Principles and Practice of Drug Development
Last updated 03/11/2026
PPDD is returning for the Fall 2026 semester! Please join us for another semester of exciting learning inside and outside of the classroom Wednesdays 3-6pm in MIT room 4-237.
PPDD is a joint MIT-Harvard course listed in multiple departments and programs. It is primarily designed for graduate students (including MD and MBA students) but undergraduates are welcome. Harvard students should note that the class schedule follows the MIT academic calendar with the the first class on 9/9/2026 and the last class on 12/9/2026. This is offset by one week from the Harvard Calendar.
Course Directors: Stan N. Finkelstein and Peter K. Sorger
Course Numbers: BCMP230/ 7.547J/ 15.136J/ 10.547J/ HST.920J/ IDS.620J. We also welcome students from outside of Harvard or MIT.
This is the official site for the course and for submitting reports and other materials. Because we have students from multiple schools, we do not use Canvas (which is institution-specific).
PPDD was one of the earliest courses focused on the practice of contemporary drug discovery. It has been updated repeatedly and is thoroughly revamped for the 2020 academic year. PPDD is taught by MIT and Harvard Faculty and by guest experts from the pharma and biotech industries, finance, and government agencies. The course emphasizes a high level of student participation.
Course Founding Directors: Thomas J. Allen, Charles L. Cooney, G. K. Raju, Anthony Sinskey
PPDD is suitable for individuals with a wide variety of backgrounds and interests from biology to engineering, business and medicine. We welcome both graduates and undergraduate students. You should expect some of the materials to be very familiar and others to be entirely foreign (e.g. finance if you are medical student). This replicates real world work environments and we expect to students with complementary skills to work together in interdisciplinary teams.
Course Description. Introduction to and critical assessment of the concepts, technologies and practical challenges of developing a new medicine and bringing it to market. Pharmacology fundamentals, preclinical drug discovery, clinical trials, manufacturing and regulatory issues, as well as financing and marketing are discussed for small molecule, biologic and cellular therapies. Faculty from MIT, Harvard and industry present introductory and topic-specific lectures (case studies) and students engage in weekly news updates and collaborative research projects. The course uses a medical, economic and societal issues associated with drug development now and in the future.
Wednesdays 3-6pm. MIT room 4-237.
Prerequisite: Instructor permission. No particular course is required. Knowledge of basic biology, biomedicine or bioengineering, and familiarity with basic economic principles will be helpful but not necessary for the course.
Note on class participation: The interactive component of this course is established through insightful questions and critical thinking of students taking the course. It is therefore critical that you prepare for class and are ready to ask insightful questions on the topic of each session. Questions are encouraged throughout the session and essential in the Q&A part of each class. Because class participation is a key component in determining the final grade, Harvard students may not take this class on an overlapping time with other in-person classes. There is no remote option.
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