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UNICAEN | UNIVERSITÉ DE CAEN NORMANDIE | UFR Sciences

Master's degree Microbiology Track Health, Wellbeing and Industry

field(s) of training :

Science, Technology, Health

diploma level :

Grade de Master (Bac+5)

duration of the program :

2 years

location(s) :

Caen

Course overview

Bacteria, virus, parasites, yeast, fungi… You want to learn how to differentiate these types of microorganisms and how they interact with the environment? The master’s degree in Microbiology teaches you the fundamentals and the modern tools used in biology. With its specialisation in Health, Wellbeing and Industry, you will acquire technical skills and in-depth knowledge in various aspects of microbiology (health, cell, molecule, industry and food).

Highlights

This two-year full-time programme is a joint programme of the universities of Caen Normandy and Rouen Normandy. The master’s is research-oriented and benefits from interventions of laboratories and professionals in research in biology. As such, the master’s is supported by the microbiology research units of both universities:

In order to ensure a coherent programme, the master’s curriculum is organised jointly by both universities.

Application requirements

Entry requirements

To enter this master’s, you should 

  • Master fundamentals in 
    • Microbiology (diversity, sterility, growth, identification, adaptation…)
    • Biochemistry (macromolecules, techniques, enzymology)
    • Molecular biology and genetics (regulation, nuclei acids metabolism, genetic engineering…)
    • Cell biology (cell, trafficking and signalling…)
  • Graduate from a degree in Health Sciences, Life Sciences, Earth and Life Sciences

Language proficiency requirements

Minimum French proficiency level required: C1

Specific conditions

If you completed Year 1 of this master's, you will automatically access Year 2.

If you completed Year 1 of another programme in Microbiology or any similiar programme, including an engineering programme, you can also apply to Year 2 of this master's.

Course structure

Courses

  • Take place on site
    • Year 1: Faculty of Sciences of the university of Caen Normandy, located on campus 1 (Caen)
    • Year 2, 1st semester: 6 weeks in the university of Caen Normandie, then 6 weeks in the university of Rouen Normandy
  • Amount to 524 hours in Year 1 and 200 hours in Year 2
  • Are completed by compulsory internships

Course units

Year 1 relies on a core curriculum in fundamentals and methods in biology:

  • Recent techniques in molecular biology
  • Biochemistry
  • Cytometry and imaging
  • Necessary tools to genome analysis
  • Transcriptomes and proteomes
  • Cellular and molecular biology
  • Industrial biology
  • Food biology
  • Molecular pathology of pathogens

Lectures and seminars are completed by many lab classes and projects:

  • Practical project
  • Literature review
  • Technology review
  • Oral presentation
  • Posters
  • Conceive and perform experiments

Year 2 focuses on preparing you to your professional environment, including:

  • Interventions of professional partners to present their fields (private or public organisation)
  • Course units dedicated to knowledge of the professional environment
  • End-of-studies internship (6 months) to put your learning outcome into practice (write, present, analyse, discuss and synthesise data)

Moreover, since English plays a major part in scientific exchanges, you will attend scientific English courses, and some of the resources used in class (scientific articles mostly) will be in English.

Internships and placements

The master’s programme includes two compulsory internships, in a company or a laboratory, in France or abroad:

  • Year 1, 2nd semester of the master’s: 2 months
  • Year 2, 4th semester of the master’s: 6 months

Both internships will be evaluated through detailed written report and an oral presentation of this report.

Coursework and assessment

The course lasts 2 years and is divided in 4 semesters, each comprising several courses units. Examinations are held at the end of each semester and are graded on a scale from 0 to 20, 20 being the best grade. Grade compensation is organized without eliminatory marks and on the basis of the general average obtained in every course unit and over each semester.

The 2 semesters do not compensate each other in year 2.

To successfully complete a semester, you must have an average mark of at least 10 points out of 20. If you have not completed your semester, you can retake the courses units you failed; you do not have to retake the courses in which you have obtained at least 10 points out of 20.

Language

French

Study abroad

You wish to go abroad during your master’s? Thanks to the networks of the laboratories supporting this course, and to the exchange conventions of the university of Caen Normandy (Erasmus, BCI), you can do your internships or studies abroad!

Learning outcome

By the end of this course, you will be able to 

  • Face issues with adequate scientific approach
  • Master recent techniques in molecular biology, biochemistry, cytometry and imaging, as well as the necessary tools to analyse genomes, transcriptomes and proteomes
  • Manage and lead a project
  • Conceive and perform experiments
  • Carry out the critical analysis and synthesis of results, and formulate appropriate advice
  • Master French and European standards (ISO standards, quality approach) 

Further study

Since this master’s is research-oriented, you are encouraged to pursue doctoral studies, depending on your research topic.

Careers

With an expertise in microbiology, you will have many opportunities in:

  • Industrial and natural environments (project management, team leading and facilitating, quality consulting, analysis approach of microbiological hazard)
  • Production
  • Microbiology quality control for food

As such, you will be able to work as:

  • Private or public research executive
  • Research engineer
  • Researcher

Address

Université de Caen Normandie

UFR des Sciences

Esplanade de la Paix · CS 14032 · 14032 Caen Cedex 5

France

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