Curriculum
In this dual MSc, students are required to complete a separate curriculum for both programs, each leading to a distinct diploma.
A co-supervised thesis/research project and transferable course credits link the two programs.
The courses are organized in semesters, are held on a weekly basis and are conducted in English. The teaching of the courses is carried out through a combination of face-to-face, synchronous and asynchronous distance learning.
To obtain the MSc degree in Synthetic Biology from the University of Thessaly, students must follow and successfully complete the following study program, which comprises 120 ECTS.
Mobility requirements: Τhe minimum residency requirement for a dual degree master’s student is two full-time terms at McGill University and one full-time term at University of Thessaly. Mobility to the partner University can be used for attending courses or undertaking thesis work.
Semester 1
Semester 1 Total ECTS: 30
Semester 2
| Course title (compulsory) | ECTS |
| Protein & RNA Engineering | 6 |
| Metabolic and BioprocessEngineering | 6 |
| Applied Machine Learning and AI for Synthetic Biology | 6 |
Electives
Each elective course has 4 ECTS credits, and students select 3 electives to complete the required 12 ECTS. Elective topics are:
- Green Biotechnology
- Blue Biotechnology
- White Biotechnology
- Yellow biotechnology
- Plant Metabolic Engineering
- Computational Protein Design
- Metagenomics
- Synthetic RNA Therapeutics and Ribodiagnostics
- Synthetic Microbial Ecology
- Cell-free Synbio Systems
- From Lab to Industry: Scale-up Considerations
- Synthetic Biology in Gene Therapy and Vaccines
Semester 2 Total ECTS: 30
3rd and 4th Semester
- Co-supervised Thesis 60 ECTS
To obtain the MSc degree in Synthetic Biology from the McGill University, students must follow and successfully complete the following study program, which comprises 45 credits, according to the Canadian credit system.
Students admitted to the University of Thessaly are awarded 33 transfer credits by McGill University, as detailed below, based on transferable coursework and thesis credits.
| Course title McGill University | Transfer Credits | Course title University of Thessaly |
| Synthetic Biology | 3 | Foundations of Synthetic Biology |
| Bioinformatics for Genomics | 3 | Introduction to Computational/ Quantitative Synthetic Biology |
| Metabolic Engineering | 3 | Metabolic and Bioprocess Engineering |
| Co-supervised Thesis | 24 | Co-supervised Thesis |
| TOTAL | 33 |
Therefore, students will be required to take the following courses offered by the McGill University in order to complete the remaining 12 credits. These courses may be taken either while they are enrolled at the University of Thessaly or after they transfer to McGill.
| Course title McGill University | McGill credits |
| Seminars in Biological & Biomedical Engineering | 3 |
| Cell and Tissue Engineering | 3 |
| Biomanufacturing for RNA Biologics | 3 |
| Artificial Cells | 3 |
Academic Timetable
The educational work of each academic year at the University of Thessaly is structured into two semesters of study, the winter and the spring. The educational work of each academic year at McGill University is structured into three semesters of study, the autumn (Fall), the winter (Winter) and the summer (Summer). The courses are held during the winter/autumn and the winter/spring semesters, specifically from September 1st to April 30th of each year.