The Master of Science in Regulatory Science and Digital Innovation (RSDI) is an innovative interdisciplinary graduate program designed to prepare professionals to lead at the intersection of regulatory science, health care innovation, emerging technologies, and global product development.
The program provides students with the scientific, regulatory, strategic, and leadership expertise needed to guide innovative drugs, pharmaceuticals, medical devices, diagnostics and digital health products from development through regulatory review, commercialization, and post-market oversight.
The curriculum addresses the rapidly evolving regulatory landscape surrounding drugs and pharmaceuticals, biotechnology products, medical devices, diagnostics, digital health technologies, artificial intelligence (AI), and other emerging health care innovations.
The program offers two tracks tailored toward students at different stages of their careers:
- The Executive Track is a 5-quarter, 41.5-unit hybrid program designed for mid- to senior-level professionals seeking deeper expertise in global regulatory policy and practice. Students learn primarily online with in-person sessions during the first week of each quarter and complete a master’s thesis.
- The Foundational Track is a 4-quarter, 54.5-unit full-time, in-person program designed for students and early-career professionals pursuing careers in industry and regulatory affairs, particularly in digital regulatory science and health technologies. The program culminates in a capstone project.
Faculty
The RSDI faculty bring interdisciplinary expertise spanning regulatory science, health care product development, digital health, data science and artificial intelligence, global regulatory strategy, quality systems, entrepreneurship, innovation, and organizational leadership.
Faculty experience encompasses academia, industry, regulatory agencies, health care, and related sectors, providing students with perspectives across the health care innovation ecosystem. This breadth of expertise supports a curriculum that integrates scientific and academic foundations with practical knowledge of how innovative products and technologies are developed, evaluated, regulated, and brought to patients.
Research Areas
The RSDI program encompasses a broad range of areas within regulatory science and health care innovation, including: AI, digital health, software as a medical device (SaMD), medical devices, drug development, pharmaceuticals and biologics, advanced therapeutics, precision medicine, global regulatory strategy, quality systems, clinical development, regulatory innovation and entrepreneurship
Career Outcomes
The program prepares graduates to contribute across the health care product lifecycle, including product development, pharmaceutical and drug development, regulatory strategy and affairs, digital health and emerging technologies, quality and compliance, clinical and regulatory operations, regulatory policy, innovation strategy, and product lifecycle management.
The RSDI MS program is offered by the UCSF Division of Graduate Education and Postdoctoral Scholars. The program is administered by the UCSF Department of Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences and delivered by faculty members in the Department of Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences.