Master of Molecular Medicine

This is probably the most intense course of Year 1, with the exposure of the students to the world of microorganisms and their interaction and effects on human physiology and pathology. Taking advantage of NU SOM Faculty members with expertise in infectious diseases, lectures are delivered with focus on major infectious diseases. Through a challenging series of in-class presentations, students are introduced to the comprehension of the fine details of protein-protein interactions and encouraged to refine their oral communication skills. Specific and general feedback is given to students during and after their presentation. During the course, students have to prepare and deliver a workshop on influenza prior to the corresponding lecture delivered by the Course Lead (the lecture is modulated complementarily to the aspects covered by the students). The workshop is an innovative experimental teaching and learning format. Remote guest lectures are delivered by prominent scientists in the field of infectious diseases, a format highly appreciated by the students.

The course focuses on the molecular mechanisms of cancer initiation and progression, cell signaling and mechanisms of metastasis.

The course examines and discusses the application of molecular genetics in the understanding of human health and diseases. The application of this genetics knowledge to develop interventions and new therapies to treat and prevent diseases is also discussed. This course is of primary importance as it presents connections to different MMM courses. The course utilized the classical teaching approaches, including lectures, discussions, quizzes and student presentations.

This course introduces the major concepts of modern statistics as applied to a broad range of problems in the field of Medicine. The Inferential Biostatistics course is adopted from the MPH course for the MMM, with MMM students joining MPH students.

Entrepreneurship represents one of the key business disciplines. The Entrepreneurship course is a diverse component of the MMM as it provides students a flavor of what it takes to enter business with an enterprise (e.g., a startup company) related to biomedicine. The course includes a simulation which helps the students to gain immersive experience with entrepreneurship.

The Biocomputing course is an intense hands-on (Computer Lab) short course which exposes students to several bioinformatics tools in order to familiarize them with handling nucleotide and amino acid sequences and protein 3D structures. Students can understand, by hands-on in silico experience, the architecture of proteins and have a hint on the molecular basis of disease, the hardcore of the MMM. In the last session students present different protein-related scenarios in small group activity, thus implementing the experience and knowledge acquired in a perfect learning outcome format for this course.

The course is conceptualized as an exercise in critical analysis of ongoing molecular research in the area of Molecular Medicine (with a focus on cell and molecular biology approaches) and is delivered in a Journal Club format. Contemporary research publications are covered through pre-class readings (individual and collaborative reading assignments) and critical discussion of the selected scientific literature.

This course allows students to acquire in-depth knowledge of the molecular mechanisms involved in the interactions of cells of the immune system. In order to develop new treatments it is essential to have a thorough knowledge of the molecular mechanism leading to the different forms of inflammation. The molecular mechanisms involved in the development and/or progression of chronic inflammatory diseases are analyzed and possible new treatments discussed. Up-to-date research information is used throughout the course. Paper discussions, student presentations and essays encourage inquiry-based learning. The course is a blended online course with more concise information and a focus on novel immunotherapies.

Bench-to-bedside in pharmaceutical research refers to the process of translating basic science discoveries into clinical applications. It is a complex process which begins with basic observations in the laboratory and with preclinical studies and ends with success or failure in clinical trials. The goal of the course is to provide a broad overview of topics related to drug development and clinical trials. Emphasis on understanding clinical trial methods, statistics used in clinical trials and the connection of clinical research to drug marketing are all areas considered valuable.

This course provides information on the therapeutic properties of natural products and their mechanisms of action, including drug repurposing program. Students are engaged in reading current research papers during the course and presentations.

Understanding the molecular aspects and getting hands-on experience in modern biomedical methods is a critical element in the education of a new generation of research scientists. Since this is a practical laboratory-based course, the goal is to introduce students to the modern molecular biological techniques used in the field of biomedicine, and to help obtain laboratory skills and knowledge. The preparation for this course involves detailed planning of the experiments, most of which are real life, complex biomedical experiments performed for the first time for this class. Each experiment requires a specific set of reagents and equipment (purchased/prepared in advance) and follows a dedicated protocol. While the laboratory manual contains all the necessary information for class preparation, additional reading materials are provided, such as research articles as well as web based resources. The course is also supplemented with the short lecture/discussion component, related to the laboratory exercises.

The course is focused on theoretical concepts of bioethics in biomedical research and the application of these concepts in research, innovations and future perspectives.

Neurological disorders remain among the most devastating diseases affecting mankind for several reasons, including the unavailability of effective treatment. In the last decades, molecular genetics approaches have greatly advanced our understanding of the pathological processes operating in many of these diseases. The main aspect of the course is to demonstrate how defects at cellular and molecular levels will give rise to the features of the disorders, as we know them from clinical presentation. The disorders that will be covered in this course include inherited and acquired conditions affecting neurons as well as glial cells. The course covers the most recent advances in diagnosing and treating the diseases, as well as the research required to further deepen our understanding of the underlying molecular mechanisms. The grant writing exercise within the course is a highly valuable activity, significantly forging MMM students scientific mindset.

This course exposes students to the power of recombinant DNA technology and sheds light on how humanity can act to continuously set new paradigms for the pharmaceutical world. Biologicals largely dominate the drug market nowadays, a phenomenon barely detectable 15 years ago. Protein drugs, gene therapy, vaccine development and synthetic biology are the arms of the therapeutic and prophylactic intervention based on genetic engineering. Students enjoy this memorization-free course (there are no exams in this course) to free their minds and focus on the most challenging essay of the MMM, the presentation (at the end of the course) of a novel therapeutic/preventative/diagnostic strategy based on their creativity. This essay incorporates most learning processes of the MMM, such as grant writing, drug development, paper review and criticism, presentation skills and much more. Given the difficulty the students encounter in formulating the final essay, intermediate formative sessions are dedicated to the discussion of the progress made in developing the essay and direct the students on a scientifically sound basis. An advanced level therapeutic genetic engineering paper presentation is another active component of the course. Lectures by the Course Lead and colleagues, including remote guest lectures given by prominent scientists on their work on therapeutic genetic engineering, serve to expose students to state of the art molecular medicine and illuminate their creativity.

The MMM Master Research Project is a laboratory-based semester (Spring of Year 2) that ends in close proximity to MMM graduation. Students-Projects (PIs) pairing is organized in Spring of Year 1. Project reagent lists are provided to NU SOM administration by the end of Year 1 Spring, in order to warrant sufficient time for the reagents to go through the lengthy and complex NU procurement and have the necessary material in place at least at the time of start (Spring of Year 2). Despite the usual enormous difficulties inherent to procurement, and thanks to a coordinated effort from MMM PI Faculty, MMM Program Director and NU SOM Administration, students manage to have their reagents in place at the latest in January of Year 2. This educational session is a very valuable part of the MMM, it introduces students to real life biomedical research organization, troubleshooting, conduct and interpretation of results. Supervised by their respective PIs, students are engaged in all aspects of a research project planning, from the assembly of the necessary reagent list and ordering to the acquaintance with a laboratory research life and organization. Thesis writing starts early with some portions (Introduction and Aims definitive and Bibliography and Methods partially completed) to be ready before the end of Fall semester of Year 2 (with a concomitant submission of this part to ensure proper timing and MMM Director monitoring of the Thesis), in order to free more time for students to work in the lab at time of research semester (Spring of Year 2). All the complex steps leading to the successful conduct of the Master Research Projects is coordinated by the MMM Director through a number of check points: the MMM Program Committee, the NU SOM Teaching and Learning Committee and constant refinements operated by the MMM Director in concert with the Head of the Biomedical Department & Vice Dean for Research and Graduate Studies, NU SOM Administration staff and NU SOM Dean. Students’ research is been supported by Lab Meetings, in which all MMM students and PIs (and any other interested NU SOM Faculty) could gather together to discuss ideas, experimental methods, planning and results, taking advantage of different research experiences by various NU SOM Faculty to refine students’ projects and face troubleshooting more efficiently. Students enjoy and benefit enormously from this educational experience. During this period (Spring of Year 2), the MMM Director gradually increases the mentoring of all students for their perspective career development (a process the starts from Year 1). Students are then ready to graduate and enter the job market. The MMM is a good example of the educational process for the formation of a scientific mindset, with MMM graduates aligned to state-of-the-art knowledge of molecular medicine, a ~100% employment with a >10% entering highly competitive PhD programs abroad.

Be sure to read the instructions about the application procedure given in your personal account.

• In the «My Application Forms» section of your Personal account, open the link for Step 1. Fill out the Application Form that includes a Consent form for personal data processing. Make sure you have entered all the required information in the correct manner and press the "Upload" button.
• Afterwards, in the same section of your Personal account, proceed to Step 2 and upload the required documents. The format of the required documents is specified in the Personal account.
• Upload a photo (3x4) for documents to the «Profile» section in your Personal account.

After submitting the online application, applicants will not be able to make changes to the documents uploaded in Step 2.

• Send the electronic results of valid IELTS/TOEFL/GRE/GMAT certificates via the Test Administrator directly to NU;
• Upload a scanned copy of the IELTS/TOEFL certificate to the "Upload IELTS/TOEFL results" section of your Personal account and indicate its unique number. Applicants can submit any number of certificates for the competition, but the last certificate uploaded to the Personal account will be considered.
• Upload a scanned copy of the GRE/GMAT certificate in the "My Application Forms" section (Step 2) when submitting the required documents (if available or as required by the program).

• an academic degree was earned in a country where English is the language of official communication and academic instruction;
• an undergraduate and/or graduate degree was earned in a program which was officially taught in English;
• if an applicant is a graduate of NU.

Go to the www.admissions.nu.edu.kz portal and press the «Sign up» button and fill out the required information in English. Please select the «Masters» program when choosing the academic level.

After completing the application, confirm it by clicking on the link sent to your email.

Be sure to read the instructions about the application procedure given in your personal account.

1. In the «My Application Forms» section of your personal account, open the link for Step 1. Fill out the application form that includes a consent form for personal data processing. Make sure you have entered all the required information in the correct manner and press the «Upload» button.
2. Afterwards, in the same section of your personal account, proceed to Step 2 and upload the required documents. The format of the required documents is specified in the personal account.
3. Upload a photo (3*4) for documents to the «Profile» section in your personal account.

Please note if you would like to be considered on a full tuition fee-paying basis

1. only and select 'Yes' in the Application from, you will not be considered for any types of Grants.

To finalize the application process, please click on the "PAY AND SUBMIT APPLICATION" button in your personal account under the "My Application Forms" section. The application fee shall be paid online through the payment options available in the personal account. The use of other payment methods for the application fee is not acceptable.

Applicants can apply for no more than two master's / PhD programs at NU. In case of admission to both programs, the applicant must choose only one.

The application fee is 15 000 tenge. The application fee is increased 3 times when paid within the last two weeks before the first approved deadline and during the extension period for accepting applications for participation in the admission process (except for the Graduate School of Business). The application fee is non-refundable, irrespective of the application outcome or payment errors.

After submitting the online application, an applicant will not be able to make changes in the actions described in Step 2.

In order to provide IELTS/TOEFL/GRE/GMAT certificates, applicants should fulfill the following requirements:

• Send the electronic results of valid IELTS/TOEFL/GRE/GMAT certificate directly to NU via the test administrator;
• Upload a scanned copy of the IELTS/TOEFL certificate to the «Upload IELTS/TOEFL results» section of a personal account and indicate its unique number. Applicants can submit any number of certificates for the competition, but the last certificate uploaded to the personal account will be considered.
• Upload a scanned copy of the GRE/GMAT certificate in the «My Application Forms» section (Step 2) when uploading the required documents (if available or as required by the program).

Please pay attention to important information regarding the codes for providing test results through the test administrator:

Code for IELTS: NU, Admissions Department

Code for TOEFL iBT: 6762

Code for GRE: 6496

Code for GMAT: H6m-R7-93

Please note that issuance and submission of IELTS/TOEFL/GRE/GMAT results in the electronic database of NU is not within the competence of the University. You should independently contact the test administrator (test center) and make sure that your certificate has been sent. Please note that this action takes at least 7-10 working days. If the certificate is received after the deadline specified by the Admissions Department, results will not be considered in the competition

All certificates provided must be valid at the time of submission of the application.

Detailed instructions on the provision of IELTS/TOEFL certificates is available in the applicant's personal account. IELTS Online, TOEFL iBT Home Edition and TOEFL PDT results are not considered in the competition and selection process.

Applicants, at the discretion of the Admissions Committee, can be exempted from submitting the language proficiency test report in one of the following documented cases:

• an academic degree was earned in a country with English as the language of official communication and academic instruction;
• an undergraduate and/or graduate degree was earned in a program which was officially taught in English;
• if an applicant is a graduate of NU.

After submission of the online Application Form, an automatic email notification will be sent to your referees with a request to submit a recommendation letter to NU in accordance with the provided online form. Detailed Instruction on providing recommendation letters is available in the Personal account.

Check your email for notifications from NU and your Personal account to stay informed about the status of your application. ​​Please keep in mind that sometimes letters from the University may go to the spam box.

Participate in the interview with the Admissions Committee in case of being invited. Interviews are conducted in English.

If you experience any difficulties with the registration or online application, please contact info_admissions@nu.edu.kz. Refer to your IIN and/or Applicant ID while sending us your requests.