Firstly, this is NOT a sales page. We are not interested in trying to convince you into signing up for our course if it’s something you’re not ready for.
This page is all about helping you to work through the things you need to think about so you can make an informed decision about whether returning to education is the right move for you, your career and your family right now.
There are 12 things you need to think about…
(you can click through to any of these sections at anytime you want)
- Why healthcare professionals are great candidates for pharmaceutical manufacturing
- The 15 second eligibility check
- Scholarship opportunity
- Job opportunities
- The course – essential details
- Finding a team you can trust
- Why “online” increases your chance of success
- Course syllabus
- Reasons other people have made this change
- Price
- Gut check!
- Next steps
So let’s get started….
1 – Why healthcare professionals are great candidates for pharmaceutical manufacturing
Every drug your patients ever took and every medical device you’ve ever encountered in your role as a healthcare professional was manufactured by a team of people in a pharmaceutical or medical device manufacturing facility.
These people had to follow strict guidelines and protocols to make sure that the products they made were ultimately safe for your patients. They also go into work every day knowing that they’ll have a positive impact on patients’ lives.
Your work as a healthcare professional and their work manufacturing safe and effective medicines and devices is very closely linked.
Working in healthcare means you have demonstrable skills in using and following systems, processes and procedures to ensure patient safety. This is EXACTLY what pharmaceutical manufacturing requires.

You’ve been on the same team the whole time – “Team Patient” – you probably just hadn’t thought about it.
Your shared team is precisely the reason that healthcare professionals make great candidates for roles in pharmaceutical manufacturing.
So yes, this would be a career change. But you’re not leaving Team Patient – you’re just switching positions on the pitch.
You’d move away from the frontline, where you’re constantly playing catch up and trying to do too much with too few resources. And you’d move to a role without those stresses and strains.
Your role in the team becomes making sure that your frontline colleagues have everything they need, and that it can be relied upon to be safe and effective. You’re all still working together to make patients’ lives better.

2 – The 15 second eligibility check
You need to meet ONE of the following criteria:

A-Levels Level 3 Qualification or
Higher
You are eligible for the programme if you have your A-Levels, or a Level 3 qualification or anything higher
OR

GCSEs Level 2 Qualification & Relevant Experience
You are eligible if you have your GCSEs or any level 2 qualification, & you work in manufacturing, healthcare, science, engineering, validation etc.
OR

GetReskilled Conversion into Pharma Manufacturing Course
You are eligible if you have taken our Conversion Course into Pharma Manufacturing. Click here for more details on this programme
Please Note: For non-native English speakers, applicants may need to take a Duolingo, IELTS, TOFEL or equivalent language
test for this course. See the FAQ at the bottom of the page for more details
3 – Scholarship Opportunity
So now you know you’re a great fit for a career in pharma manufacturing.
But your skillset does need to be supplemented with some essential technical information used within the industry. That’s where our University Certificate in Pharmaceutical and Medicinal Product Manufacturing comes in.
Before we get into the details of the course and your job prospects in pharma, we want to get some cost concerns out of the way as we know many adult learners aren’t eligible for Government tuition funding.
This course typically costs £375/month for 12 months BUT for our April 2023 intake ONLY we’re offering 10 outstanding healthcare professionals a scholarship opportunity…
This is a 75% scholarship, meaning recipients will pay just £93 per month for 12-months.
This scholarship is only available for the course starting on the 10th of April 2023 (the application deadline for this is 2nd April 2023).

4 – Job opportunities in pharma manufacturing
This course will get you in the door of a Pharmaceutical or Medical Device company. You will be able to apply for entry-level roles in the Production Department (working with the machines to make the medicines or devices) or in the Quality Department (testing the medicines or devices to make sure they are safe for patients).
These roles are typically called Production Technicians or:
- Production Operator
- Manufacturing Technician
- Packaging Operator
- Product Assembler (depending on the specific role and the company)
According to the Office of National Statistics, the pay of average entry-level roles in pharma manufacturing is 96% of “NHS Band 5 with less than 2 years’ experience”. These roles come with opportunities for overtime, shift allowance and additional benefits as well as huge scope for career progression and salary increases.
But what does that really mean as a day-to-day job?
Well as pharma company, Baxter put it…
“This is where you save and sustain lives” as you “help with all day-to-day tasks of preparation and inspection of compounding medicine”.
From an entry-level role, you can progress into roles such as Team Leader, Supervisor, or even Head of Department.
As part of your course, you’ll learn a lot more about career paths through the industry.

5 – The Course – Essential Details
Our University Certificate in Pharmaceutical and Medicinal Product Manufacturing programme is a unique combination of technical modules and job hunting support that takes you from no industry knowledge to successfully starting your first job in pharma.
The practical details:
- University Level 4 Certificate, accredited by the University of South Wales
- Delivered entirely online
- 15 hours per week with fully flexible timetable – there are no ZOOM classes or webinars so you decide when and where to study
- 11 months to complete
- But you don’t have to wait for the academic year to start in September, our next intake starts on April 10th (applications close April 2nd)

6 – Finding a team you can trust
GetReskilled are a niche education company who specialise in helping people move into pharma manufacturing from other industries.
That’s all we do – so we’re really good at it.
We’ve won education awards, we’ve won pharma industry awards and we even placed 2nd in a European vocational training award. Our programmes are developed in conjunction with some of the world’s biggest pharma companies (including Pfizer and MSD) and they’re delivered by highly respected working industry professionals.
We don’t say that to brag.
We say it so you know that when you choose GetReskilled, you’re choosing a team and a programme that you can trust.
We’ve been doing this for 15 years and have trained over 5,000 people. We only take a select number of individuals into our programmes each year because we know that the key to your success is the individual attention you get before, during and after your studies with us.
We know every student’s name and we’re as invested in your success as you are.

7 – Why online with GetReskilled increases your chance of success
We do things a little differently at GetReskilled…
Single Point of Contact
We give every student a dedicated Programme Coordinator. They are your single point of contact throughout the course. Any questions about the programme, the technical information, or working in the industry – it all goes to them.
Personal Trainer
You’ll get one week of course materials released at a time and your Programme Coordinator will manually check your progress at the end of the week. Think of them like a personal trainer for your studies – if it ever looks like you’re starting to fall behind, your Programme Coordinator will reach out and help you put a plan in place for catching up and staying on track.
Online
Learning is 100% online and your study materials are available to you 24/7 – this means you can truly study at the time and place that best suits you. You don’t have to waste time commuting to a classroom and you can take advantage of even the smallest window of available time in your weekly schedule.
No Fixed Class Times
There are no fixed class times – you have the week to complete the topics that you’re given and it’s up to you when you fit that in. You don’t have to quit work, you don’t have to give up precious family time and you don’t need to rearrange any caring responsibilities or previous ongoing commitments.
Support Through Your Job Hunt
We know from over 15-years experience that when you’re changing careers, it’s not just about learning technical details. Figuring out how to successfully job hunt in a new industry takes time and effort. We decided that we’d save you all that uncertainty by creating a dedicated module that walks you step by step through the job hunting process. When we say we take you all the way from knowing nothing about the industry, to your first job – we mean it!
Imagine what having that level of support and accountability does for your chances of reaching your goals… we’re with you every step of the way.




8 – Course syllabus: University Certificate in Pharmaceutical and Medicinal Product Manufacturing
