Alumni Spotlight: Samuel K Azeba, Master’s in Drug Development Graduate

UC MSDD Alumni Working in R&D, Manufacturing and Business

Samuel K Azeba is an innovative R&D/Manufacturing Snr Scientist and Business professional at Patheon-Thermo Fischer Scientific. Thermo Fisher Scientific provides industry-leading pharma services solutions for drug development, clinical trial logistics, and commercial manufacturing through their Patheon brand. With more than 65 locations worldwide, they provide integrated, end-to-end capabilities across all phases of development, including API, biologics, viral vectors, cGMP plasmids, formulation, clinical trials solutions, logistics services, and commercial manufacturing and packaging.

As a business manager, Sam is responsible for strategic portfolio growth, customer interface, negotiation, contract review, and escalation point.

In his previous role as a scientist, he was responsible for leading, directing, and supervising formulation, scale-up, and troubleshooting of solid oral dosage forms. Sam also writes protocols, batch records, reports, and manufacturing documents for experimental, clinical, scale-up, and validation batches while also interpreting and presenting analytical outcomes to management, cross-functional teams, and external customers.

We talked with Sam about his career and experience at the University of Cincinnati and the Drug Development Programs. He provided his perspective on the program that helped him meet his professional goals.

Q: What motivated you to seek a master’s degree in Drug Development?

Enhancement of my career and professional objectives.

Q: Why did you select the Drug Development program?

It’s an innovative program, I wanted to increase my knowledge base in the industry.

Q: Why did you select UC and are you happy with your choice?

Reputation and diversity. Yes, happy and I will do it again in a heartbeat.

Q: How did you handle the school, work, life balance while in the program?

Sacrifice, resilience, and family support.

Q: What is a favorite memory or a proud moment you had during the MSDD program?

Expansion of networking. The networking relationships I created during the Program and maintained have enhanced my career opportunity tremendously – given that my classmate came from different backgrounds.

Q: How has your degree helped you in your career?

The program has prepared me for the real-world challenges that a pharmaceutical professional often faces.

With expertise from all corners of the subject matter, the program staff helped tailor coursework and opportunities that allowed me to pursue my interests in pharmaceutical drug discovery and manufacturing.

As a result, I explored various areas of interest, helping me to become a well-rounded scientist and business professional

Q: Do you have any advice for future students looking into the MSDD program?

An innovative program worth the time, money, and sacrifice.

Q: For someone who may have never taken an online course before, how would you describe the experience?

A unique experience that cuts out traveling time yet gives identical learning experiences.

Q: Any final thoughts you would like to share about the MSDD program?

The program’s overall benefits can’t be over-emphasized; I have not only recommended it to my colleagues but anyone who needs the necessary skills and exposure to get to the next level in their professional growth.

Learn More About the Drug Development Programs with UC Online

The Drug Development program from the University of Cincinnati James L. Winkle College of Pharmacy is truly flexible and fully online. Accelerate your career while gaining a clearer vision of drug development for all phases of research from regulatory, pre-clinical to clinical, and beyond with a program built for busy working professionals in the field.

Learn More about the Drug Development program with UC Online