Biomedical Science BSc (Hons)

This course is in clearing with spaces available

This course is in Clearing with Spaces Available

Overview

Course options

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Degree

UCAS code: B940 112 UCAS points
  1. BSc (Hons) Biomedical Science

    • Home Applicant
    • Full time, 3/4 years
    • 9250 Per year
  2. BSc (Hons) Biomedical Science

    • Home Applicant
    • Part time
    • 2310 Pro-rata full time fee
  3. BSc (Hons) Biomedical Science

    • International Applicant
    • Full time, 3/4 years
    • 14820 Per year

Degree with foundation year

UCAS code: C790 64 UCAS points
  1. BSc (Hons) Biomedical Science

    • Home Applicant
    • Full time 4/5 years
    • 9250 Per year
  2. BSc (Hons) Biomedical Science

    • International Applicant
    • Full time 4/5 years
    • 14820 Per year

What makes this course different

  • 1st in London

    Our biomedical sciences courses ranked 1st in London for “Teaching on my Course” and “Learning Opportunities” (National Student Survey 2023, Results published 10 August 2023).

  • Gain experience on placement

    We encourage you to undertake placements within the industry. From short micro-placements to a placement year, we will support by connecting you with one of our partners to find you the perfect fit.

Accreditation

IBMS Accredited

Our course is accredited by the Institute of Biomedical Science (IBMS) - the professional body for biomedical scientists in the UK. This recognition is crucial for your future career opportunities.

Course modules

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Essential Skills for Higher Education (Mental Wealth)

Essential Maths & ICT

Career & Professional Skills (Mental Wealth)

Human Biology

Introduction to the Study of Cells

Chemistry of Life

This course is based on the study of the biology of disease. Your first year is common to all bioscience students at UEL and covers four areas: essential chemistry, cell biology, biochemistry and human anatomy and physiology.

Professional Practice in Science (Mental Wealth)

Essential Chemistry

Cell Biology

Introduction to Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

Fundamentals in Human Anatomy and Physiology

Fundamentals in Microbiology

Level 4 Short Work Placement

In your second year, your five core subjects will be supplemented by optional work placements. You can choose a short placement or a full year away from the University. Taking a longer option will undoubtedly help your career prospects once you graduate.

Human Disease and Clinical Practice

Molecular Biology & Genetics

Infection & Immunity

Cellular Biochemistry

Haematology and Transfusion Science

Research & Career Development - Mental Wealth

Level 5 Short Work Placement

Year Long Placement (Sandwich Year)

In your final year, you'll gain an understanding of what causes disease as well as studying clinical infection and immunity. You'll do a core module in cellular pathology and blood science that will show you how to identify normal and pathological tissues using a microscope. You'll also undertake your own original research project in your final year, for which you'll be generating and assessing data. You can do this through library work or in a laboratory. The choice is yours.

Clinical Biochemistry

Medical Microbiology

Cellular Pathology

Clinical Immunology

Clinical Genetics

Research Project and Career Enhancement Portfolio (Mental Wealth)

Level 6 Short Work Placement

NOTE: Modules are subject to change. For those studying part time courses the modules may vary.

Download course specification

Your future career

Biomedical science offers an ever-evolving landscape ripe with career prospects for graduates. Studying and gaining hands-on experience in pathology labs paves an exciting career path.

After securing Institute of Biomedical Science (IBMS) registration, doors open in various sectors. You could go into NHS roles contributing to modern healthcare, positions in the Health Protection Agency, National Blood Authority, or private, university, and forensic laboratories.

Diverse career avenues include veterinary science, pharmaceuticals, the Health and Safety Executive, and government departments. Many graduates use this degree as a launchpad for further education.

The comprehensive curriculum at UEL spans various subjects, offering a solid foundation for potential teaching roles. Its breadth of topics equips you for several careers, making biomedical science at UEL a compelling choice.

Industry links

UEL is connected to different hospital laboratories whose membership includes biomedical scientists, clinical scientists, laboratory managers and researchers. These include Great Ormond Street Hospital Trust & Barking, Havering and Redbridge NHS Trust.

Graduate employers

Our graduates have been employed by organisations such as the NHS in various hospitals such as Great Ormond Street, Barts, Lewisham, and the Royal London.

Job roles

Roles our graduates have gone into are biomedical scientist, associate practitioner in a pathology lab and ultrasound imaging assistant. 

Explore the different career options you can pursue with this degree and see the median salaries of the sector on our Career Coach portal.

Further study

You might decide to study for a further degree in a related subject, either an MSc or PhD in the School of Health, Sport and Bioscience.

One of the best transferable skills that I took away from my time at UEL was the ability to present to people with a variety of backgrounds and expertise. You will have opportunities to go on to do great things. I ended up working as the first neurosurgical physician associate at The Royal London Hospital - a major trauma centre in London, doing a job that I love!"

Hira Hana

BSc Biomedical Science (with Foundation Year) graduate and Physician Associate, Royal London Hospital

How we support your career ambitions

We offer dedicated careers support, further opportunities to thrive, such as volunteering and industry networking. our courses are created in collaboration with employers and industry to ensure they accurately reflect the real-life practices of your future career and provide you with the essential skills needed. You can focus on building interpersonal skills through group work and benefit from our investment in the latest cutting edge technologies and facilities.

Career Zone

This digital platform provides you with careers and employability resources, including: 

  • Jobs board for internships, placements, graduate opportunities, flexible part-time work 
  • Mentoring programmes for insight with industry experts 
  • 1-2-1 career coaching services
  • Careers workshops and employer events 
  • Learning pathways to gain new skills and industry insight

Mental Wealth programme

Our Professional Fitness and Mental Wealth programme which issues you with a Careers Passport to track the skills you've mastered. Some of these are externally validated by corporations like Amazon and Microsoft.

See more details

We are careers first

Our teaching methods and geographical location put us right up top:

  • Work-based projects
  • Networking and visits to leading organisations
  • Support in starting a new business
  • London on our doorstep

How you'll learn

We like to keep the learning varied and interactive, so you'll be encouraged to participate in a wide range of subjects, including lectures, seminars, workshops, laboratory practicals and web learning.

We'll strongly encourage you to take the option of a full-year placement outside the University at the end of your second year. These placements represent great opportunities - jobs that can involve anything from sample collection in a laboratory to running supervised tests.

Recent history shows that many of these opportunities lead to full-time jobs. It's a competitive process to land such an opportunity, but well worth it.

As Course Leader Dr Claudio Scotti says: "People are desperate to find work experience because, without that, it's not easy to find a job. If you have a work placement with us, though, you'll have a head start."

There are also opportunities to help out on research projects being carried out by our academic team. For example, students of Dr Scotti have aided his research into the health claims made by manufacturers of probiotic foods.

Your own research project could turn you into a prize-winner like one of our students, Dee Davis, who's been recognised by the Society for General Microbiology for her microbiology and immunology research.

    Guided independent study

    When not attending timetabled lectures or workshops, you will be expected to continue learning independently through self-study. This will typically involve skills development through online study, reading journal articles and books, working on individual and group projects and preparing coursework assignments and presentations. 

    Your independent learning is supported by a range of excellent facilities including online resources, and specialist facilities, such as edit suites, the library, the full Microsoft Office software, including MS Teams, and Moodle: our Virtual Learning Environment.

    Academic support

    Our academic support team provides help in a range of areas - including learning and disability support.

    Dedicated personal tutor

    When you arrive, we'll introduce you to your personal tutor. This is the member of the academic course team who will provide academic guidance, be a support throughout your time at UEL and who will show you how to make the best use of all the help and resources that we offer.

    Workload

    The approximate percentages for this course are:

    • Year 1: 180 Hours - Taught Sessions, 60 Hours - Practical/IT Workshops, 960 Hours - Independent Learning 
    • Year 2: 175 Hours - Taught Sessions, 65 Hours - Practical/IT Workshops, 960 Hours - Independent Learning 
    • Year 3: 184 Hours - Taught Sessions, 66 Hours - Practical/IT Workshops, 950 Hours - Independent Learning

    Your timetable

    Each year you will spend up to 240 hours of timetabled learning and teaching activities. These may be lectures, workshops, seminars and individual and group tutorials. Contact hours may vary depending on each module.

    Class sizes

    To give you an indication of class sizes, this course normally attracts 60 - 90 students a year.
    In the seminars, you will be taught in groups of 20 – 30 students. However, this can vary by academic year.

How you'll be assessed

We'll assess you with a mixture of coursework and exams. Coursework includes essays, research reports, group and seminar presentations and a final-year project. Most of the assessment in your first year is by coursework and we'll give you as much feedback as possible. 

In your third year, you'll either take five core modules or undertake a work placement. We'll assess you accordingly.

  • Year 1 - 58% Portfolio/Coursework, 42% Laboratory/Practical/ICT 
  • Year 2 - 42% Written Exam/Timed Assessment, 33% Portfolio/Coursework, 25% Laboratory/Practical/ICT 
  • Year 3 - 42% Written Exam/Timed Assessment, 33% Laboratory/Practical/ICT, 17% Portfolio/Coursework, 8% Case Study/PBL

You'll always receive detailed feedback outlining your strengths and how you can improve. We aim to provide feedback on assessments within 14 working days, although you will receive immediate feedback following many of our face-to-face assessments.

Campus and facilities

Water Lane, Stratford

DiscoverUni

The banner below displays some key factual data about this course (including different course combinations or delivery modes of this course where relevant).

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Statistics for BSc (Hons) Biomedical Science Degree, Full Time

Statistics for BSc (Hons) Biomedical Science Degree, Full Time

What our students and staff say

Bioscience Clearing shoot 1
As a mature student, the opportunity to be able to enrol on the foundation year and change my career path provided me with social mobility and propelled me into a career which is interesting, rewarding and that I love doing. I can't praise the teaching staff enough, without them it would not have been possible for me to achieve my full potential.”

Dee Davis

BSc (Hons) Biomedical Science (with Foundation Year) graduate, Specialist biomedical scientist (virology), Great Ormond Street Hospital NHS Trust

Bioscience Lab
I got a lot of hands-on experience and put knowledge into practice, preparing me for the 'real world'. My journey has been experiential and rewarding. It has only been possible due to the wonderful teaching faculty and facilities. Learning from exceptional lecturers has been phenomenal."

Oneza Saleem

BSc Biomedical Science and MRes Bioscience Graduate