There is a shortage of workers in the Biopharmaceutical Industry. The specific areas where qualified professionals are needed most are in advanced manufacturing, cell and gene therapies, and combination products.

Antonio Moreira, Ph.D. Vice Provost for Academic Affairs at UMBC brought awareness to this current shortage at the ISPE Biotech Manufacturing virtual conference. It is estimated that 20,000 new workers will be needed in the next five to 10 years in gene and cell therapies and continuous manufacturing.

“Probably the most important thing about the master’s program is the fact that it is career-oriented.” Thejus Chakravarthy ’05 M.A. ISD.

During this interview, Chakravarthy shared his UMBC experience with us and how earning his master’s gave him a competitive edge.

We invite you to listen in to this episode of UMBC's Mic’d Up with Dr. Greg Williams, graduate program director for UMBC’s Learning and Performance Technology graduate programs, formerly known as ISD.

In this episode, we hear from Dr. Williams about the recent name change from ISD to Learning and Performance Technology and why it was made. We also talked with him about the portfolio-based nature of the program and how students benefit from this applied method of instruction. Additionally, we talked about the industry itself and why now is a great time to be in the Instructional Systems Development field.

UMBC sits at the forefront of scientific advancements, illustrated poignantly by a team led by UMBC’s Dipanjan Pan and their recent development of an experimental diagnostic test to rapidly detect the novel coronavirus causing COVID-19.

In today’s industry news, we take a look at the history of scientific advancements with the first vaccine. We also delve into concepts of computer versus brain, habits worth keeping, and the fascinating world of bumblebees and their effect on flowering plants.