Master of Translational Medicine Program Gets Final UC Approval

Two years after launching as a pilot effort, an innovative graduate curriculum in translational medicine jointly offered by UCSF and UC Berkeley has received final approval from University of California President Mark Yudof as a master’s degree program.

Tejal Desai, PhD

Until now, the joint effort had been granting Master of Science degrees in bioengineering “with coursework and project emphasis on translational medicine.” The program is run by the UC Berkeley Department of Bioengineering and the UCSF Department of Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences (BTS), itself a joint department of the UCSF schools of Medicine and Pharmacy.

“It was a way to test out the curriculum and get the program in place so we could actually do it when it was approved,” says Tejal Desai, PhD, a UCSF BTS professor and vice chair for education, who co-directs the program along with Song Li, PhD, a UC Berkeley bioengineering associate professor.

The translational medicine program trains students from varied backgrounds—basic scientists, clinicians, and engineers—to bring innovative treatments, ranging from drug delivery or imaging technologies to new medical devices or pharmaceuticals, into clinical use.

The approved Master of Translational Medicine (MTM) program will become a professional degree program akin to the well-known Master of Business Administration (MBA), with somewhat more emphasis on professional development, business, and leadership than the Master of Science program.

Read the full story on the UCSF School of Pharmacy website.