What are the course objectives for the
English for the Pharmaceutical Industry Course?
It is clear, the world is becoming a global village and therefore, to compete with any success in any industry, it is necessary to be able to be competent in the international language. Like so many industries, It is not uncommon for a pharmaceutical company to research and develop in one country, source from another, manufacture in yet another and offer the final product in yet another.
The objective of our Pharmaceutical course is for the participant to be able to communicate their thoughts effectively in all the areas relevant to their profession, whether that be in the research area or the manufacturing area. We design our courses to develop the communicative performance of people working in the Pharmaceutical Industry in an international context. This includes anyone involved in the development, production, marketing and/or distribution of pharmaceuticals. It is also intended to enable participants to use pharmaceutical and medical terminology with appropriateness in linguistic context and style.
English for Pharmacists: Communication Skills
Over the last couple of years we have had chemists, technicians, writers, researchers and pharma representatives attend our courses.
We help to develop the language and competency of each individual in all the various areas necessary to fulfil their role. We know that this could be marking, packing, export, sales and management, advertising or a range of other areas. We know each participant on our Pharmaceuticals course will have different abilities and competencies, and therefore we tailor our courses to their specific needs and abilities.
We are always mindful that while a student may be fluent in their communicative English, the people they are dealing with may not be quite so competent, which is where it is important to have a certain adaptability in language usage. It may be necessary to give or understand instructions or guidelines or advice, it may be necessary to present this information to an audience of mixed ability and level of seniority. Our courses address all of these areas and help our participants in their abilities across all the relevant areas to their job.
As well as formal classroom teaching to learn English, study activities include role-play, case studies and simulations, video and audio recorded simulations.
We tailor our course for people like Beate who recently attended one of our courses:
“Well, I basically coordinate and manage the team to successfully launch and develop the drug. So, a lot of my work revolves around people management and the day to day running of the department, ensuring that we are adhering to the SOPs, the standard operating procedures. I also liaise with our subsidiaries in other parts of the world by email or teleconference to share best practice and discuss problems and so on.” – Beate
The focus of the course is on practical & effective business English for professionals and communication skills may include:
- Meetings and Teleconferencing.
- Negotiations – coming to an agreement with other colleagues or customers.
- Presenting Information in formal and informal situations.
- Dealing with Numerical Data.
- Telephoning.
- Socialising and Networking.
- E-mail, Letter and Report Writing.
- Cross-cultural awareness.
Pharmacy English for Pharmacists: Lexical Content
Subject to needs analysis of the participant’s requirements, the course may include vocabulary extension in the following areas:
- Description of pharmaceuticals and how they act
- Drugs, medicines and vaccines
- Medical symptoms, treatments and possible side effects
- The human body / The development, testing & international patenting of new pharmaceuticals
- Alternative and complementary therapies
- Health and Wellness / Nutrition
- Related products; e.g. baby and infant care
- Marketing
- Research and Development.
Special emphasis is placed on the relevant vocabulary, register and grammatical structures that are used in this field and the client is given the opportunity to practice using the language that he or she has acquired by means of seminars, group sessions and communicative practice activities. We focus specifically on the communicative skills of the client with the aim of helping them become more effective in the global market place.
English lessons for the Pharmaceutical Industry: A Case Study
We recently had Beate, head of R and DE in a large German Pharmaceutical company. Click here to read our interview.
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Fact Check
Minimum age: 25 Average age: 40
Maximum class size: 1 to 4 (depending on course)
25 hours (60 minutes) per week, plus 5-10 hours self-access
Options for an extra 5 hours
Start any Monday
Minimum 1 week
All levels for 1:1 classes. Group classes above level A2 -
Duration / Timetable / Programme
Course duration can be for between 1 and 4+ weeks (2 weeks is the average). The programme is highly intensive and includes 25 contact hours plus 5 to 10 self-access study hours plus 7.5 hours social English over optional teacher accompanied lunch per week plus optional evening social activities (such as restaurants, guided tours, live music, cultural events). We would recommend that most students do a combination course: 1:1 in the morning, giving the students the opportunity to not only study English but work on individual and specialised needs necessary for professional communication; mini group of maximum 4 people the afternoon, focusing on professional communication in an international context with students of different nationalities and cultures.
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Sample timetable
8:30 - 9:15 Optional guided self-study.
9:15 - 10:30 Period 1 with Morning Tutor (1:1)
10:30 - 10:45 Morning Coffee Break
10:45 - 12:00 Period 2 with Morning Tutor (1:1)
12:00 - 13:15 Lunch with teacher/s and fellow students (optional)
13:15 - 14:30 Period 3 with Afternoon Tutor (mini-group – max 4 participants)
14:30 - 14:45 Afternoon Coffee Break
14:45 - 16:00 Period 4 with Afternoon Tutor (mini-group – max 4 participants)
16:00 - 17:30 Optional Self-Access Study
Evening Social Activity Programme (optional)
Accommodation
An Executive homestay will maximise your exposure to native speakers while learning about the culture in England, and provides an opportunity to network and build long-term friendships. Offering high levels of comfort and convenience; most of our homestays are current or retired professionals.
Social Programme
The Executive Social Programme and its tutor accompanied lunch system, provide opportunities to socialise in English and network with professionals from all over the world. And the evening? The evening social programme is full and varied. It may include evening meals, nights out, cultural events or sports!