With just two weeks left before the registration window closes, the BIO International Convention is urging professionals across the biotech and life sciences industry to secure their spots in this year’s Professional Development Courses, scheduled for June 19–21 in San Diego. The courses are designed to deliver practical skills, proven frameworks, and real-world insights from industry experts that participants can apply immediately in their day-to-day work, rather than purely theoretical or academic training.
This year’s course lineup spans three distinct offerings, each targeting a different stage of professional development within business development, licensing, and valuation work in the life sciences sector. Together, they reflect BIO’s broader effort to build out programming that serves professionals well before they ever set foot on the main convention floor, giving early-career and experienced dealmakers alike a structured opportunity to sharpen their skills in a focused, small-group setting.
Advanced Business Development
Running June 19–21, 2026, the Advanced Business Development course is aimed at business development and licensing professionals with two to three years of experience, as well as seasoned dealmakers looking to refine their approach. The course is built around enhancing participants’ skills in tackling complex deal structures, a persistent challenge in an industry where licensing agreements, partnerships, and co-development deals often involve intricate financial, legal, and scientific considerations. Beyond the technical curriculum, the course also offers a structured opportunity to grow professional networks alongside peers working through similar deal-making challenges across the biotech and pharma landscape.
Business Development Fundamentals
Running concurrently from June 19–21, 2026, Business Development Fundamentals is positioned as a foundational course for those newer to life sciences business development, as well as professionals looking to refresh their skills with the latest strategies and insights shaping the field. As business development practices continue to evolve alongside shifting deal structures, financing environments, and licensing norms, even experienced professionals may find value in revisiting core fundamentals through a course built around current industry practice rather than legacy frameworks.
Product & Company Valuation
A shorter, single-day course, Product & Company Valuation takes place June 21, 2026, and focuses on developing a systematic approach to valuing biotech and pharma companies or their individual products. Given how central accurate valuation is to investment rounds, mergers and acquisitions, licensing deals, and broader strategic decision-making, the course aims to equip participants with practical, applicable insights rather than purely academic valuation theory, addressing a skill set that touches nearly every major transaction across the industry.
Course registration includes complimentary convention access
Notably, attendees do not need to be registered for BIO 2026 itself in order to take part in the Professional Development Courses. Course-only registration includes complimentary Basic Access to BIO 2026, extending several benefits to course participants beyond the training itself. This includes full Exhibition access, with entry to the Tuesday Exhibition Reception, as well as select curated programming such as Start-Up Stadium, Company Presentations, and the Global Innovation Hub.
This structure effectively allows course participants to experience a meaningful slice of the broader convention, including its open-access programming and networking opportunities, even if they choose not to register for the full BIO 2026 event. For professionals weighing whether a course-only registration is worthwhile, this bundled access adds considerable value beyond the course curriculum alone.
Limited time to register
With registration closing in two weeks, BIO has emphasized that interested professionals should not delay securing a spot, particularly given the specialized and cohort-based nature of the courses, which are likely to have limited capacity. Those interested in advancing their business development skills, deepening their valuation expertise, or gaining complimentary access to key BIO 2026 programming are encouraged to register for a course before the window closes.