Biomedical Science

A Brighton Biomedical Science degree prepares you for a variety of rewarding career paths, including research, disease diagnosis, treatment development and clinical healthcare.

At Brighton you’ll be part of a community that helps you grow, no matter what your background. This course is packed with opportunities to build real-world experience, including a paid placement after year two and opportunities to take a funded research internship, so you’ll build confidence and career skills from day one. Our inclusive approach to learning will help you go further; we’ll make sure you play to your strengths and learn in ways that suit you best.

Brighton graduates go on to work in NHS pathology labs, biotech firms and global pharma and also progress to postgraduate medicine, research and academia

Top reasons to choose this course

• Explore the human body in depth and build the knowledge, lab skills and clinical insight to help shape the future of healthcare.

• Get hands-on from year one: you’ll study biochemistry, pharmacology, genetics, infection science and blood science.

• Learn in specialist labs with atomic force microscopes and the custom designed Brighton Integrative Genomics (BIG) Unit used for analysis of cell genes and proteins.

• Complete projects, take part in hospital visits, gain experience on placement in a hospital or within industry and get the latest professional insights through guest lectures.

• Learn with researchers in regenerative medicine and lifelong health.

• Of the students on this course who completed the National Student Survey 2025, 90.2% said teaching staff are good at explaining things and 92.7% said the course often challenged them to achieve their best work.

• Boost your CV with a paid placement year after your second year and funded internship opportunities such as the Brighton Student Research Experience Scheme.

• This course is accredited by the Institute of Biomedical Science (IBMS) and Royal Society of Biology – and offers eligible candidates a guaranteed interview for Brighton and Sussex Medical School.

• Register with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) as a biomedical scientist on graduation by doing your placement in an IBMS-approved NHS pathology lab and completing the IBMS Certificate of Competence and the Registration Training Portfolio while you study.

Why Brighton is a great place to study Biomedical Science
Less than an hour from central London, Brighton & Hove is home to the University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust and research centres including the Sussex Cancer Centre, offering clinical visit opportunities and real-world experience close to campus.

Named as one of the best cities on the planet and the third best city in the UK by Time Out, Brighton is also a hub for health and life sciences innovation where inclusivity, diversity and wellbeing are celebrated.

Course Modules

Year 1
In your first year, you will build your core skills in scientific thinking, lab techniques and data analysis, and introductory modules will explore how the body works, how diseases begin and how genes, microbes and molecules all play a role. Throughout the year you’ll learn how to investigate and interpret biomedical problems using real clinical examples.

Core modules
Essential Skills for Bioscientists
Fundamentals in Genetics and Evolution
Introduction to Biochemistry
Introduction to Human Physiology
Introduction to Infection Sciences
Fundamentals in Blood Sciences

Year 2
You will investigate the science behind infections, immunity and genetic disorders, your study of blood sciences and human physiology continues and you will also cover human Biochemistry, metabolism and pharmacology. You will build your practical lab and research skills, including in clinical diagnostics and experimental design, preparing you for your final year study and future career.

Core modules
Infection and Immunity
Intermediate Blood Sciences
Clinical Genetics and Molecular Biology
Intermediate Human Physiology
Human Biochemistry, Metabolism and Pharmacology
Research Skills and Professional Development

Optional Placement Year
Undertaking your placement in an IBMS-approved NHS pathology lab could enable you to register as a biomedical scientist with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) when you graduate.

Final year
In your final year, you’ll explore how diseases develop at the cellular level and how advanced lab diagnostics are used in real clinical settings. You’ll also carry out your own independent research project and engage with global health topics, including infectious disease outbreaks, and the latest bioscience and immunology innovations.

Core modules
Cellular Pathology
Advanced Diagnostics in Blood Science
Innovations in Bioscience Research
Clinical Microbiology and Immunology
Bioscience Research Project