The modern biomedical scientist needs to be familiar with a wide range of subject disciplines. This is why our Biomedical Sciences degree provides all students with a sound grounding in compulsory subject areas. The course also allows you to develop good practical, analytical and transferable skills applicable to a wide range of employment opportunities such as medicine, MSc and PhD study, pharmaceutical research, pathology and diagnosis, clinical trials and data management. You will be encouraged to exercise leadership, initiative and responsibility, and to appreciate the need for continual professional development. Aims The aim of the BSc Biomedical Sciences (Genetics) course is to emphasise how the role of various genetic mutations alter cellular processes and biomechanical pathways in normal metabolism, and also how these pathways may be altered during specific human disease. You will also learn how the genome project will provide new insights and therapies for the treatment of genetic diseases. In addition you will study the main subject areas in biosciences and medically related research. These subject areas include biochemistry, genetics, cell and molecular biology, immunology, and anatomy and physiology, as related to human health, disease and treatment.

Studying biomedical sciences will equip you with a range of transferable and employability skills that will enable you to follow the career you want after graduation. We give all our students the opportunity to develop the skills and competencies needed for employment through a unique, credit-rated study/assessment block at Level 2, which is delivered in partnership with employers and the Placement and Careers Centre. The Careers and Professional Skills Study and Assessment Blocks incorporate a wide variation of activities: * Training and assessment centres where you can engage in networking; psychometric and aptitude testing; interview skills; role play interviews; teamwork exercises and producing a CV and covering letter. * A Careers Day includes talks from a variety of external speakers who have taken different career paths after studying Biomedical Sciences. You are given the opportunity to meet and receive advice from these speakers to assist you with your own career plans. * Participation in workshops to obtain library/data base research skills to assist you with writing scientific literature reviews. * Laboratory sessions to allow you to develop your practical skills and to enable you to work efficiently and effectively. For the duration of your course, you will regularly have the opportunity to practice: * collecting, collating, interpreting and presenting numerical and literary data * laboratory skills * research skills * oral presentation skills * information technology skills * report writing * self-management and personal organisation * the ability to work effectively both independently and as a member of a team * time management At Levels 1 and 2, the Board of Examiners award our best students with certificates to acknowledge their exceptional skills. This includes the award for Most Employability Skills at Level 2. At Level 3 the best students are also awarded prizes at the graduation ceremony. These awards provide students with an extra opportunity to compete when seeking employment. Careers Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education (DLHE) survey These statistics relate to graduates from a number of different pathways – Biomedical Sciences, Biochemistry, Forensics, Genetics, Human Health, Immunology. Graduates from these subjects tend to fall broadly into two groups – those who wish to work in life science professions and those who use their degree as a route into careers that are not directly related to the subject studied. In 2011/12, six months after graduating: * 51.9% of graduates with a first degree were in employment * 29.9% were in full-time further study * 9.1% were combining work and study Read more about graduate destinations for this subject area In recent years, graduates have found employment with a wide range of companies, in both the public and private sectors. Some examples include: * Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries * Home Office Forensic Science Service * Laboratory of the Government Chemist * Hospitals and NHS Research Centres * Celltech Ltd * Shell Ltd * National Institute for Medical Research * Unilever Research Ltd * Bass Breweries * Novartis * Chester Beatty Research Institute * Kennedy Institute of Rheumatology * GlaxoSmithKline * Parexel International. Over 40% of our graduates go on to obtain higher degrees by research (taught MSc courses, MPhil and PhD) or by study for further qualifications such as medicine, dentistry, ophthalmology or teaching. For those wishing to pursue a career as an NHS medical laboratory scientific officer, please note that this course is not IBMS accredited.