A new Professional Science Master's Program in Biotechnology is currently accepting applications for fall 2010, the first semester that the program will be offered, according to Profs. Neil Simister (BIOL) and Susan Lovett (BIOL), the director and assistant director of the program.The program is both a stand-alone two-year master's program for graduate students and a five-year combined bachelor's and master's program for undergraduates. It focuses on both science and business, which Simister says will give its graduates unique qualifications in their fields.

"The graduates of the program will be hybrids-they'll know about science and they'll know about business-so we think they'll be very well positioned for jobs in biotechnology, pharmaceuticals [and other similar fields]," said Simister. He went on to say that job applicants are often highly specialized in either business or science but that they lack experience outside of their specific areas of study. He said that surveys of biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies show that it is difficult to find applicants who understand both business and science, so this program will give students an advantage in the job market after their graduation.

Lovett said, "It's meant to prepare students in the best possible way to enter the workforce. . It's not just classwork." The PSM program also incorporates a mandatory internship between the two years of the program or after an undergraduate's senior year. According to the program's Web site, the internship provides students with "real technical experience as well as a practical understanding of the issues and cultures in the biosciences workplace."

Lovett said that the program is looking to accept 10 students for fall 2010. She said that while they would prefer to have half graduate students and half undergraduates, "If we have a lot of qualified Brandeis students, we'll take those over the others." According to the Web site, applications will be considered until all of the program's slots are filled. Simister stressed that applicants need not be science majors as long as they meet the prerequisites for the program.

"We're looking for some diversity in the student population. We're looking for students who have a strong desire for this kind of position. We have kind of minimal prerequisites, . a year in biology and laboratory and a year of chemistry and laboratory," said Lovett. However, she also said that interested students who do not meet all of the prerequisites should apply, and the applications would be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.

Simister said, "The business model for the program is that it will not require any expenditure by the University." Courses will be taught by Biology, Biochemistry and International Business School faculty, and tuition should cover additional program costs such as adjunct faculty for business courses and a lab coordinator.

According to Lovett, there are only around 15 comparable programs nationwide. "We hope that this will serve as a model for similar programs like this in other fields [at Brandeis]," she said, saying that Computer Science and Environmental Science could benefit from similar programs. According to the Professional Science Master's Web site, the organization that the Brandeis program is affiliated with, programs in these disciplines exist but are not offered at the University.

Lovett also said that there may be scholarships available for students who require financial aid if Brandeis is awarded a National Science Foundation grant. The program's Web site states that undergraduates who enroll in the program will not have any changes in their financial aid for the first year and can apply for aid from the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences for the second year.