English in Pharmacy for Students and Practitioners

Understanding scientific jargon in a paper, professionally communicating with patients and colleagues, or writing a lab report – i.e. using English in a pharmaceutical context – demands special skills beyond everyday language use.

To prepare you for these challenges, we offer a course developed in close collaboration with the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences to meet your specific language needs in the pharmaceutical and health-related fields.

As a companion to the “Scientific Writing” course offered in the spring semester by the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, this course prepares students to effectively and accurately communicate their professional knowledge in English. By covering all four language competences – speaking, writing, listening and reading – it acquaints students with a variety of English-language situations they will have to maneuver. Materials are drawn from authentic academic, research and professional contexts.

The course aims to:

  • expand your pharmaceutical and medical vocabulary (e.g. drug formulations, diseases),
  • enhance your reading comprehension skills (e.g. by analyzing current articles from the media and professional journals),
  • hone your listening comprehension skills (e.g. by examining authentic pharmacy and health-related talks and presentations),
  • increase your accuracy in speaking and writing in the laboratory (e.g. explaining procedures and composing lab reports),
  • develop your ability to deliver presentations on topics related to your professional knowledge (e.g. communicating research),
  • strengthen your workplace communication skills as needed in pharmacist–patient dialogues (e.g. communicating scientific information to lay people).

Entry requirement: min. 2 semesters of pharmaceutical studies.

Should the progression of the pandemic allow it, classes will again be offered on site.

Course information

Course level
C1
Date
01.03.2021–31.05.2021
  • Monday, 15:30–17:00
24 Lessons
Lecturer
Kumiko Masai, PhD
Credit points
3 ECTS
Registration deadline
Sunday 21.02.2021
Course fee
Students and PhD candidates: CHF 291.00
Members of staff: CHF 579.00
Alumni: CHF 579.00
Alumni FHNW: CHF 579.00

There will be no class on 5 April and 24 May 2021.

Course materials

Script

Requirements

Active participation is assumed.

In order to receive credit points, participants will

  • not be absent more than twice (additional inevitable absences must be compensated in consultation with the lecturer),
  • submit four satisfactory assignments (if an assignment is unsatisfactory, it may be resubmitted once),
  • deliver one oral presentation, followed by a class discussion,
  • submit a portfolio consisting of the four assignments, along with the improved versions thereof, and the support materials for the oral presentation.

You can get a total of 3 credit points.

Participants are assessed by means of a portfolio (pass/fail).

Homework

± 120 minutes / week

Certificate of attendance

Active participation is assumed. In order to receive a certificate of attendance (available on request) for this course, you are not allowed to be absent more than twice.
Additional inevitable absences must be compensated in consultation with the lecturer.

Placement test

This course requires either an obligatory computer placement test or completion of a preceding course. If you have not attended a preceding course, a computer placement test has to be taken prior to registration.

Replacement date

The supplementary replacement date for lessons that might not take place is: 29 May 2021 from 10:00 - 16:00.

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