UK applied and pure science courses

Study science in the UK and you can benefit from world-renowned teaching and research excellence. The UK's tradition of inspiring brilliant minds is evident in the calibre of its scientists. From Charles Darwin to Nobel Prize winner Sir Paul Nurse - UK scientists have been responsible for many important scientific breakthroughs.

Choose a UK science degree and you can also work closely in other disciplines, such as social sciences and the arts. One UK university science department has combined roboticists, developmental psychologists and neuroscientists from universities across Europe to design a robot which can grow emotionally like a child. Another is home to the National Oceanography Centre.  A major strength of UK education is the focus on interdisciplinary learning and research.

You can find information about career opportunities in science on the Prospects website. 

Why study science in the UK?

• You'll be studying in the world's most productive nation for research. The UK's seven science, technology and engineering research councils continue to keep the country at the cutting edge.
• Over the last decade, nine UK scientists have been awarded Nobel Prizes in the three categories of Chemistry, Physics and Physiology or Medicine.
• The UK Government has greatly increased spending on science in recent years, enabling the research councils to support even more research. This includes areas such as stem cell research, developing a sustainable energy economy and developing the rural economy.

UK undergraduate science courses

A UK foundation degree in Biological Sciences, Human Biology or Chemistry will give you a thorough grounding. If you don't have a science background, there are foundation programmes in the UK to allow you to progress to science degrees.

For degrees in the pure sciences (usually BSc), you can study:

• biology, chemistry and physics as individual subjects
• a joint honours degree such as physics and astrophysics, or biology and philosophy.

Four-year programmes are also available that lead to UK undergraduate master's degrees of:

• Master of Science (MSci)
• Master of Chemistry (MChem)
• Master of Physics (MPhys)
• Master of Biology (MBiol)
• Master of Natural Sciences (MNatSci)
• Master of Earth Sciences (MEarthSc).

UK vocational applied science courses

Applied science courses in the UK are more practical and vocationally-focused. BTEC First Diplomas are available in Applied Science, and BTEC Nationals in subjects including Applied Biology, Applied Chemistry and Applied Physics. UK HNDs, foundation degrees and bachelor's degrees are offered in a wide range of subjects such as Animal Science and Applied Genetics.

UK postgraduate science courses

International postgraduate students can choose between a taught master's (MSc) or PG Certificate/Diploma, and a research degree (MPhil, MRes or PhD). In addition to research council-funded studentships, science research is also funded by Co-operative Awards in Science and Engineering (CASE). There are also plenty of options in the fields of biological science, psychology, earth sciences, chemistry, physics and astronomy.

Search for your ideal applied and pure science course in the course finder.

Useful Links:

Prospects - www.prospects.ac.uk
National Oceanography Centre -www.noc.soton.ac.uk/