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. Our Biomedical Science MSci includes an extra year of in-depth study at masters level so you can develop advanced research skills and specialise in the areas you are most interested in.

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 insights to help shape the future of healthcare.

• Learn with internationally recognised researchers in our Centre for Regenerative Medicine and Devices and our Centre for Lifelong Health.

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

• Learn in specialist labs using atomic force microscopes and the custom designed Brighton Integrative Genomics (BIG) Unit used for analysing 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.

• 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 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 learn the foundations of biomedical science and be introduced to lab techniques used in professional practice. You will study areas including genetics and molecular biology, biochemistry, human physiology and infection science.

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 build on the knowledge gained in your first year, broaden your research skills and explore topics that include diet and exercise, infection and immunity, molecular cell biology, genetics and genomics, human biochemistry and metabolism.

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
Doing a 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.

Year 3
The focus is more on the clinical aspects of biomedical science, including blood sciences, cellular pathology, clinical immunology and microbiology and innovations in bioscience research. You will undertake a project linked with one of our research groups.

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

Final year
You will carry out an in-depth research project working with an academic who is a recognised expert in their field and develop techniques in evaluating research in biomedical science.

Core modules
Evaluating Research in Biosciences
MSci Research Project

Options*
Regenerative Medicine and Medical Devices
Biological Membranes: Drug Targets and Disease
Omics for Diseases: Theory, Practice and Applications
Monitoring Signalling Molecules in Neuroscience
Ageing: Pathology and Prevention
Cancer: Bench to Bedside
Astrobiology
Applied Nucleic Acid Biochemistry
Advanced Pharmaceutical Analysis
Nanotechnology Research: Therapeutics, Diagnostics and Advanced Pharmaceutics

*Option modules are indicative and may change, depending on timetabling and staff availability.