Europe’s biotech industry is experiencing an expansion phase that has led to an increasing need for additional employees in Medicon Valley, a top life science hub in Europe. Medicon Valley is located in eastern Denmark and southern Sweden and comprises 1,150 life science companies that employ approximately 65,600 people. A report recently published by the Medicon Valley Alliance states that more than 12,000 new regional positions have been established over the past five years (2019–2022).
Danish biotech companies acknowledge the significance of lifelong learning to maintain their international competitiveness, and to facilitate this, the Technical University of Denmark (DTU) provides a unique ongoing education initiative called Biotech Lifelong Learning (BLL). BLL aims to enhance the knowledge and expertise of both newcomers and experienced professionals in industrial biotechnology production and the biopharmaceutical industry, thereby contributing to their future skill set.
Novo Nordisk, Fujifilm Diosynth Biotechnologies, LEO Pharma, Chr. Hansen, and AGC Biologics, among other major biotech companies in Medicon Valley, are actively engaged in the DTU Biotech Lifelong Learning courses. Additionally, DTU offers customized courses to meet specific needs of individual companies.
Among BLL courses, the AIM-Bio project is funding eight continuing education courses that will be delivered at DTU in 2023. Each course is developed through a strong collaboration between experts from NC State’s Biomanufacturing Training and Education Center (BTEC), DTU Bioengineering, and the DTU Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering.
The following AIM-Bio professional development courses will be offered in March–May 2023:
- Upstream Process Development
- Automation and Control of Yeast Fermentation
- Introduction to Chemical Modification of Protein Therapeutics
In 2023, DTU will deliver a total of 22 Biotech Lifelong courses at a doctoral and professional level. For more information, please visit the DTU Biotech Lifelong Learning website and LinkedIn page.