MSci Biological Sciences
Entry requirements
A level: AAA (Biology required plus one from Chemistry, Life and Health Sciences, Mathematics or Physics.) IB: 38 points (A total of 18 points in three higher level subjects including Biology at grade 6 and one from Chemistry, Mathematics or Physics, with no higher level score below 5. The course will accept either ‘Mathematics: Analysis and Approaches’ or ‘Mathematics: Applications and Interpretation’ at higher level.)
About this course
MSci in Biological Sciences, a biology degree offering advanced training across the discipline over four academic years. Core topics include Programming, Data Analysis, Research Methods, and Human Behaviour. The course includes a research-intensive specialist pathway and an optional year abroad. The first year introduces core themes through compulsory modules such as Foundations of Life, Organisms, Evolution and Ecology, Molecular Cell Biology, and Cells to Organisms. The second year expands technical proficiency with compulsory study in Fundamentals of Molecular Biology and Animal Biodiversity, while optional choices span Plant Biology, Infection, and Drugs and the Mind. The third year centres on the Advanced Dissertation in Biosciences alongside optional topics including Human Behavioural Ecology, Computational and Systems Biology, and Vertebrate Life and Evolution. The final fourth year culminates in the compulsory MSci Extended Research Project in Biological Sciences, complemented by advanced options such as Advanced Computational Biology, Advances in Neurogenetics, and Immunology in Health and Disease.
Modules
- Biological Sciences Specialism 1
- Biological Sciences Specialism 2
- Foundations of Life
- Organisms, Evolution and Ecology
- Year 1: Fundamental Scientific Skills and Grand Challenges
- Year 1: Foundations of Programming and Data Handling
- Molecular Cell Biology
- Cells to Organisms
- Fundamentals of Molecular Biology
- Animal Biodiversity
- Year 2: Applied Data Science and Software Engineering
- Year 2: Developing Scientific Skills and Exploring Grand Challenges
- Evolutionary Genetics
- Fundamentals of Ecology
- Field module in Ecological and Evolutionary Genetics
- Data Science Methods in Biology
- Plant Biology
- Intermediate Cell Biology: Cell Structure and Function
- Intermediate Cell Biology: Cell Biology of Development
- Infection
- Drugs and the Mind
- Advanced Dissertation in Biosciences
- Human Behavioural Ecology
- People and Conservation
- Computational and Systems Biology
- Sex, Genes and Evolution
- Biology of Ageing
- Regulatory Genomics and Evolution
- Biodiversity Conservation and Ethics
- Vertebrate Life and Evolution
- Plant Evolution and Ecology
- Behavioural Ecology for the Anthropocene
- MSci Extended Research Project in Biological Sciences
- Advanced Computational Biology
- Science Communications for Biologists
- Research Seminar Series
- From Theory to Practice: Science in the Real World
- Advances in Neurogenetics
- Immunology in Health and Disease