Bachelor of Science in Biotechnology and Biomanufacturing
Biomanufacturing has been named a strategic discipline in every major industrial catalogue revision of the past three years, and the pandemic demonstrated with brutal clarity what it costs a continent to manufacture almost none of its own b...
Employment thesis
What this programme is designed to produce
Forward publishes the destination of every programme before you enrol. If the thesis stops holding, the programme is reviewed and, where necessary, retired. Next review: 2031.
Roles
- Bioprocess technologist
- upstream and downstream process scientist
- quality control and quality assurance officer
- validation specialist
- regulatory affairs associate
- fermentation and manufacturing supervisor
- industrial microbiologist
- biotechnology entrepreneur.
Employer types
- Vaccine and biologics manufacturers
- pharmaceutical manufacturers
- diagnostics producers
- brewing, dairy and food fermentation industries
- agricultural biotechnology
- research institutes
- regulators
- and enzyme and industrial biotechnology ventures.
Target outcomes we hold ourselves to
- A rapidly forming continental manufacturing sector with acute technologist shortage and strong regional mobility.
Compulsory · The Forward Core
How the Core works →Every Forward programme, including this one, carries the same five cross-cutting requirements. They are graded, not optional.
- AI Fluency
- Quantitative Reasoning
- Ethics and African Context
- Human-Advantage Skills
- Enterprise
Includes 12 months paid work-integrated learning
Am I eligible?
Check yourself against the published requirements
7 questions written specifically for Bachelor of Science in Biotechnology and Biomanufacturing. Every answer is checked against a requirement Forward has published, and the result tells you which page that requirement comes from. Indicative only, the admissions office decides on your full file.
What is the highest qualification you hold or are completing?
Curriculum structure
The same degree, in both pathways
Every Forward programme is published in both pathways: Path One, the term plan of two six-month terms, and Path Two, the block sequence of twelve four-week blocks. Same competencies, same assessments, same award. Toggle to see this programme in each.
Path One term plan shown
Path One · The Term Model
| Code | Course | CU | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| FDC 101 | AI Fluency I: How Intelligent Systems Work Both | 4 | 2-2-0 |
| HLB 110 | General and Cell Biology Performance | 5 | 2-2-4 |
| HLB 111 | General and Organic Chemistry Performance | 5 | 2-2-4 |
| HLB 112 | Mathematics and Data for Life Sciences Objective | 4 | 3-2-0 |
| HLB 113 | Laboratory Practice, Safety and Technique Performance | 4 | 1-0-6 |
| Code | Course | CU | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| FDC 102 | Quantitative Reasoning and Evidence Both | 4 | 2-2-0 |
| HLB 130 | Biochemistry Performance | 5 | 2-2-4 |
| HLB 131 | Microbiology Performance | 5 | 2-2-4 |
| HLB 132 | Analytical Chemistry and Instrumentation Performance | 5 | 2-2-4 |
| HLB 133 | Biostatistics and Experimental Design Both | 3 | 1-2-2 |
| COP 190 | Workplace Immersion (4 weeks, recess term) Performance | 0 | 0-0-0 |
| Code | Course | CU | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| FDC 201 | Ethics, Society and the African Context Both | 4 | 2-2-0 |
| HLB 210 | Molecular Biology and Genetic Engineering Performance | 5 | 2-2-4 |
| HLB 211 | Bioprocess Principles and Kinetics Both | 5 | 3-2-2 |
| HLB 212 | Immunology and Cell Culture Performance | 5 | 2-2-4 |
| HLB 213 | Bioinformatics Foundations Performance | 3 | 1-0-4 |
| Code | Course | CU | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| FDC 202 | Human Advantage: Argument, Writing and Teams Both | 4 | 2-2-0 |
| COP 290 | Co-operative Education Placement I (6 months) Performance | 10 | 0-0-0 |
| HLB 230 | Upstream Processing and Fermentation Practicum Performance | 6 | 1-0-10 |
| HLB 231 | Biosafety, Biosecurity and Bioethics Objective | 2 | 1-2-0 |
| Code | Course | CU | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| FDC 301 | AI Fluency II: Building, Evaluating and Auditing Both | 4 | 2-2-0 |
| HLB 310 | Downstream Processing and Purification Performance | 5 | 2-2-4 |
| HLB 311 | Good Manufacturing Practice and Quality Systems Both | 5 | 3-2-2 |
| HLB 312 | Synthetic Biology and Metabolic Engineering Performance | 4 | 1-2-4 |
| HLB 313 | Process Analytics, Sensors and Control Performance | 4 | 1-2-4 |
| Code | Course | CU | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| FDC 302 | Enterprise, Employability and Financial Literacy Both | 4 | 2-2-0 |
| COP 390 | Co-operative Education Placement II (6 months) Performance | 10 | 0-0-0 |
| HLB 330 | Vaccines and Biologics Manufacturing Both | 6 | 4-2-2 |
| HLB 331 | Regulatory Science for Biological Products Objective | 2 | 1-2-0 |
| Code | Course | CU | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| FDC 401 | AI Fluency III: Domain Deployment, Governance and Assurance Both | 3 | 1-2-0 |
| HLB 410 | Process Validation, Scale Up and Technology Transfer Performance | 5 | 1-0-8 |
| HLB 411 | Industrial Biotechnology and Enzymes Performance | 5 | 2-2-4 |
| HLB 412 | Diagnostics and Reagent Manufacturing Performance | 4 | 1-2-4 |
| HLB 413 | Specialisation Elective I Objective | 4 | 3-2-0 |
| Code | Course | CU | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| FDC 402 | Capability Portfolio and Day One Preparation Both | 3 | 1-2-0 |
| HLB 430 | Biomanufacturing Capstone: Process Development or Plant Project Performance | 9 | 0-2-16 |
| HLB 431 | Agricultural and Environmental Biotechnology Both | 4 | 2-2-2 |
| HLB 432 | Bioeconomy, Costing and Venture Design Both | 5 | 3-2-2 |
| HLB 433 | Professional Practice, Ethics and Regulatory Affairs Objective | 4 | 3-2-0 |
Total credit units: 178
Curriculum source
Forward University Curriculum Compendium
Assessment
Coursework + project + integrated exam
Work-integrated learning
12 months paid co-operative education
Your week at Forward
A typical week on Bachelor of Science in Biotechnology and Biomanufacturing
Path One, the Term Model: your own pace across a six-month term, one live session a week, short flexible lessons, and assessment on demand.
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Curriculum explorer
Drill into the degree, step by step
Choose a study path, then a year, then a term or block, then a course. Credit totals add up as you go, and every course shows what comes before it and what it unlocks.
Step 1, choose a year
Step 2, choose a term
TERM 1 (SIX MONTHS) | FORMERLY YEAR 1, SEMESTER 1
Year 1 · this step is worth 22 CU
Cumulative
22
Programme total
176
22 CU of 176 CU completed by the end of this step (13%)
Step 3, choose a course
Pick a course to see the detail
Credits, assessment, prerequisites and what each course unlocks later.
The twelve Forward capabilities
What this programme develops in you
Every Forward degree develops the same twelve cross-cutting capabilities. The profile below is the level this programme is designed to develop and verify by graduation, on the four-level scale in Part B2 of the Curriculum Compendium. Every claim above Level 2 is verified by someone other than the teaching lecturer.
- C1Intelligent Systems FluencyLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C2Quantitative and Evidential ReasoningLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C3Ethical and Contextual JudgementLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C4Communication and PersuasionLevel 3 of 4, Independent
- C5Disciplinary Mastery CriticalLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C6Technical Production and Craft CriticalLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C7Problem Framing and Systems ThinkingLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C8Collaboration and Multidisciplinary TeamingLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C9Enterprise, Value and Commercial Literacy CriticalLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C10Professional Conduct and Workplace Performance CriticalLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C11Learning to Learn and Adaptive CapacityLevel 3 of 4, Independent
- C12Stewardship and Public ContributionLevel 4 of 4, Leading
Critical capabilities for this programme: Disciplinary Mastery · Technical Production and Craft · Enterprise, Value and Commercial Literacy · Professional Conduct and Workplace Performance. A graduate cannot pass out of this programme below the stated level on any capability marked critical.
Programme Learning Outcomes
What you will be able to do
Each outcome is assessed, and each is tagged with the Forward capabilities it is verified against.
- PLO 1Apply molecular and cell biology to the design of biological production systems.
- PLO 2Operate and optimise upstream fermentation and cell culture processes.
- PLO 3Design and run downstream purification and formulation operations.
- PLO 4Apply good manufacturing practice, validation and quality systems to a regulated process.
- PLO 5Design, execute and analyse experiments including design of experiments optimisation.
- PLO 6Apply biosafety, biosecurity and bioethics governance appropriately.
- PLO 7Build the technical and economic case for a biomanufacturing product or facility.
Why this programme exists
Biomanufacturing has been named a strategic discipline in every major industrial catalogue revision of the past three years, and the pandemic demonstrated with brutal clarity what it costs a continent to manufacture almost none of its own b...
Admission requirements
UACE with two principal passes in Biology and Chemistry, plus UCE with five passes including Mathematics, Biology, Chemistry and English. Alternative pathways: Foundation Year, diploma entry with advanced standing, mature age entry and recognition of prior learning, all governed by Part A5 and Part G. Online applicants additionally complete the compulsory Digital Readiness orientation under Part D6.
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