Mammalian Cell Culture Technology Course Kicks Off BPAT Series

For the third-consecutive year, Keck Graduate Institute (KGI) will offer its Bioprocessing Professionals Advancement Training (BPAT) program, a series of courses designed for bioprocessing industry professionals who wish to upgrade their skills and remain current with relevant developments in technology and information.

Hosted at KGI in Claremont, CA, BPAT courses are stand-alone, 2.5-day workshops focusing on specific topics that include: Mammalian Cell Culture Technology, CMC Regulatory Affairs and Quality, Quality-By-Design for Biopharmaceuticals, Viral Safety in Biomanufacturing, Bulk API: Freeze-Thaw Operations, Process Column Chromatography, Processing of High Viscosity Formulations, and Microbial Fermentation Technology.

“BPAT courses are one component of a portfolio of activities that we have that are intended to create network and collaboration between KGI and the industry,” said Parviz Shamlou, George B. and Joy Rathmann Professor and director of KGI’s Amgen Bioprocessing Center. “All of the courses are led by senior experts in the field, people who have been practicing the subject matter for 20 to 30 years.”

The courses traditionally integrate lectures and projects in a classroom setting with access to lab-scale work based on a participant’s experience and training needs.

“BPAT is a dynamic program that is invaluable for educating professionals within all walks of the bioprocess industry,” said former BPAT participant Vince Lam, an application specialist at Fermentation Technologies, Sartorius, Inc. “The courses provide a unique platform for individuals to share ideas and network with peers coming from all areas of the biotech community.”

The courses are open to any bioprocessing industry professional, with many coming from companies that have included Amgen; Boehringer Ingelheim, Inc.; Baxalta; BioMarin Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; Gilead Sciences; Genentech; Regeneron; Sanofi Pasteur; and Sartorius-Stedim.

Participating in the BPAT courses also allow individuals the opportunity to receive a master’s degree. “Industry professionals can take courses and get a certificate,” Shamlou said. “By choosing to do a master’s program, they may be able to accumulate enough courses for half of a degree.”

Likewise, industry professionals who already have a master’s degree can elect to take BPAT courses towards completion of a PhD. This program fills the gap between conventional academic and industry research, and is fully funded by the participant’s employer.

“The master’s and PhD options are such an additional value of the BPAT program,” Shamlou said. “Those who work in the industry can further their career and education without leaving their company.”

The first course of the 2017-2018 program, Mammalian Cell Culture (MCC) Technology, is scheduled for July 12-14. The second, CMC Regulatory Affairs and Quality, is slated for August 28-30. VISION, a special executive training leadership program, kicks off October 4-6, while Quality-By-Design for Biopharmaceuticals is scheduled for October 30 through November 1.

For more information about BPAT courses and to register, visit kgi.edu/bioprocessing/bpat or email Autumn_Emerson@kgi.edu.