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Biology (with integrated year in industry)

Entry requirements


A level

B,B,B-B,C,C

To include B in A-level Biology.

The University welcomes undergraduate applications from students studying the Access to Higher Education Diploma, provided that relevant subject content and learning outcomes are met. We are not able to accept Access to Higher Education Diplomas as a general qualification for every undergraduate degree course.

International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme

28-30

To include 5 points in Biology at Higher Level.

Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)

DDD-DDM

In a specified subject.

UCAS Tariff

104-120

To include B in A-level Biology.

Aberystwyth University welcomes the Welsh Baccalaureate as a valuable qualification in its own right and considers completion of the Welsh Baccalaureate Advanced Skills Challenge Certificate to be equivalent to an A level grade.

About this course


Course option

4years

Sandwich including industrial placement | 2024

Subject

Biology

Would you like to enhance your employability prospects whilst at the same time studying? Are you the kind of person who finds every aspect of the living world fascinating? The kind of person who one minute is marvelling at the machinery of gene expression, and the next minute wondering about the flight of birds? If that is you, then Biology with the integrated year in industry at Aberystwyth is the degree for you. Aberystwyth is situated amongst hills, wooded valleys, wetlands, sandy and rocky shores and, of course alongside the pristine waters of Cardigan Bay. If you want wildlife, Aberystwyth has it all.

Students on this course could be studying microbiology in the morning, and investigating the life found in sand dunes in the afternoon; you don’t have to limit yourself to just one area of Biology. You can keep your options open or specialise; our degree structure allows you to do either. You will be taught by passionate, engaged, friendly and staff with expertise across the full range of Biological topics. The syllabus of this course with the integrated year in industry is identical to its sister course BSc Biology (C100).

Your academic studies will be bolstered by a wealth of laboratory and field classes which build real scientific skills essential for your future. Our teaching and E-learning facilities provide you with an outstanding learning experience integrating the classroom sessions and a vast repository of study resources. This degree is engineered to give you a head start in the competitive job market after graduation. Students will have to organise their work experience under the guidance of our Director for Employability. There is no guarantee that the work experience will be paid. In the 2016 Highflyers report, 32% of graduate vacancies are taken by those who have previously worked for a company on a placement or/an internship. Make no mistake, you will develop confidence and gaining experience in the industry will stimulate your enthusiasm for the subject. Completing a year in industry will allow you to: Apply the learning from your course to the work environment; Make industry contacts; Develop practical skills related to your area of study; Apply your practical skills and technical knowledge after returning to study; Enhance your CV and better prepare yourself for a job after graduating. If you are unable to obtain a work experience placement, don't worry, you will have the opportunity to transfer to its sister course BSc Biology C100.

**What are our graduates doing now?**

Research scientist; Clinical molecular geneticist; Nature conservation officer; Education. Students who have completed a biology degree could also progress to further training in Dentistry; Medicine; Science writers.

Tuition fees

Select where you currently live to see what you'll pay:

Channel Islands
£9,000
per year
England
£9,000
per year
EU
£18,830
per year
International
£18,830
per year
Northern Ireland
£9,000
per year
Republic of Ireland
£9,000
per year
Scotland
£9,000
per year
Wales
£9,000
per year

Extra funding

Aberystwyth University offers a valuable package of scholarships and bursaries to support students. Our long-established Entrance Examination competition means you could get up to £2,000 a year towards your living and study costs. You can combine that with any or all of our other awards, to make your financial package more valuable. Our awards include Sport and Music Scholarships, Bursaries for Care Leavers/Young Carers/Estranged Students and a range of department specific awards. Please visit our website for full details.

The Uni


Course location:

Main Site (Aberystwyth)

Department:

Department of Life Sciences

Read full university profile

What students say


We've crunched the numbers to see if overall student satisfaction here is high, medium or low compared to students studying this subject(s) at other universities.

92%
Biology

How do students rate their degree experience?

The stats below relate to the general subject area/s at this university, not this specific course. We show this where there isn’t enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

Biology (non-specific)

Teaching and learning

92%
Staff make the subject interesting
100%
Staff are good at explaining things
85%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
76%
Opportunities to apply what I've learned

Assessment and feedback

Feedback on work has been timely
Feedback on work has been helpful
Staff are contactable when needed
Good advice available when making study choices

Resources and organisation

92%
Library resources
85%
IT resources
85%
Course specific equipment and facilities
77%
Course is well organised and has run smoothly

Student voice

Staff value students' opinions
Feel part of a community on my course

Who studies this subject and how do they get on?

89%
UK students
11%
International students
37%
Male students
63%
Female students
78%
2:1 or above
10%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

B
C
C

After graduation


The stats in this section relate to the general subject area/s at this university – not this specific course. We show this where there isn't enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

Biology (non-specific)

What are graduates doing after six months?

This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.

£16,320
low
Average annual salary
98%
high
Employed or in further education
79%
high
Employed in a role where degree was essential or beneficial

Top job areas of graduates

34%
Natural and social science professionals
9%
Business, finance and related associate professionals
9%
Sales, marketing and related associate professionals

The recession was tough on biology graduates, and although the jobs market has improved for them - a lot - it's still not back to where it was a few years ago. If you want a career in biology research — and a lot of biology students do - you'll need to take a doctorate, so give some thought as to where you might do it and how you might fund it (the government still funds doctorates for good students). A lot of graduates also take 1 year Masters courses to specialise in this wide and deep subject - most students take a standard biology course for their first degree and then specialise in subjects like ecology, conservation or marine biology later. Hospitals, universities, biotech firms, zoos and nature reserves and clinical and scientific testing are common industries of employment for biology graduates.

What about your long term prospects?

Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.

Biology (non-specific)

The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.

£18k

£18k

£22k

£22k

£23k

£23k

Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.

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Lower entry requirements
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This is what the university has told Ucas about the criteria they expect applicants to satisfy; some may be compulsory, others may be preferable.

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This is the percentage of applicants to this course who received an offer last year, through Ucas.

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This is what the university has told Ucas about the course. Use it to get a quick idea about what makes it unique compared to similar courses, elsewhere.

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Course location and department:

This is what the university has told Ucas about the course. Use it to get a quick idea about what makes it unique compared to similar courses, elsewhere.

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Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF):

We've received this information from the Department for Education, via Ucas. This is how the university as a whole has been rated for its quality of teaching: gold silver or bronze. Note, not all universities have taken part in the TEF.

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This information comes from the National Student Survey, an annual student survey of final-year students. You can use this to see how satisfied students studying this subject area at this university, are (not the individual course).

This is the percentage of final-year students at this university who were "definitely" or "mostly" satisfied with their course. We've analysed this figure against other universities so you can see whether this is high, medium or low.

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This information is from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), for undergraduate students only.

You can use this to get an idea of who you might share a lecture with and how they progressed in this subject, here. It's also worth comparing typical A-level subjects and grades students achieved with the current course entry requirements; similarities or differences here could indicate how flexible (or not) a university might be.

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Post-six month graduation stats:

This is from the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education Survey, based on responses from graduates who studied the same subject area here.

It offers a snapshot of what grads went on to do six months later, what they were earning on average, and whether they felt their degree helped them obtain a 'graduate role'. We calculate a mean rating to indicate if this is high, medium or low compared to other universities.

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Graduate field commentary:

The Higher Education Careers Services Unit have provided some further context for all graduates in this subject area, including details that numbers alone might not show

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The Longitudinal Educational Outcomes dataset combines HRMC earnings data with student records from the Higher Education Statistics Agency.

While there are lots of factors at play when it comes to your future earnings, use this as a rough timeline of what graduates in this subject area were earning on average one, three and five years later. Can you see a steady increase in salary, or did grads need some experience under their belt before seeing a nice bump up in their pay packet?

Have a question about this info? Learn more here