Temple University’s Bioinnovation Professional Science Master’s is designed for scientists interested in commercialization, business professionals working in life sciences, and those seeking advancement into interdisciplinary leadership roles.
Scientific discoveries have the potential to transform health care, environmental sustainability and countless other fields—but turning those discoveries into products, services and real-world solutions require more than scientific expertise alone.
Temple University’s College of Science and Technology is addressing that need through its Bioinnovation Professional Science Master’s (PSM), an interdisciplinary graduate degree that prepares professionals to work at the intersection of science, business and innovation. Introduced in 2014, the program can now be completed entirely online, providing a flexible option for working professionals and others seeking to advance their careers without stepping away from their current responsibilities.
“Linking biotechnology discovery to business isn’t optional anymore,” said Antonio Giordano, professor of biology, founder and co-director of the PSM program and director of CST’s Center for Biotechnology. “It’s what determines whether a breakthrough actually makes an impact in the real world.”
According to Giordano, the Bioinnovation PSM was designed to bridge the gap between scientific discovery and the business, legal, regulatory and commercialization expertise needed to bring new ideas into practice. “Students learn to communicate across disciplines and understand how scientific discoveries move from the laboratory to real-world applications,” he said.
Unlike traditional science master’s degrees focused on a single discipline, this program integrates science, business, intellectual property, ethics, commercialization and entrepreneurship—preparing students to translate biological discoveries into products, technologies and solutions that improve lives and create societal and economic impact. It also differs from an MBA by giving students the scientific foundation needed to effectively communicate at the interface of scientific and business functions.
The curriculum draws on expertise from CST and Temple’s Fox School of Business, including interdisciplinary and team-taught courses.
While pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies are natural career destinations, the degree has applications across a much broader range of industries, including artificial intelligence, medical devices, public health, environmental health, agriculture, veterinary medicine, engineering, health care systems, sustainability, law and intellectual property.
“The program also embraces a ‘One Health’ perspective, recognizing the connections among human, animal, plant and environmental health,” said Giordano, who is also director of Temple’s Sbarro Health Research Organization.
A central focus is developing what program faculty describe as “translation skills,” the ability to take complex scientific concepts and communicate them effectively to business leaders, investors, regulators and other stakeholders.
“Those skills are increasingly valuable as organizations navigate rapid advances in artificial intelligence, increasingly complex regulatory and intellectual property environments, global health challenges and the growing need for interdisciplinary collaboration,” explained Gianfranco Bellipani, co-director of the program and a professor of instruction in the Department of Biology. “Temple’s combination of scientific expertise, business education, health care connections, entrepreneurship and technology-transfer resources provides a natural environment for the program.”