Toxicology is the study of Poisons. Poisons (toxicants, toxins, xenobiotics) are substances that when taken into the body cause injury or death. In the toxicology programme you will study amongst other things the nature of these poisons, how they are detected, what damage they do and why. You will examine the options available for dealing with these substances and will examine the research methods which have led to our current knowledge.

• The aim of the programme at UEL is to introduce the students to all aspects of toxicology, in particular: Toxicity testing, Mechanistic toxicology, Environmental Toxicology and Regulatory Toxicology.
• This programme offers extensive laboratory training through all years and opportunities for work placement
• The programme also shares a common first year with other Bioscience degrees at UEL, providing an opportunity to transfer between programmes at the end of the first year

• Most students follow a 3-year full-time pathway, however a 4-year sandwich degree and part-time routes are also available. Toxicology is also available as part of a combined honours programme.
• Level 1 is essentially a foundation year, designed to cement and extend areas of study, which should already be at least partly familiar to students. In two Skills modules students will develop the study skills and IT skills required in any modern degree programme together with the more specialist background knowledge in areas such as Physiology, Microbiology, Cell biology and statistics, which are required by a Toxicologist. At Level 2, students study Introduction to Toxicology and the Environment and a combination of Biochemistry (Molecular Biology, Biochemical Techniques) and Physiology (Physiology Function and Dysfunction, Physiological Regulation).
• The third year of study can be spent away from the University in an agreed work placement.
• The final year (Level 3) combines specialists Toxicology modules with either Pathology, Forensic analysis or immunology.
• Final year students also do an individual research project, involving independent original work.

Learning is encouraged through participation in a wide variety of activities including lectures, seminars, workshops, laboratory-based practicals, external visits, distance learning, web-based learning etc. Each module has 5 to 6 hours contact per week, and may need up to 10 hours further individual study per week on each module. Success at university depends on developing your ability to study independently using library resources, computer assisted learning (CAL), handouts and web-based study activities. The first year has a Skills module each semester. These help you make the major shift to independent learning needed at university, compared to schools and FE colleges, and also help to develop those transferable skills so important in working life. Students opting for sandwich placement have opportunities for on the job training and also work based learning.

Students are assessed in practical work and theory. In most modules 50% of the module mark is derived from coursework during the semester (this can take a variety of forms including laboratory work, data analysis, essays, oral presentations etc.) and 50% from unseen written theory examination at the end of the semester.

• Level 1 (Year 1) modules introduce you to the standards and types of assessment used at university. Some have theory exams staged at intervals through the semester. Although they do not contribute to your final Honours grade, you are expected to achieve at least 40% in all Level 1 modules.
• Your final Honours grade uses marks from Level 2 and Level 3 modules only. Your Level 1 modules prepare you to do your best in these later years.
• If a module is not passed at the first opportunity, marks from later opportunities are not capped.

• The 4-year Sandwich programme offers a year working in a laboratory and may be in a toxicology lab, hospital, research institution or in a medical, industrial or food company. Placements are available nation-wide and sometimes abroad.
• Successful completion of the sandwich year will appear on your degree transcript and is acknowledged in your degree title. You also have the opportunity to take a work-based learning module which can contribute to your final degree classification.
• A placement officer is responsible for organising placements so there is no onus on the student to find a suitable job.
• During the sandwich year you will be assigned a visiting tutor to ensure that all is running smoothly and to look after your interests.
• During the sandwich year you have the opportunity to gain an extra 20 credits at level two by studying a work-based learning module.
• Work experience enables you to build links with employers and greatly enhances your employment prospects.

• Project work is an essential component of an Honours degree programme and one that most students enjoy. Small projects and group work exercises feature throughout the programme.
• Up to one third of your final year is spent on an individual research project. If a double project module is chosen this will contribute over 20% to your total Honours mark.
• Project work encourages students to show initiative in their individual work under supervision in a laboratory, using appropriate analytical techniques to generate and interpret new data.
• Library based research projects may also be undertaken.

• Extensive personal support throughout the programme.
• Sound practical as well as academic training.
• The sandwich year working in a laboratory will add value to your job prospects at the end of the programme.
• Effective careers advice and support available

• How the human body works and how its function can be altered by chemical agents.
• Developing your knowledge and understanding of why certain compounds cause harm to living systems.
• The impact of toxins accumulating in the environment.
• Studying methods used to assess toxicity.
• Understanding how techniques such as Proteomics, Genomics and Metabolomics are used to better understand the toxication process.
• Improving your scientific skills of logical argument and analysis.

• Reading or hearing about research and/ or medicine (do you already enjoy TV documentaries like Horizon or Equinox, radio science programmes, New Scientist articles?).
• The challenge of discovering new drugs.
• TV programmes on forensic investigations.
• The challenge of understanding how pollutants affect humans and the environment.
• Doing scientific procedures and experiments in laboratories and IT labs with precision.
• Working in groups, using standard and new techniques to solve problems.
• Being able to study quietly and individually away from formal staff-led sessions.

• The option of a year's work experience in a laboratory away from the University.
• To be able to spend up to one third of your final year on your own individual research project at the university (usually developing laboratory skills, but IT, survey or library projects also negotiable).
• The chance of reviewing your degree programme at the end of the first year.

The programme will enable you to pursue careers in the Pharmaceutical Industry, Academic Research, Forensic Science, environmental monitoring and control, the food industry and a range of government agencies. It can also be utilised by those students who have less specific career aspirations but who wish to study a rigorous scientific programme. One rapidly growing field of work is in the insurance industry providing the technical support in claims assessment.

The School of Health and Bioscience provides immediate contact with University support systems.

• In your first year, you are allocated a Personal Tutor (a member of staff familiar with your degree). You will see your Tutor at regular intervals to discuss progress and life in general.
• Module leaders and Degree pathway leaders also give support on academic matters, and advice about other specialist help available through the University.
• The School also has a Help Desk to provide administrative assistance and advise how to get the right help.
• Internet homepages are used by many staff to support their teaching and your learning.
• Lecture and practical files, quizzes, mark summaries and much more is now available for several modules via UEL UELPlus Online Programme links.

Throughout the programme you will find a number of scheduled support activities devoted to specific aspects e.g. how to write your project report, or more general aspects such as careers.

Support for students on a University level includes:

• Libraries and Learning Resource Centres
• Childcare for students with children aged 21/2 years to 5 years.
• Careers advice and information
• Counselling and Advice for practical problems
• Health Centre with a nurse regularly on duty.
• Language tuition
• Dyslexia support
• Accommodation

• A School with staff and facilities to match to the wide interests and backgrounds of students. Good connections with the Pharmaceutical Industry.
• Sports facilities at 'Fitness on the Green' and at the Atherton Centre, which is just a few minutes walk away.
• Multiplex cinema, theatre, supermarkets, high street shops, restaurants, cafes and pubs a few minutes walk away in Stratford - a major site of new development in East London.
• Central London only 20 minutes away by underground and there are extensive transport links with all parts of London.