The Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (ACPHS) is pleased to announce a new Professional Science Master’s (PSM) degree program at its Center for Biopharmaceutical Education and Training (CBET).
The new Master’s in Biomanufacturing and Bioprocessing is a one-year program with a strong emphasis on industrial applications and an internship in the biopharmaceutical industry. The PSM is designed for undergraduates, graduates, and working professionals interested in a career in the biopharmaceutical industry and is accepting applications for the Spring 2021 semester. For more information, go to www.CBETalbany.com.
“We have a strong reputation as a pharmacy school, but we also have expertise in drug discovery and development, the biology of human disease, and the science of drug action. CBET and our new PSM enable us to use our biopharmaceutical expertise to support this growing industry,” said ACPHS President Greg Dewey.
Founding Director of CBET Dr. Kamal Rashid, who came to ACPHS last year with 40 years of experience in biomanufacturing education, recruited and hired two new faculty with expertise in bioengineering and bioprocessing to support CBET and this new PSM.
Dr. Julian Rosenberg has joined ACPHS as the Associate Director of CBET. Dr. Rosenberg brings more than 10 years of diverse experience in academia and industry that has spanned the continuum of industrial biotechnology. Most recently, he directed a research and development program in the private sector and shaped its strategic vision to commercialize new technologies. Dr. Rosenberg earned his Ph.D. in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering from Johns Hopkins University, where his doctoral work pioneered novel biomanufacturing strategies for therapeutic biologics, nutraceuticals, and commodity biochemicals. At CBET, Dr. Rosenberg is involved in all aspects of the center’s development and directs our PSM program.
ACPHS also welcomes Dr. Ehsan Mahdinia to CBET as an Assistant Professor. Dr. Mahdinia is an expert in fermentation technologies and an accomplished teacher. He joins ACPHS from Penn State University, where he served as a post-doctoral research fellow, teaching assistant, and lecturer. Dr. Mahdinia earned his doctorate in Agricultural and Biological Engineering at Penn State with a focus on bioprocessing engineering. His dissertation work explored vitamin K production from bacteria using biofilm reactors.
“CBET and the PSM will provide task-oriented education and training programs designed to respond to the workforce needs of the growing biomanufacturing industry. The emphasis will be on hands-on training in upstream and downstream processing, quality control, regulatory issues and process analytics, utilizing the latest techniques and instrumentations in a mock cGMP environment,” said Dr. Kamal Rashid, the founding Director of CBET.
CBET and the PSM are ACPHS’ response to the rapidly growing biopharmaceutical field and the need for an educated workforce, which has been cited as the single largest constraint to growth in the biopharmaceutical industry. This new biopharmaceutical education and training center, the first in the nation to be created by a pharmacy college, will also provide customized workforce training for industry professionals looking to advance their skill sets and obtain hands-on experience with the latest biopharmaceutical technology.
CBET is located at the Albany NanoTech Complex on Fuller Road alongside SUNY Polytechnic Institute. This location exemplifies the nexus of academia and industry and supports the recently announced partnership with SUNY Poly to expand access to high quality educational and research opportunities in the Capital District and Mohawk Valley Region of New York State.
About Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences
Founded in 1881, Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (ACPHS) is a private, independent college dedicated to educating the next generation of leaders to improve the health of society. ACPHS offers 17 undergraduate, graduate and doctorate programs including online Master of Biomedical Sciences and Master of Biotechnology programs. Students have myriad opportunities to extend what they are learning in the classroom at The Stack Family Center for Biopharmaceutical Education and Training (CBET), at student-supported pharmacies in underserved communities, and at The Collaboratory, a public health resource designed to alleviate community health disparities in Albany’s South End neighborhood. ACPHS ranks #1 in New York State for best return on investment by Georgetown University’s Center on Education and the Workforce and was graded an A+ for value by Niche.