Future training needs in the pharmaceutical sciences: Academia Industry

The markets for the traditional output of schools of pharmacy, namely educa tion, research and graduates, are changing. The main private client in thes e markets, the pharmaceutical industry, is moving fast to become more effic ient, under pressure from overly costly drug development. The challenges to the industry that emanate from the fantastic rate of advances in the biome dical sciences and pharmaceutical development are considerable. The many ag ents that were unheard of 10 years ago, such as gene-regulators, together w ith new technologies, all require new approaches to fundamental pharmaceuti cal issues. The concept of disciplines in graduate education may have to be reconsidere d in the light of the multidisciplinary problems to be tackled. In addition , graduates will need to acquire a range of non-disciplinary skills, such a s better communication or team working, in order to be effective in the com mercial market place. The concept of 'research schools' following either a local or network model may provide the way forward to help academia meet the graduate education n eeds of industry. The objectives and mission of such institutions must be c learly defined to ensure that the current scientific environment is embrace d fully. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science BN. All rights reserved.