Chemistry - Chemistry and Business Studies Specialisation Leiden University

Overview

In this specialisation you combine high quality research in chemistry with training in management and entrepreneurship.
Business Studies bridges science and business by focusing on areas such as technology management, innovation, entrepreneurship, operations and decision-making. In this master's specialisation you combine chemistry research with Science Based Business. You will learn about analytical frameworks and skills for managerial decision-making. The emphasis of the business specialisation is on the application of these frameworks and skills in the context of R&D-intensive organisations. After completion, you have obtained the necessary knowledge and skills to take on managerial responsibilities in your work.

Do you pursue a management career in industry from a chemistry research perspective? Do you want to learn all about technology commercialization and business development? Then, Chemistry and Business Studies is the master's specialisation of choice for you. It enables you to broaden your scope outside chemistry research. The specialisation offers training that is analytically rigorous and connected to practice through class discussions based on real-life business cases, company visits, guest speakers, and an internship experience.

What you will learn

The specialisation enables you to understand the fundamentals of management and entrepreneurship alongside high quality research in chemistry.

After completion of the MSc Chemistry programme students will have developed:

• Knowledge and understanding of theoretical concepts of Chemistry from textbooks and primary literature pertaining to the research area “Chemical Biology” or “Energy & Sustainability”

• The ability to plan chemical research, perform experiments within an appropriate time frame, collect and store data in a logical way, such that colleagues can easily find and access the data (data management)

• The ability to make an independent analysis of scientific problems, analysis of relevant specialist literature, and formulate verifiable hypotheses

• An appropriate critical scientific attitude, i.e. the ability to analyse results and critically evaluate their validity and accuracy

• The skill to communicate chemical research progress and results to colleagues, supervisors and experts

• The ability to write independently a structured and accurate report on performed chemical research

• The ability to perform with an academic attitude and the skills for autonomous self-development, taking into account the ethical and social aspects of the natural sciences.

Career prospects

The SBB programme is geared towards pursuing future career opportunities, both in academia and in industry. About 40% of former SBB students have gone on to do a PhD, while most of the remainder have employment in industry as consultant or in a managerial position. The MSc programme guarantees thorough research training founded on a sound theoretical basis. MSc students in Leiden work in an environment with many internationally renowned researchers and can operate on the international market.

Accreditation

Accredited by NVAO, the Accreditation Organisation of the Netherlands and Flanders.