M-TRAM Coursework

The Core Curriculum is focused on translational medicine, clinical study design, applied medicine and drug development. The courses are taught by Stanford's world-class faculty experts and technology leaders across schools and departments, among them Pediatrics, Radiology, Oncology, Bioengineering, and Epidemilogy and Public Health. 

Course Overview

This comprehensive three-quarter course provides an in-depth exploration of the entire drug development process, from initial discovery research to successful commercialization. Students will gain expertise in the key stages of drug development, including drug discovery, clinical trials, regulatory affairs, and market launch. The course is designed to equip students with the skills and knowledge needed to address real-world problems in drug development through a multidisciplinary approach, featuring renowned Stanford faculty and guest speakers from the biotech and pharmaceutical industries.

Fall quarter class explores the fundamental processes and methodologies of drug discovery in this comprehensive course designed for aspiring pharmaceutical researchers and industry professionals. Led by renowned experts from Stanford University and industry, participants will delve into key topics such as early drug discovery, target identification, high throughput screening, medicinal chemistry, and preclinical pharmacokinetics. Gain practical insights into drug repurposing, in silico methods, and preclinical disease models essential for optimizing therapeutic development. Students will deepen their understanding of the drug discovery pipeline and its critical stages.

Topics Covered

Fall Quarter: Drug Discovery

Date

 Topic

Instructor (s)

September 27

Introduction to Early Drug Discovery

Dean Felsher, Stanford

October 4

Target Discovery and Identification

Nathanael Gray, Stanford

October 11

Hit Identification and High Throughput Screening

Bruce Koch, Stanford

October 18

Drug Repurposing and Repositioning

Steve Corsello, Stanford

October 25

Medicinal Chemistry and Lead Optimization

Mark Smith, Stanford

November 1

Antibody Engineering for Therapeutics

Adrian Hugenmatter, Stanford

November 8

In Silico Methods for Drug Discovery

Russ Altman, Stanford

November 15

Target Validation

Nathanael Gray, Stanford

November 22

Preclinical Development and requirements for  IND

Bill Lundberg, Merus

December 6

Preclinical Disease Models

Dean Felsher, Stanford

December 13

Preclinical Pharmacokinetics and Toxicology

Dinah Misner, Aligos Therapeutics

 

Course Directors

Dean Felsher, MD, PhD

Professor, Medicine (Oncology)
M-TRAM Program Director

Joanna Liliental, PhD

M-TRAM Executive Director
TRAM, Associate Director

 

Course Instructors

Russ Altman, MD, PhD

Director, SPADA
Stanford Predictives & Diagnostics
Accelerator Associate Director,
Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence Institute
Stanford Medicine

Steve Corsello, MD

Assistant Professor of Medicine
Division of Oncology
Stanford Medicine

Dean Felsher, MD, PhD

Professor, Medicine (Oncology)
M-TRAM Program Director

Nathanael Gray, PhD

Co-Director, Cancer Drug Discovery
Co-Leader of the Cancer Therapeutics Research Program
Program Leader for Small Molecule Drug Discovery
Innovative Medicines Accelerator (IMA)
Stanford Medicine

Adrian Hugenmatter, PhD

Director off Protein Engineering
Sarafan ChEM-H
Stanford Medicine

Bruce Koch, PhD

Head, High Throughput Screening
Knowledge Center (HTSKC)
Co-lead, IMA HTS Module
Stanford Medicine

Bill Lundberg, MD

President and CEO
Merus NV

Dinah Misner, PhD

Vice President
Aligos Therapeutics

Mark Smith, PhD

Head of Medicinal Chemistry
Sarafan ChEM-H
Stanford University

Project-Based, Mentored Learning

Students work on a mentored capstone project (TRIP: Translational Research Individual Project) from the second through the fourth quarters. Students test a hypothesis, develop an experimental plan, interpret results, understand the future research plan, and, upon completion, provide a short presentation to the leadership committee and other students and also write a report. For a full description of the TRIP capstone project, click here.

Students will give a 10- to 15-minute project update presentation at the end of each quarter. The assessment will focus on their ability to integrate knowledge and skills across target discovery, clinical trials, and commercialization/marketing.

Hands-On Experience and Skills

Experiential learning is a central part of the M-TRAM curriculum. Students receive practical experience in basic research and clinical medicine, as well as hands-on technology training in genomics, proteomics, cell-based assays, drug-screening, and computational biology, as part of the Translational Research and Applied Medicine (MED121) course taught by Dean Felsher and Joanna Liliental, members of the M-TRAM Executive Committee.

In addition, MTRAM has received substantial support from Stanford c-Sharp to provide students with multi-facility immersive, hands-on learning via the Translational Research Methods Course (MED212). Over the course of three quarters, students work on cell-based methods in translational research, translational proteomics, and translational genomics.

And finally, M-TRAM students complete a summer industry internship designed to gain hands-on drug development experience.

Applications portal   

for the 2025/2026 academic year

is now open

APPLY HERE


Questions? Contact us!
mtramstudies@stanford.edu

Important Dates

June 1-Oct. 9, 2024

  • Applications are being accepted for the 2025/26 Knight Hennessy Scholarship (KHS)
  • Apply here; deadline: Oct. 9, 2024
  • KHS application is SEPARATE from the M-TRAM application: you must apply to both to be considered for the scholarship
  • More info about KHS


Sept. 2024-Jan. 2025
M-TRAM applications accepted for 2025/26

Dec.2, 2024 
M-TRAM info session webinar for prospective students 

Jan. 31, 2025
Applications due

April - May 2025
Admission decisions

May 29, 2025
M-TRAM research symposium and in-person New Students Orientation

Sept. 22, 2025
First day of classes at Stanford (M-TRAM program starts)

 

Interested in Becoming an M-TRAM Industry Partner?

We welcome inquiries from biotechnology, pharmaceutical and other health care organizations interested in learning about opportunities to partner with M-TRAM: 

mtramstudies@stanford.edu