Pharma-Medical Engineering (PME) Program
Graduate School of Science & Engineering
University of Toyama
http://pse.eng.u-toyama.ac.jp/pme/Our mission
u Pharmaceutical companies need not only drug discovery researchers but
also “pharma” engineers (PEs) who can design, build, run, and maintainthe factory lines to produce drugs.
u Many Toyama-based pharmaceutical companies have a strong demand forPEs as they deal with contract pharmaceutical manufacturing service andgeneric drug production.
u Healthcare device manufacturers need medical engineers (MEs) who candevelop devices to cure diseases and to assist aged/handicapped persons.
u PE/MEs should:
u be experts in either of electronics, informatics, mechanics, chemistry,biotechnology, etc.
u have a great interest in pharmaceutical and healthcare device
industries.
u understand basics in pharmaceutics and health science.
u In most Japanese universities, the pharmaceutical and medical
departments focus on drug discovery and therapeutics, and the engineering
department does not teach in depth pharmaceutics and health science.
u Our goal is to solve this gap between the demand and supply of the humanresources by training PE/MEs.

About PME ProgramuThe PME program:u is currently offered to the graduate students belonging to theGraduate School of Science and Engineering (GSSE, see thefollowing pages for details) master degree program.
u is currently run by the GSSE with the cooperation of the Graduate
School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Science and the companies
and public organizations based in and near Toyama.
u has been supported by a Japanese Ministry of Education’s special
grant for the reformation of university education.
u was started in the spring of academic year 2014 after its one-year
pilot trial in academic year 2013.

uThe PME graduate students:
u should major in either of the academic fields of the GSSE.
u can obtain master degree in the academic field by completing theregular requirements.
u can obtain the certificate of the PME program in addition to themaster degree by completing the extra requirements.
u currently counts ~20 to ~50.

PME Program
Government and publicorganizations, research
institutes

Private companies

GSSE
PME Program
Methematics

Electric & Electronic Eng.

Physics

Intellectual Information Eng.

Chemistry

Mechanical & Intellectual Syss. Eng.

Biology

Life Scis. & Bioeng.

Earth SciencesEnvironmental Applied Chem.

Environmental Biol. & Chem.

Material Sci. & Eng.

Undergrad. Schools
Univ. of Toyama
Dept. of Science
Dept. of Engineering

Other universities
and institutes
inside and outside
JapanGrad. Sch. of Med. &Pharmaceutical Sci.,
Univ. Hospital,
Institute of Natural Med.,
Univ. of Toyama

Educational support

Many companies support PME Program as members of theadministrative committee.
u Pharmaceuticals
u Daito Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., www.daitonet.co.jp/eng/index.php
u Fuji Yakuhin, Co., Ltd., www.fujiyakuhin.co.jp
u Kokando Co. Ltd., www.koukandou.co.jp/en/u Teika Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., www.teika.co.jp/index.html
u Toa Pharmaceuticals Co. Ltd., www.toayakuhin.co.jp/english/top.html
u Medical devices, pharmaceutical manufacturing equipment, etc.
u Powrex Corporation, www.powrex.co.jp/english
u Sugino Machine Limited, www.sugino.com/index-e.html
u Yokogawa Electric Corporation, www.yokogawa.com

About GSSEu The Graduate School of Science and Engineering (GSSE) is
one of the seven graduate schools of University of Toyama.
u The GSSE offers a two-year program for master degree and athree-year program for doctoral degree.
u Most of the graduate students of the GSSE master degree
program find jobs in private companies or public offices.
u ~480 master degree program students, ~80 doctoral degree
program students, ~190 educators

Education in PME Program, part 1
u Regular training for master degree
u The PME students should take classes and perform dissertation
studies that are required to obtain master degree in their own
academic fields.

u PME special trainingu The PME students should take some special series of lectures
overviewing drug production, health care devices, economy andregulations in the related industries.
u In some special laboratory classes, the PME students should learn
the principles and how to operate drug production and health caredevices.

u Campus-wide classes
u To learn basics in pharmaceutics and health science, the PME
graduate students should take some classes offered bysections/graduate schools other than his own affiliation. For
example, a PME student majoring in electronics takes classes
offered by the material science section of the GSSE and the Grad.
Sch. of Med. & Pharmaceutical Sci.

Education in PME Program, part 1
PME special trainingLectures

Campus-wide classes
Grad. Sch. of Med. &Pharmaceutical Sci.

Lab. classes

Education in PME Program, part 2
u Vocational education through on-the-job practiceu “Coordinator”, a tutor who has a broad experience in a wide range
of industries and a professor serving as the PME Corporate
Relation Manager instruct how to find a job in an attractive andgrowing companies.
u Classes by many guest speakers from the pharmaceutical andhealth care device companies, government offices, publicorganizations, and research institutes.
u Meetings with personnels from various pharmaceutical and healthcare device companies.
u Factory tours to pharmaceutical and health care device companies.
u Internship programs at pharmaceutical and health care devicecompanies.

Education in PME Program, part 3
u Global experiences (building international survival skills)
u PE/MEs should improve English language proficiency because theyshould read/write papers/patents and communicate with their business
partners and consumers outside Japan.
u The PME students brush up their English skill, using:u English conversation club (“International Cafe”)
u On-line TOEIC preparation system which can be used within thecampus
u Student exchange programs with oversea universities.
u Some PME students studied overseas, being supported by a “Tobitate”
fund run by Japanese Ministry of Education and top-ranked companies.

u Presentation trainingu The PME students will make poster presentations in public at thesymposium held by the PME program every year.

Education in PME Program, part 3
Global experiences
Student exchange program with University of Basel

Presentation training
Poster presentation at PME Symposium