the internationally renowned UCL Division of Medicine, supported by the Wolfson Institute for Biomedical Research.
  • A deeper understanding of the essential concepts, theory and practices of drug design and discovery.
  • The opportunity to undertake a minimum three-month research project in your chosen field.
  • Exposure to pioneering multidisciplinary research, with a particular emphasis on translating that research into useful clinical benefit. 
  • The chance to learn from, and contribute to, established research expertise in medicinal chemistry, computational drug design, neuronal development and signalling, cell cycle control, intensive care medicine, stem cells, mitochondrial biology, and cancer.
  • Opportunities to conduct translational research that has a globally-significant impact on drug discovery.
Read about what you'll get out of a graduate programme

The foundation of your career

Graduates from this programme progress to PhD / medical studentships at universities and research institutes around the world, including Oxford, UCL, Grenoble, EMBL, and in the USA and China.

According to the HESA Graduate Outcomes survey (2018-2022), 87% of Drug Design MSc graduates progressed onto work (60%) or further study (27%), with a majority undertaking highly skilled roles.

I found that the course itself really began to prepare me for what research actually is. We had an opportunity to experience the lab environment. That first-hand experience was invaluable.

Lorcan Browne

Lorcan Browne

Drug Design, MSc

Hear from our students

Employability

The programme will equip you with the knowledge and skills needed to establish a career in drug design/discovery and related industries, including biotech, pharma, national research laboratories and NHS agencies. If you are an industry professional, you will gain a greater understanding of new methodologies to apply to your work and progress in new areas of drug design.

According to the HESA survey, MSc Drug Design graduates have gone on to work for a range of employers. These include:

  • NHS Trusts.
  • Universities across Asia.
  • Clinical and pharmaceutical research organisations, such as Cambridge Healthcare Research, the Centre for Molecular Medicine, the Ontario Institute of Cancer Research, Medpace, Mtech Access and Novo Nordisk.
  • Health communications or science publication organisations, such as Elsevier and Oxford Pharmagenesis.
  • Professional service firms, such as Accenture and KPMG.

Their roles include natural and social science professionals, biological scientists, laboratory and pharmaceutical technicians, biochemists and biomedical scientists, quality assurance and regulation and IT and programming. Some have become science writers or periodical / broadcast editors.

It is also a pathway to further medical studies or a related PhD.

Networking

On this programme, there are many opportunities to network through our cross-disciplinary departments and research centres. In addition, you have chances to speak to our many external and expert speakers from industry after lectures. We encourage students to broaden their networks by attending special career workshops. Each year, students are also encouraged to join online seminars / workshops organised by industrial sectors to expand their skills.

Teaching and learning

The programme is delivered through a mix of lectures, tutorials, self-study, practical sessions and discussion groups. Your research project forms one third of the programme.

Each of the taught modules is assessed on a 50/50 split of unseen written examinations and coursework, such as written essays, practicals, and laboratory work.

The research project is assessed by dissertation, oral presentation, and an interdisciplinary three-minute video project.

Your weekly schedule will be made up of 6-8 contact hours over two days at the university campus, and 20 hours of independent learning in terms one and two. The contact hours could be lectures, practicals, or skill-based learning. The lab project (wet or computational) is full-time, five days a week, during the research period.

A Postgraduate Diploma (120 credits) is also offered. A Postgraduate Certificate (60 credits) is also offered.

Modules

In this programme, you will take eight core taught modules in the first two terms. Through these, you will learn the essential concepts, theory and practices of drug design and discovery.

You will also develop transferable skills through individual and group activities, such as oral and poster presentation, literature review, essay writing, attending conferences and scientific talks. These concepts and skills will prepare you to do your research project in term three, where you will conduct real research in a UCL or industry setting.

Your project can be wet laboratory or computer/informatics based and will last a minimum of three months.

If you are considering applying for a modular route, please contact us for updates.

Compulsory 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 Drug Design. Upon successful completion of 120 credits, you will be awarded a PG Dip in Drug Design. Upon successful completion of 60 credits, you will be awarded a PG Cert in Drug Design.

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.

Where you'll study

Division of Medicine Cruciform building

We have one of the largest concentrations of biomedical scientists in Europe. Among over 100 principal investigators are Fellows of the Royal Society, members of the Academy of Medical Sciences, and Senior Investigators of the National Institute for Health Research. Teaching is split between the Royal Free campus in Hampstead and Bloomsbury campus. For undergraduates, most of the first year will be based at the Royal Free campus, with some practical activities taking place in Bloomsbury. As you progress, more modules are based at Bloomsbury, which means you are likely to build strong familiarity with both of these sites.

Learn more about the Division of Medicine, our departments and institutes

Visit us

All open days and events

UCL Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health 30 Guilford St, London WC1N 1EH - Open day

Life and Medical Sciences Postgraduate Open Evening

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Discover our Master’s degrees in Brain Sciences, Life Sciences, Medical Sciences, Population Health Sciences and Medical Engineering.

Online - Open day

Graduate Open Events: Drug Design MSc

Interested in a career in Pharmaceutical and biotech companies? This programme reflects the rapid changes resulted in the post genomics era in traditional drug discovery. Students will investigate the approaches and methods of modern drug discovery, particularly how to manage the diversity of the emerging knowledge. The programme is taught by research scientists, and industry experts. You will gain relevant drug design research project experience during the summer project period.

Watch on demand event

Online - Open day

Graduate Open Events: Genetics and Multiomics in Medicine MSc

Join us for the Genetics and Multiomics in Medicine MSc Virtual Graduate Open Day at UCL! This event is a fantastic opportunity to learn more about our cutting-edge programme and meet our faculty. Discover how our curriculum can help you advance your career in the field of genetics and multiomics. The event includes a programme overview, followed by a Q&A with the programme lead and alumni.

Watch on demand event

Fees and funding

Fees for this course

UK students International students
Fee description Full-time
Tuition fees (2025/26) £18,400
Tuition fees (2025/26) £36,500

Programme also available on a modular (flexible) basis.

The tuition fees shown are for the year indicated above. Fees for subsequent years may increase or otherwise vary. Where the programme is offered on a flexible/modular basis, fees are charged pro-rata to the appropriate full-time Master's fee taken in an academic session. Further information on fee status, fee increases and the fee schedule can be viewed on the UCL Students website: ucl.ac.uk/students/fees.

Additional costs

For Full-time and Part-time offer holders a fee deposit will be charged at 10% of the first year fee.

For flexible/modular offer holders a £500 fee deposit will be charged.

There is no fee deposit required for PG Dip and PG Cert applicants.

Further information can be found in the Tuition fee deposits section on this page: Tuition fees.

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

Bursaries are available for several Division of Medicine programmes. Find out if this course is eligible.

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

Commonwealth Shared Scholarship Scheme (CSSS)

Deadline: 12 December 2024
Value: Full fees, flights, stipend, and other allowances (1 year)
Criteria Based on both academic merit and financial need
Eligibility: EU, Overseas

Div. of Medicine Biomedical Sciences Programme Bursary

Deadline: 22 August 2025
Value: £5000 towards tuition fee (1 year)
Criteria Based on both academic merit and financial need
Eligibility: UK, EU, Overseas

Div. of Medicine Lead Departmental Student Representative Bursary

Deadline: 22 August 2025
Value: £5000 towards tuition fee (1 year)
Criteria Based on both academic merit and financial need
Eligibility: UK, EU, Overseas

Div. of Medicine Nutrition Programmes Bursary

Deadline: 22 August 2025
Value: £5000 towards tuition fee (1 year)
Criteria Based on both academic merit and financial need
Eligibility: UK, EU, Overseas

Next steps

Students are advised to apply as early as possible due to competition for places. Those applying for scholarship funding (particularly overseas applicants) should take note of application deadlines.

There is an application processing fee for this programme of £90 for online applications. Further information can be found at Application fees.

When we assess your application we would like to learn:

  • why you want to study Drug Design at graduate level
  • why you want to study Drug Design at UCL
  • what particularly attracts you to this programme
  • how your academic and professional background meets the demands of this programme
  • where you would like to go professionally with your degree.

Together with essential academic requirements, the personal statement is your opportunity to illustrate whether your reasons for applying to this programme 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

Division of Medicine
Division of Medicine

edith.chan@ucl.ac.uk

UCL is regulated by the Office for Students.