Unit information: Biomedical Research, Employability and Enterprise Skills in 2022/23

Unit name	Biomedical Research, Employability and Enterprise Skills
Unit code	MVSF20001
Credit points	20
Level of study	I/5
Teaching block(s)	Teaching Block 4 (weeks 1-24)
Unit director	Dr. Robson
Open unit status	Not open
Units you must take before you take this one (pre-requisite units)	Level 4/C Faculty of Biomedical Sciences units
Units you must take alongside this one (co-requisite units)	None
Units you may not take alongside this one	None
School/department	Life Sciences Faculty Office
Faculty	Faculty of Life Sciences

Unit Information

This unit provides important core competencies for students in the Faculty of Life Sciences, to equip them with the skills they will need to succeed in the final year and to enhance their employability after graduation. The unit has three main aims:

• to enhance research skills through the development of data handling and interpretation abilities, and to provide students with an appreciation of how science is conducted ethically and sustainably,
• to enable students to gain an understanding of the commercialisation of biomedical science,
• to provide students with the opportunity to develop their employability and job application skills.

The aims of this unit will be achieved through both independent and collaborative work and will foster written and oral communication skills to both scientific and lay audiences. The capacity for self and peer assessment will be developed during the unit.

Your learning on this unit

The intended learning outcomes for the two elements are:

Research and Enterprise

1. The ability to write for scientific publication
2. An understanding of experimental design
3. The ability to critically analyse scientific papers
4. Data analysis and interpretation skills
5. A basic knowledge of statistical methods appropriate to biomedical sciences
6. The retrieval and evaluation of scientific information sources
7. A basic understanding of bioscience and biomedical ethics
8. The ability to communicate scientific concepts to a lay audience
9. The ability to write technical documents such as research grant applications
10. An understanding of how scientific ideas are funded as both research projects and commercial exploitations
11. Collaborative teamwork and peer assessment skills
12. Oral presentation skills

Employability

1. Ability to write a curriculum vitae and covering letter that is appropriate to the job being applied for
2. Work as part of a team to critically evaluate the applications and provide balanced formative feedback for each applicant
3. Understand the role of a job interview and perform competently as an interviewee
4. Peer review and assessment skills

How you will learn

• Teaching will be delivered through a blend of synchronous and asynchronous online activities, including short recorded lectures, workshops, feedback sessions and quizzes.
• Some small-group teaching activities (e.g. feedback sessions) may take place face-to-face, where possible.
• For some activities, students will be divided into teams of 6-8 students. Peer collaboration and feedback will be key to achieving the intended learning objectives.
• Staff feedback will direct skills development.
• Some activities will take place in discipline specific strands to highlight the subject specific relevance of the material being taught.

How you will be assessed

Employability element (worth 15% of the unit overall):

• Assessment of CV and job application covering letter (10%)
• Assessment of performance in a mock job interview (5%)

Research and Enterprise element (worth 85% of the unit overall):

• Preparation of a research grant proposal using a defined proforma (25%)
• An end-of-unit assessment consisting of:

1. A scientific abstract writing exercise (30%)
2. Multiple choice questions to test knowledge and understanding of experimental design and statistical methods (30%)

Resources

If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.

If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. MVSF20001).

How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks, independent learning and assessment activity.

See the Faculty workload statement relating to this unit for more information.

Assessment
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit. The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. If you have self-certificated your absence from an assessment, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (this is usually in the next assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any extenuating circumstances and operates within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.