Regenerative Medicine and Entrepreneurship, MS

Tracey L. Bonfield, PhD D(ABMLI), Director of the RGME Curriculum
Associate Professor, Department of Genetics and Genome Sciences, School of Medicine
Assistant Professor, National Center for Regenerative Medicine, School of Medicine
Assistant Professor, Department of Pediatrics, School of Medicine
Assistant Professor, Department of Pathology, School of Medicine
tracey.bonfield@case.edu

Degree: Master of Science (MS)
Field of Study: Regenerative Medicine and Entrepreneurship

Program Overview

The Regenerative Medicine and Entrepreneurship (RGME) program is the first two-year master's level program in Ohio focused on Regenerative Medicine and Entrepreneurship. Students enrolled in the RGME program will have access to cutting-edge clinical and research facilities, clinical translation and commercial enterprises along with small biotechnology companies within the network of the National Center for Regenerative Medicine (NCRM). Program faculty and guest lecturers are leaders in the field of regenerative medicine, cell-based therapy, business strategies, intellectual property, clinical translation and manufacturing from a nationally ranked, medical research powerhouses including Case Western Reserve University, the Veale Institute for Entrepreneurship, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland Clinic Innovations, University Hospitals, MetroHealth Medical Center, the MetroHealth Vector and Cellular GMP facility, Louis Stokes Cleveland VA Medical Center and the Ohio State University. Further, collaborative relationships with local and national industry partners enhance academic to commercial opportunities.

The MS in Regenerative Medicine and Entrepreneurship is part of the CWRU Fusion Program. This unique cross-campus collaboration allows students in the program to gain experience in science/medicine, law, and business. Throughout their classes, students will discover how all of these areas culminate into the field of Regenerative Medicine. Ongoing development in cross-campus collaborations keeps RGME at the edge of innovations and expansion for perspectives and the ever-changing regenerative medicine field. 

Additionally, those enrolled in the RGME program will have access to cutting-edge clinical and research facilities, clinical translation, manufacturing and transition to companies with many spin-off small biotechnology companies that have benefited from the deep innovation across our community both within and outside the network of the National Center for Regenerative Medicine (NCRM).

RGME students are trained in academic, commercial, and clinical settings; to research, clinical translation, regulatory concepts of the Federal Drug Administration, Internal Review Board applications, cellular manufacturing, biotechnology innovation, technology transfer, legal compliance, financial analysis, venture capital, and business development activities with a regenerative medicine and partnering collaborating opportunities. Courses are then enhanced by taking advantage of the strengths across the university as a whole with a breathe of perspectives coming from every school at the university. 

Entrepreneurship Sets Us Apart

The RGME program is a 30 credit hour, two-year program for recent graduates to hone their problem-solving skill set. Students will be trained to solve modern regenerative medicine, commercial, business, legalistic and holistic deep-dive concepts in medicine, to see those problems in the context of both an individual project or concept, whether it is in the research, clinical or company setting and how this transitions to the greater marketplace. Students complete business and management courses as well as advanced regenerative medicine courses to become ready to tackle complex business problems with creative solutions. Partnerships with the CWRU School of Law, Weatherhead School of Business, Case School of Engineering, College of Arts and Sciences, Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences, Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing, School of Dental Medicine, and the Veale Institute of Entrepreneurship are integrated into the RGME MS curriculum opportunities, giving students diverse perspectives and career trajectories. In fact, students are encourage to take advantage of the courses across all of the schools at CWRU, defined by the trajectory of students' interests in the field of regenerative medicine and entrepreneurship. Emotional Intelligence, Teamwork, Communication, Creativity, and Cultural Awareness are all fundamentals of the RGME program.

Career Opportunities

Every RGME student will be guided in a course of study by a program mentor to ensure the successful completion of the program and to support individual career interests and development goals. Advisors are selected for the student's networking opportunities in the area of passion. Experiential hands-on learning in the concept area of the student's interest is a very important part of a student’s program experience. The RGME experiential opportunities are endless, based upon student internship and the many partnerships with our affiliate hospitals and surrounding commercial opportunities including Cleveland Cord Blood, Glendor Inc., ESight, Abeona, and Solutions4USA. Further, Case Western Reserve University has an entire department devoted to finding internships across the country for students, which is based upon the "best-fit" of the student for the opportunity. In addition, students may choose an independent research/regulatory initiative in the laboratory/clinic of one of the many world-class research members of the NCRM.

Program graduates will qualify for a wide range of jobs, research, clinical translation, regulatory, compliance, technology transfer, teaching, program managers, commercialization and even starting their own company. Opening the door for opportunities within a university, hospital, biotech companies to Wall Street. The market is in great demand for highly trained professionals to fill the knowledge gap in all these areas, which continue to grow at a logarithmic pace. RGME is also very adept at guiding students towards medical school and graduate school if those are or become the ultimate interests of the student. 

Graduate Policies

For graduate policies and procedures, please review the School of Graduate Studies section of the General Bulletin.

Program Requirements

Our full-time students complete the 30 credit hour master's degree in two years while learning from internationally renowned faculty across the University. The core courses provide the foundational elements including stem-cell biology, biomaterial engineering, medical product development, federal regulations, bioethics, and how to take a discovery to market. In addition, students select an independent study in either hands-on laboratory research or an industry internship. Various science and business development electives, paired with seminars and career development opportunities, round out your tailored experience. In lieu of a thesis, students create public presentations and written scientific projects throughout the program.

Science Program Electives^a,b

a

Please review the full list of Science Program Electives.

b

This list of electives is not all encompassing and is only a representation of potential electives.

Business Development Program Electives^c,d

c

Please review the full list of Business Development Program Electives.

d

This list of electives is not all encompassing and is only a representation of potential electives.

Sample Plan of Study