This Certificate is University Accredited by the University of South Wales
One of the Largest Universities in Wales
- Ranked in top 100 by the Times Higher Education for universities under 50 in 2014 and 2015
23,000 registered students
Over 2,700 members of staff
Minimum Entry Requirements
You need ONE of the following entry requirements:
- The equivalent of a Level 3 qualification (A-Levels or equivalent) or above
OR - The equivalent of a Level 2 qualification (minimum 3 GCSEs including Mathematics and English at Grade C/Grade 4 or above,) AND a recent relevant industry foundation course.
OR - Have taken our Conversion Course into Pharmaceutical Manufacturing
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.
What Starter Level Roles Could I Retrain For?
STEP 1: Take our level 4 “University Certificate in Pharmaceutical and Medicinal Product Manufacturing” course to retrain for entry-level roles. Here are some of the most common job titles we see advertised on our pharma jobs board.
Process Technician – Generally works in a pharmaceutical manufacturing plant. Some companies call this role:
- Cleanroom Operator
- Chemical Process Technician
- BioProcess Technician
- Process Operator
Manufacturing Technician – Generally works in a medical device manufacturing plant. Some companies call this role
- Manufacturing Team Member
- Product Assembler
- Production Technician
- Production Operator
- Manufacturing Operator
Packaging Operators – Works in both pharmaceutical and medical device plants. Some companies call this role:
- Packaging Technician
And for those who have worked in a GMP regulated manufacturing environment e.g. pharma, med device, nutritional, beverage, food or dairy manufacturing.
And for those who have worked in maintenance in another industry sector.
- Maintenance Technician
- Facilities Technician
- Facilities Technologist
Study all the Way to a Degree
STEP 2: Then you can take our level 5 University Higher Certificate in Pharmaceutical and Medicinal Product Manufacturing course to move into more senior roles with a higher salary. Typical roles
- Validation Technician – you work directly for a pharmaceutical company on ongoing projects. (Some pharma companies might call this role: CQV Specialist, Validation Specialist or C&Q Specialist)
- Validation Team Member – you work with an engineering consultancy firm on capital projects. (Some engineering consultancies might also call this role: CQV Specialist, Validation Specialist or C&Q Specialist)
(Note that actual job titles will vary – the key distinction is between who’d employ you and what type of projects you’d work on).
And with more work experience
- Validation Project Manager
- Process Engineer
- Cleaning Validation Specialist
Salaries range from £27,0000 – £45,000 plus overtime, bonuses and allowances. (Based on UK job data).
STEP 3: Take 6 more modules to get a level 6 BSc (Hons) Degree in Pharmaceutical and Medicinal Product Manufacturing
What you’ll learn – There are five modules in this 11 month course
Module 1 – Fundamentals of Pharmaceutical Manufacturing (Weeks 1 -8)
This module will give you a broad understanding of pharmaceutical products are made, the rules that govern manufacturing and the guidelines on how these rules are applied along with 6 different risk management tools used.
Module 2 – Advanced Writing Skills (Weeks 9 -12)
This module will give you the written communications skills to properly write reports and reference and cite source material in a manner that is consistent with the professional norms of this industry. It will guide you through the assignment writing process and equip you with the written communication skills you need for working in the industry. You will be completing this module as you write your end of module assignment for PH1S082 Fundamentals of Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Technologies.
Module 3 – Pharmaceutical Facility Design (Weeks 13 – 26)
In this module, you will receive a strong grounding in the modern pharmaceutical science and engineering concepts of the environmental controls (air) and clean utility systems design that underpins an aseptic manufacturing facility and the quality systems used in this highly regulated environment to ensure the manufacture of safe and effective medicines for the public.
Module 4 – Advanced Career Coaching (Weeks 27 -30)
This is the career bit. In this module, you’ll navigate your way, step by step, through the job hunting process. We specifically designed and built this module for the pharma and med device sector. By the end of it, you’ll know which jobs you’d be perfect for, where to find them, and how to make applications to give yourself the best chance at success.
Summer Holidays (Weeks 30 to 37)
Module 5 – Fundamentals of Chemistry for the Pharmaceutical Industry (Week 38 – 47)
The aim of this module is to provide a foundation in the general chemistry necessary to appreciate the fundamental concepts involved in the chemistry of APIs required for the manufacture of medicinal products
Are there Pharma Factories and Jobs Near Me?
Check out UK’s Largest Pharmaceutical Jobs Board to see the latest job openings in the UK.
Find out what pharma factories are near you – check out this Factory locator for the UK to see what factories are within a commutable distance for you
Check out this list of 250 pharmaceutical and medical device companies
Common Questions About the BioPharma/MedTech Industry
Why Choose a Pharmaceutical Career?
Job Descriptions and Salaries
GetReskilled Success Stories
Regina McNamara
Previous Background:
Professional Painter
“I can Study Around Work and Family Commitments”
I’d recommend this course to anyone that wants to work in the Pharmaceutical and Medical Device Manufacturing industry and is interested in building a successful career in this area. The online experience is working well for me as I study around work and family commitments.
The companies I applied for were very impressed. I am currently working in Boston Scientific manufacturing Balloon Catheters for Gallstone patients.
Mehmet Hascan
Previous Background:
Technical Support
“Material was Delivered in an Engaging, Interesting and Supportive Way”
Having faced a career change in the middle of an economic downturn, I lost some of myself confidence and needed a major boost. The area of Biopharmaceutical operations and validation was of interest to me as it does play an important role in the pharmaceutical industry at present.
I have now been working at Johnson and Johnson Vision Care as a Validation Engineer and I look forward to putting what I have learned into practice.
Sharon Egan
Previous Background:
Food Manufacturing
“Structurally Well Planned with the Opportunity for Practical Application”
I found the course to be interesting, structurally well planned with the opportunity for practical application of the course modules through various assignments.
I have worked in the Medical device/Pharmaceutical and Food industries and found the course to be extremely relevant to all industries.
We’ve got lots more success stories like these. Read them, or try GetReskilled and see for yourself.
Price & Start Dates
Or £4500 in Total
Price Includes:
- End of week progress checks by us to MAKE SURE you finish the course
- University accreditation by University of South Wales, UK
- Delivered online so you can learn from home (or anywhere) on your own schedule
- Robust job hunting skills course that will seriously help you find a job
- Regular & ongoing access to a dedicated career coaching counsellor
No Hidden Fees
- No application fees
- No registration fees
- No resource/book fees
- No certificate fees
- No interest fees
Application Deadline: Friday 2nd September
Course Starts: 16th September 2022
Delivered by Industry Experts
Dr. Joe Brady
Full-Time Validation Lead
Lecturer, Technological University Dublin
Senior Associate, GetReskilled
Dr. Joe Brady is a full-time practicing Validation Lead and an assistant lecturer with Technological University Dublin (TU Dublin), in the School of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences. Joe is a certified trainer and highly experienced in competency-based training. He designs and prepares educational modules and full academic programs ranging from MSc, MEngSc. BSc, to Certificate level, for a range of academic institutions.
He is also a supervisor for MSc/MEngSc and Ph.D. theses. Joe has over twenty years of project experience in the pharmaceutical, biopharmaceutical, and medical device industries in Ireland, Singapore, China, The Netherlands, France and the USA.
Gerard Creaner
Senior Lecturer with GetReskilled
Gerry Creaner has over 30-years of experience in the Life Sciences Manufacturing industry across a range of technical, managerial and business roles. He established a very successful engineering consultancy prior to founding GetReskilled, an online education and learning business, with offices in Singapore, Ireland and Boston (USA), focussed on the manufacture of safe and effective medicines for the public.
He is also a founding Director of two Singapore based philanthropic organizations, the Farmleigh Fellowship and the Singapore-Ireland Fund, both of which deepen the well established and historical Singapore – Ireland relationship and deliver long-term benefits to both countries.
Gerry has an undergraduate degree in Chemical Engineering (UCD, 1980) and an MSc (Management) from Trinity College Dublin (2003) and is currently doing research for his Ph.D.
Dr. Suzanna Kean
Head of Chemistry and Pharmaceutical Science at USW
Having completed her undergraduate degree and PhD in Chemistry at the University of Adelaide, Suzy has initially applied her skills working for global mining giant Rio Tinto before undertaking post doctoral research in some of the UK’s top chemistry departments (Durham and Bristol).
Suzy Kean has been a lecturer in academia now for over 15 years and has led on the development of the pharmaceutical industry focussed awards at USW. She has extensive experience as a chemical analyst, and specialises in NMR spectroscopy.
Meet Your Online Classroom Support Team
We have a team of in-house experts to provide guidance and support, whenever you need it.
Course Leaders & Coordinators
Your Course Leaders & Coordinators are here to provide you with answers, tips, and are going to check your progress weekly to keep you on track and will reach out to you by email or even by phone if you fall behind!
Career Coaching
Meet Claire who runs GetReskilled’s Advanced Career Coaching Programme – our specially devised job hunting course that helps our trainees take that final step into employment by leading them through the job hunting process.
If you’re spending money on an education course, make sure you choose one you’ll finish!
With every GetReskilled ONLINE course;
- You will have a dedicated course leader for the entire duration of the course.
- GetReskilled will use (Moodle) platform and USW will use Blackboard where you can log into your classroom anytime. Each week, you’ll watch videos and complete a series of quizzes, tests, interactive activities, and projects. The course materials are available 24/7 and nothing requires you to be online at a specific day or time. i.e there are NO ZOOM classes and NO WEBINARS! Study anywhere, anytime, for example after the kids have gone to bed or on the weekend.
- We release only one week’s worth of material at a time and then MANUALLY check your activity logs at the end of every week to make sure that you are keeping up with your work.
- Your dedicated course leader will email or telephone you if it looks like you’re starting to fall behind. She will work with you to develop a study plan to get you back on schedule and finish the course.
This helps us to spot any potential issues early and helps you completely finish the course.
Your 47-Week Class Schedule
Core technical content developed in consultation with the pharma industry including Pfizer and MSD.
Module 1 – Fundamentals of Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Technologies (PH1S082)
This module will give you a broad understanding of pharmaceutical manufacturing technologies, the rules that govern manufacturing and the guidelines on how these rules are applied along with the risk management tools to be used when making decisions that could impact the safety of the medicines being manufactured.
Module 2 – Advanced Writing Skills (Weeks 9 – 12)
This module will give you the written communications skills to properly write reports and reference and cite source material in a manner that is consistent with the professional norms of this industry. It will guide you through the assignment writing process and equip you with the written communication skills you need for working in the industry. You will be completing this module as you write your end of module assignment for PH1S082 Fundamentals of Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Technologies.
Module 3 – Pharmaceutical Facility Design (PH1S083)
In this module, you will receive a strong grounding in the modern pharmaceutical science and engineering concepts of the environmental controls (air) and clean utility systems design that underpins an aseptic manufacturing facility and the quality systems used in this highly regulated environment to ensure the manufacture of safe and effective medicines for the public.