Molecular Life Sciences

Stem cell therapy, personalised medicine and self-healing materials. These are just a few examples of new developments within the health sciences sector. In the Bachelor’s programme in Molecular Life Sciences you’ll learn how knowledge of molecules, molecular properties, and molecular and cellular biology can contribute to better therapies.
How can an increased knowledge of molecular processes in healthy individuals ultimately fight diseases and how can molecules be used to cure someone? During the Bachelor’s programme in Molecular Life Sciences you’ll study processes in the living cell. Once you understand how the molecular mechanisms work in a healthy cell, you’ll have a better understanding of what goes wrong in diseased cells.
At Radboud University we have a multidisciplinary approach in education and research because this provides new and surprising insights in the field. During the programme you’ll work at the interface of chemistry, biology and medical science, with mathematics and physics as supporting subjects. You’ll learn to see connections between different fields and thus acquire the broader perspective that is required to develop innovative solutions that society needs.
It’s an exciting field of study that continuously generates new discoveries. For example, Radboud scientists develop self-healing materials which constantly adapt to their local environment, e.g. in the human body. This research offers an insight into how our body repairs cells and ensures that the right material ends up precisely in the right place at the right time. As a graduate you’ll be at the forefront, making important contributions to better therapies within the healthcare sector.
Radboud University challenges its students to actively participate in the academic community and trains them to be critical and committed academics, who develop their own views regarding scholarship and society and who will take up responsible positions in a society that is becoming increasingly international.

Each academic year starts in September and is divided into quarters of ten weeks each. You will attend lectures and do lab courses during the first eight weeks, followed by an examination period of two weeks. You will have a full-time working week of 40 hours, consisting of various forms of education. The majority of the courses include lectures and tutorials, which will take up 40 percent of your time. Tutorials are typically held in groups of approximately twenty students. In addition, you will spend one third of the time on lab courses. Some of these are done individually, others, in pairs or with a project group. The lab courses follow the themes as the lectures. In addition you are expected to spend 25 percent of your time in self-study.

First year: In the Molecular Life Sciences programme you’ll study biological and biomedical processes from a molecular perspective. This molecular basis and molecular way of thinking are key for the next years. You will put your newly gained knowledge into practice. For example, you will analyse molecules techniques such as infrared, UV and NMR spectroscopy, and research how alcohol is removed from the body by the liver.

Second and third year: From the second academic year on, the focus of the programme shifts to biomedical research. Halfway through the second year you can choose from of a variety of courses such as Advanced Bioinformatics where, for example, you can predict protein conformations through intelligent programming and design medicines through computer simulation. In the Toxicology course, you’ll learn how the body reacts to various toxic substances from, for instance, medicines and their effect on the liver, kidneys, and other organs. Other courses include Immunology, Pharmacochemistry, Cell Biology of Animals, Biochemistry, Molecular Biology, Organic Chemistry, Neurobiology, Nanobiotechnology, Molecular Basis of Diseases, and Comparative Genomics. You’ll finish your Bachelor’s programme with a research internship in which you participate in ongoing research at Radboud University, and you might even discover something that is yet unknown. During your Bachelor’s programme, you’ll also look into what you intend to do with your Molecular Life Science degree and various options for a Master’s programme. 

Language requirements

You should have sufficient proficiency in English. This requirement is fulfilled when you meet one of the following conditions:

• obtained a Dutch VWO diploma
• obtained a German Zeugnis der Allgemeinen Hochschulreife, and English has a minimum grade 08 as a final year subject (either “geprüft” or “ungeprüft”)
• obtained an International Baccalaureate diploma
• obtained a European Baccalaureate diploma, in which the course English Language 2 or 1 has been taken
• obtained GCE A-levels from AQA, Edexcel, OCR, WJEC or CCEA in the UK or outside the UK
• obtained an American High School Diploma in the US or outside the US
• obtained a diploma in which English has been part of the final examinations from European countries mentioned in the list of language requirements (pdf, 264 kB)
• obtained a diploma equivalent to or higher than the DutchVWO level by completing education at an institution in the one of the member states of the EU/EEA, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, or the United States of America, where the language of instruction is English
• you are a citizen of Australia, Canada (with exception of Quebec), Ireland, New Zealand, the UK, or the USA

If you do not meet one of the above conditions, then you must satisfy one the following conditions:

• obtain an IELTS Academic certificate with a result of at least 6.5 on the overall band and scores of at least 6.0 on all four sub-bands
• obtain a TOEFL iBT certificate with a total score of at least 90 and scores of at least 20 on all four parts
• obtain a Cambridge Certificate of Advanced English with a mark of at least C
• obtain a Cambridge Certificate of Proficiency in English with a mark of at least C

Governmental student finance: EU/EEA students might qualify for a student loan from the Dutch government. To be entitled to this loan, you need to work for fourteen hours a week (56 hours a month) in the Netherlands (next to your studies). If you are entitled to receive the student loan from the Dutch government, you may receive up to € 1,000 per month, in addition to your salary. After graduation, you will need to pay back the loan. In order to determine how much you need to pay back each month, the Dutch government will take your financial situation (such as income) into account. More information is available on www.duo.nl