Program Overview 2025
Expand your knowledge on finance & valuation in Life Sciences & Health. Below is the preliminary program for the course. The final program will be updated soon.
The next edition of the Finance for Growth course will run from 31 October to 12 December 2025. It will be held in-person at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam.
| Module | Topics | Teachers | Content | |
| Module 1. 31 October 2025 The basics of strategic funding: market trends and financial statement analysis | Course introduction | Linda van de Burgwal / Kenneth Fernald | Introduction to the Finance for Growth course | |
| Setting
the scene for biopharma strategic funding: market trends, drivers &
opportunities | Eric Claassen | Explain why the
biopharma market differs from traditional markets in terms of financing | ||
| Financial statement analysis | Marc Schauten / Arjen Siegmann | What to learn from
financial statements? The basics of reading and interpreting balance sheets,
profit and loss statements and cash flow statements | ||
| Module 2. 7 November 2025 | Discounted cash flow analysis | Marc Schauten / Arjen Siegmann | Conducting smart calculations with a common spreadsheet tool: advanced use of Excel functions | |
| Venture capital deal terms | Harm de Vries | What to look for when negotiating with venture capital? The most often used venture capital deal terms and the most overlooked clauses. | ||
| Module 3. 14 November 2025 | Investment
risk and the cost of capital | Marc Schauten / Arjen Siegmann | Why the profits in
pharma need to be high, or: the time value of money and capital budgeting | |
| Non-dilutive funding | Judith Smit | How do I finance a business? Applying the dilutive and non-dilutive funding mix to finance life sciences ventures | ||
| Module 4. 21 November 2025 The impact of risk and return: cost of capital and valuation by VCs | Introduction to options | Marc Schauten / Arjen Siegmann | To understand optionality this lecture introduces financial options. They provide the intuition and the machinery to deal with real options. | |
| Valuation by VCs | Bart Bergstein | How do venture
capitalists valuate companies before they invest? Experiences from a seasoned
investor. | ||
| Module 5. 28 November 2025 Valuating your company: valuation approach and industry specific margins | Valuation
techniques for the firm | Matteo Millone | How to
determine the value of a company | |
| How to scale-up sensibly | Pieter Wijffels | How to
balance R&D with sales & marketing in the life sciences industry | ||
| Industry specific costs, revenues, margins and risk profiling | Eric Claassen | How to
conduct financial calculations for the Life Sciences: industry specific costs,
revenues, margins and risk profiling | ||
| Module 6. 5 December 2025 Securing an exit: perspectives of investment bankers and valuation of M&A deals | Real options | Marc Schauten / Arjen Siegmann | When it might be better to wait. Using real options in the biopharma sector. | |
| VC investment and exit patterns and Valuation methods | Kenneth Fernald | Venture Capital Investments and exits in biotech/pharma; and Valuation: DCF and rNPV methods | ||
| Valuation by investment
bankers | Van Lanschot-Kempen (Robert-Jan and Tom) | How do
investment bankers valuate companies in order to get to an exit? A real-life
example. | ||
| Module 7. 12 December 2025 Get active: understanding and applying 24 financing modalities while optimizing your company’s position | The innovators perspective | Yves Prevoo | The role of budget impact and incremental cost-effectiveness | |
| Crowdfunding in Life Sciences | Simon Douw | When standard financing modalities are not enough. The use of crowdfunding in health and life sciences | ||
| Financing
modalities for the firm | Eric Claassen | Understanding and applying over 24 financing modalities for your firm (emphasis on non-dilutive instruments) |
Faculty / Speakers
Linda van de Burgwal
VU
Eric Claassen
VU
Judith Smith
FFUND
Harm de Vries
Innovation Industries
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