Forensic Science with Foundation Year
University of Bedfordshire
UCAS Code: F4FY | Bachelor of Science (with Honours) - BSc (Hons)
Entry requirements
A level
A science A-Level is preferred.
Successfully completed Access Diploma course. A science subject is preferred.
32 - 48 UCAS Tariff Points. A science subject is preferred.
32 - 48 UCAS Tariff Points. A science subject is preferred.
UCAS Tariff
A Level 3 qualification in a science subject is preferred.
About this course
If you’re interested in a career in forensic science, we have a crime scene for you! A unique mix of biosciences and criminal psychology, our degree course offers you the opportunity for practical forensic processing in our crime scene facility. Technological advances have made the role of the forensic scientist – the expert who collects, preserves and analyses evidence - increasingly important in crime investigation, and also in other fields such as archaeology.
The course starts with an introduction to psychology and the sciences relevant to forensics, followed by more detailed applied forensics including the preparation of evidence for court, pathology, medical physiology and haematology. You’ll also study the most recent advances in DNA analysis, toxicology, criminal psychology, and fire and explosive analysis.
**Foundation Year**
In the foundation year you will study three days per week. The focus will be on academic writing skills and numeracy, plus subject-specific content to fully prepare you for entry to an Undergraduate degree. The course has been designed to develop your skills and to prepare you for entry onto the first year of your chosen course. It provides a balance between content related to your chosen subject and the range of wider skills required for undergraduate study. This is an integrated four-year degree, with the foundation year as a key part of the course. You will be required to pass the foundation year in order to progress to the first year of your bachelor’s degree. This course is ideal for those who do not meet our standard entry requirements or those with a non-standard educational background. It will allow you to graduate with a full undergraduate degree in your chosen subject in four years.
**Why choose this course?**
- The Forensic Science team includes international experts in the psychology of criminal behaviour and forensics experts from a variety of operational backgrounds
- Our teaching is rated as ‘Excellent’ by the QAA and the team is part of a highly experienced department that has run biological science courses for over 30 years
- You’ll study in a specialist forensic laboratory, with key laboratory skills incorporated into most of the taught units, especially your final-year research project
- You’ll learn the skills and techniques needed to evaluate a real-life crime scene in our scene-of-crime lab, designed to resemble an 'normal' flat
Modules
Areas of study include:
- Chemistry and Molecular Genetics
- Essential Skills in Forensic Science
- Human Anatomy and Physiology
- Psychology and Criminal Behaviour
- Forensic Biology
- Interpretation and Presentation of Forensic Evidence
- Psychology and Criminal Justice
- Skills and Crimes Against Property
- Crime Scene to Court
- Fire Analysis
- Forensic Genetics
- Forensic Science Research Project
- Forensic Toxicology and Drug Analysis
Every effort is made to ensure this information is accurate at the point of publication on the UCAS website. For the most up-to-date information, please refer to our website.
Tuition fees
Select where you currently live to see what you'll pay:
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.
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.
Forensic and archaeological sciences
Teaching and learning
Assessment and feedback
Resources and organisation
Student voice
Who studies this subject and how do they get on?
Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)
After graduation
Sorry, no information to show
This is usually because there were too few respondents in the data we receive to be able to provide results about the subject at this university.
Explore these similar courses...
Higher entry requirements
Lower entry requirements
Nearby UniversitySame UniversityThis is what the university has told Ucas about the criteria they expect applicants to satisfy; some may be compulsory, others may be preferable.
Have a question about this info? Learn more here
This is the percentage of applicants to this course who received an offer last year, through Ucas.
Have a question about this info? Learn more here
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.
Have a question about this info? Learn more here
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.
Have a question about this info? Learn more here
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.
Have a question about this info? Learn more here
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.
Have a question about this info? Learn more here
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.
Have a question about this info? Learn more here
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.
Have a question about this info? Learn more here
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
Have a question about this info? Learn more here
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
