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PgCert Pharmacovigilance

Why choose Herts?

Strong Industry Connections: Delivered in collaboration with the Pharmaceutical Information and Pharmacovigilance Association [PIPA], who contribute to the curriculum and teaching to ensure the up-to-date content is relevant to needs of the industry. Benefit from networking opportunities with our external industry speakers (including Roche and Novartis) and other students working world.

Teaching Excellence: A programme committee of expert speakers provide students with the latest thinking in Pharmacovigilance and access to networking opportunities. Students have the benefit of working with two supervisors for their project dissertation: many of our academic supervisors hold or held senior industry-level roles.

Flexible Blended Learning: This part-time postgraduate programme in Pharmacovigilance is designed for full-time employed professionals within drug safety. This course is flexible blended with online and face-to-face teaching.  This programme can take a minimum of 1-2 years to complete, and up until 5 years to work:life:studying balance for students.

International Recognition: The programme has international recognition as an established provider of Pharmacovigilance and Drug Safety education with academic accreditation, focusing on European Union and United Kingdom Pharmacovigilance Regulations and Guidelines, yet providing a rounded global context.

  • Entry requirements and key information
    • A first or second class Honours degree in Biosciences, Pharmacy or Biological Chemistry
    • Or a professional qualification accepted as equivalent to the above
    • Or a qualification in veterinary science, medicine or dentistry
    • Or a first or second class Honours degree in disciplines that would be judged as equivalent to the above
    • Plus at least 6 months' experience in full-time Pharmacovigilance work

    ​Find out more about country specific entry requirements.

    Applicants not within the categories described above, but who can demonstrate by other qualifications, research publications or appropriate experience that they can succeed on the course will be considered on individual merit.

    For international students, proficiency in English as demonstrated by an approved test e.g. IELTS score 6.5, if English is not the first language.

    If you do not have the required level of English for entry, our academic English courses can help you to achieve this level.

    Institution code

    		 H36

    School of study

    		 School of Life and Medical Sciences

    Course length
  • Part Time, 1 Years
  • Part Time, 2 Years
    		•

    Location
  • University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield
    		•
  • Employability

    Careers

    Potential candidates will normally be in either full or part-time employment and are likely to have a spread of responsibilities, mostly in pharmacovigilance and medical information, monitoring safety data in either pre- and post-marketing studies or from spontaneous reports.  Students may be graduates and/or experienced personnel and usually will have held positions in drug safety at least 6 months. Some applicants may have doctorates and or may be medically qualified. 

    Following successful completion of the course the knowledge gained should enable the post-graduates to make a greater contribution to the pharmacovigilance industry.

    Feedback from a gradating student about the course "I wanted to express my gratitude for being such an amazing program. It taught me tons and I am so grateful for having the opportunity to meet and collaborate with so many talented, and kind experts! The programme broadens horizons and it is so worth attending!"

Professional Accreditations

This course is accredited by the PIPA (Pharmaceutical Information and Pharmacovigilance Association).

About the course

The PgDip Pharmacovigilance is a course developed by the School of Life and Medical Sciences at the University in collaboration with the Pharmaceutical Information and Pharmacovigilance Association (PIPA). On this course, you will study relevant techniques used in pharmacovigilance including the basis of adverse drug reactions, regulations and guidelines (UK, EU and major worldwide regions), handling safety issues including Labelling and Risk Management Systems and processes (both pre and post-marketing). 

Why choose this course?

  • 92% overall satisfaction for Medicine and Dentistry in the Postgraduate Taught Experience Survey (PTES, 2024)
  • Expertise of the staff, who are experienced professionals and have real-world expertise in pharmacovigilance from the pharmaceutical industry and regulatory authorities
  • Flexibility of study, based on intensive three-day taught courses with independent
  • Pre and post-coursework activities
  • Practical research projects based on real-world situations
  • Opportunities for sharing experiences and networking 
  • There is the flexibility to extend your studies to the MSc in Pharmacovigilance during your studies, in you complete a research project (60 credits)

What will I study?

Taught modules normally consist of approximately 24 hours class contact. In addition, about 120 hours will be needed to complete the pre and post-course activities. The actual amount of time spent will depend upon your existing knowledge and ability. All modules are free-standing. 

Satisfactory completion of four modules is compulsory for the PgCert; Compulsory modules for any award include: The Principles of Pharmacovigilance and Pharmacovigilance Regulations and Guidelines, and then choose two additional modules for your interest.

Coursework will contribute significantly to assessment and may comprise some or all of the following: summaries of pre-course reading, written reports of class discussions, essays, performances in seminars, poster presentations, problem solving or data interpretation exercise, short projects and case studies. Unseen written examinations will feature in some courses; they may be used to examine understanding of pre-course reading material. Attendance at the taught component and satisfactory completion of both coursework and examinations (where present), with a minimum mark of 50% in each element, is normally required to pass each module.

  • Level 7
    ModuleCreditsCompulsory/optional
    Drug Safety in Clinical Trials15 CreditsOptional
    Adverse Drug Reactions by Major Body Systems II15 CreditsOptional
    Management of Pharmacovigilance Data15 CreditsOptional
    Principles of Pharmacovigilance15 CreditsOptional
    Adverse Drug Reactions by Major Body Systems I15 CreditsOptional
    Pharmacoepidemiology15 CreditsOptional
    Labelling and Risk Management15 CreditsOptional
    Pharmacovigilance Regulations and Guidelines15 CreditsOptional

    • Further course information

    Course fact sheets
    MSc Pharmacovigilance Download
    MSc Pharmacovigilance Download
    Programme specifications
    MSc Pharmacovigilance Download
    MSc Pharmacovigilance Download
    Additional information

    Sandwich placement or study abroad year

    n/a

    Applications open to international and EU students

    		 No

    Student experience

    At the University of Hertfordshire, we want to make sure your time studying with us is as stress-free and rewarding as possible. We offer a range of support services including; student wellbeing, academic support, accommodation and childcare to ensure that you make the most of your time at Herts and can focus on studying and having fun.

    Find out about how we support our students

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