Medical school bridging
UPCM+ Pharmacology (AY 2026–2027)
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Master the essentials of pharmacology and understand how drugs work in the body through practical, student-friendly learning designed for future health professionals.
Enrollment and lessons are on OpenLearning, UP Manila’s learning platform.
- Enrollment
- Open for enrollment
- Course type
- Microcredential
- Offered by
- College of Medicine, Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology
- Start date
- Start any time
- Duration
- About 30 hours of study
- Fee
- ₱1,000
- Credential
- Certificate of completion; badge of completion
- Learners
- 107
About this course
UPCM+ Pharmacology covers the basic principles of pharmacodynamics and pharmacokinetics. It is composed of seven modules and around thirty hours of coursework designed to introduce important concepts in pharmacology relevant to students of both medical and paramedical fields.
The principles of how drugs work and are handled by the body are presented using common drugs that students can also familiarize themselves with.
Course content
Overview: objectives, scope, and the history of pharmacology in the Philippines
Module 1: Introduction to Pharmacology
Module 2: Mechanics of Drug Action
Module 3: Pharmacodynamics
Module 4: Pharmacokinetics
Module 5: Pharmacogenetics
Module 6: Drug Toxicity and Adverse Drug Reaction
Module 7: Drug Discovery and Development
What you will learn
Students are expected to learn the principles of how drugs work and are handled by the body. They will be able to:
- Identify a drug by its different names, classify it by function, and describe the routes of drug administration.
- Discuss the general mechanisms of drug action, receptor-mediated and non-receptor-mediated, including novel gene and stem-cell therapies.
- Explain potency, efficacy, and therapeutic index based on dose-response curves.
- Discuss drug absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion, and the concepts of clearance, half-life, and area under the curve.
- Illustrate the role of pharmacogenetics in individualizing drug therapy in the Philippine setting.
- Differentiate adverse drug reactions from drug interactions and describe ways to decrease drug toxicity.
- Discuss the stages of drug discovery and development, including the phases of clinical trials.
Teaching team
Maria Concepcion C. Sison, MD, MAS
Karl Matthew Sy Su
Cecilia Jimeno
Jose Paciano Baltazar Reyes
Enroll
Enrollment for this course is on OpenLearning. Selecting the button opens the course there, where you sign up or log in, then enroll. See all the steps.
Fees, schedules and enrollment status as of 30 September 2026.
