Program overview
The Chinese Pharmaceutical Engineering program is an interdisciplinary field under the engineering category, focusing on how to process Chinese medicinal materials into convenient dosage forms such as granules, capsules, and injections using modern scientific methods. You'll not only learn the basics of Chinese materia medica (like herb identification and medicinal properties theory), but also engineering courses such as chemistry, pharmaceutical engineering, pharmaceutics, and pharmacology. Core courses include: Chemistry of Chinese Materia Medica, Pharmaceutics of Chinese Medicine, Processing of Chinese Materia Medica, Pharmaceutical Equipment and Process Design, and Drug Quality Management. There are many lab sessions where you'll operate extraction, concentration, drying, and granulation processes, and use analytical instruments like HPLC and mass spectrometry. This program suits students interested in chemistry and biology, with strong hands-on skills and a desire to carry forward traditional Chinese medicine culture. Many Chinese universities of Chinese medicine offer this program, such as Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, and Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, with advanced lab equipment and close ties to pharmaceutical companies, giving you exposure to real R&D and production scenarios.