Bioscience Innovation and Enterprise MSc

The UCL Bioscience Innovation and Enterprise MSc is run by the UCL Institute of Ophthalmology, but you will be take a number of modules from the UCL School of Management and UCL School of Pharmacy. You’ll learn from each of these world-leading departments about how science knowledge can be turned into new social and economic value, to make a real-world difference. This is one of the first degrees of its kind worldwide to offer business education specifically for scientists.

Turning science into useful innovation means that scientists need to understand the language of business, such that they can interrogate the science for potential value and translate that potential into the valuation frameworks used by industry and global institutions. Bioscience innovation is often a long journey. It needs patient funding, from a wide spectrum of public sector and commercial funders. It often gets implemented in dynamic market sectors, complex health systems and under strong regulatory controls.

From the start you will be taught by translational scientists and business people who have successfully navigated the science-business interface to create new value from ideas.UCL’s Institute of Ophthalmology, the home department for this degree, is linked to Moorfields Eye Hospital. This is ranked as the leading university-research collaboration in a specialty area.

Eye scientists study everything from cell biology, genetics, digital health, artificial intelligence, imaging, through to global health and are renown for their innovation and translational expertise. UCL School of Management is a fast-growing business school department with specialties in innovation, entrepreneurship and analytics. UCL School of Pharmacy has a long-established reputation of industry partnering and spinouts.

You’ll find yourself amongst like-minded students with a science background who share a purpose to drive innovation into successful enterprise. Our students come from a variety of countries, from many different scientific and medical backgrounds, but they all share ideals of how business education can empower scientists.

Using UCL’s network and reputation is also a starting point to access London’s entrepreneurial bioscience ecosystem. UCL Innovation & Enterprise runs events, incubation facilities and training programmes for emerging entrepreneurs. The university is closely connected to theCrick Institute, the clinical excellence ofMoorfields Eye Hospital, theWellcome TrustandMedCity in London.

As a summary, this course is suitable for anyone who:

• Wishes to explore the science-business interface for ideas and inspiration
• Wants to pivot to working with science in a business setting such as in investment or consultancy
• Feels they would like to be a new venture creator, and lead their own bioscience-based enterprise at some point in the future

Additional notes

• Some students take this as a part-time course over two years, such that they can continue working. These students can work on a dissertation or other investigative assignment that is related to their work.
• This course does not assume any knowledge of business or management prior to starting the MSc. It takes a steep learning curve, and covers in depth the areas that are most relevant to bioscience innovation and enterprise.

Why study the Bioscience Innovation and Enterprise MSc at UCL?

• In biomedical and health sciences, UCL is1st in Europefor papers in the top 5% of their field by citation rate (2015-2018, CWTS Leiden Ranking 2020).
  
• UCL isranked 9th in the world(QS 2025).
  
• The UCL Institute of Ophthalmology isranked the best place in the world to study ophthalmology(CWUR Rankings by Subject 2017).
  
• UCL hosts more UKRI Future Leader Fellowships than any other UK university, with three academics at the UCL Institute of Ophthalmology receiving the prestigious fellowships over the last three years.
  
• Our longstanding partnership with Moorfields Eye Hospital represents the largest co-located site for eye research, education and care in the world.
  
• As a student you will have access to innovative facilities, connection to a growing network of peers, and support from highly experienced and professional tutors.

On completion of this course, you will have:

• An understanding of how bioscience intersects with business
• Knowledge, skills and mindset that support entrepreneurial activity
• A bespoke business education that focuses on scientific innovation
• Exemplary boundary-spanning communication and leadership skills
• Understanding of the ethical, regulatory and legal constraints around research in businesses based on living entities
• Opportunity recognition skills to identify potential life science opportunity
• Awareness of how new venture creation works in organisations, the priorities, practices and purpose behind the drivers for organisational innovation

Click APPLY