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Physics and Philosophy

Entry requirements


A level

A*,A,A-A,A,B

Standard offer: A*AA including A*A (in any order) in Mathematics and Physics. Contextual offer: AAB including AA in Mathematics and Physics. Please visit: bristol.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/entry-requirements-qualifications/contextual-offers/ for more information about contextual offers.

Access to HE Diploma

D:30,M:15

Access to HE Diploma in Engineering, Science, or Computing (or similar titles). The 45 graded Level 3 credits must include: at least 30 credits at Distinction and 15 at Merit or above; and at least 12 credits at Distinction from Mathematics units (including algebra, calculus and trigonometry); and at least 12 credits at Distinction from specified Physics units. Plus successful completion of a University of Bristol test and interview (or A at A-Level or equivalent in Mathematics and Physics). Mature students can contact [email protected] to check the suitability of their Access course.

Requirements for principal subjects are as for A-level, where D1/ D2 is A*, D3 is A, M1/ M2 is B, and M3 is C.

International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme

34-38

Standard offer: 38 points overall with 18 at Higher Level, including 7, 6 (in any order) at Higher Level in Mathematics (either Analysis and Approaches or Applications and Interpretations) and Physics. Contextual offer: 34 points overall with 17 at Higher Level, including 6, 6 at Higher Level in Mathematics (either Analysis and Approaches or Applications and Interpretations) and Physics. Please visit: bristol.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/entry-requirements-qualifications/contextual-offers/ for more information about contextual offers.

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

D*DD

D*DD in Engineering BTEC National Level 3 Extended Diploma, with Distinctions in four specified Physics units, AND A in Mathematics at A-level (or equivalent).

Scottish Advanced Higher

A,A

Advanced Higher: AA in Mathematics and Physics.

Scottish Higher

A,A,A,A,A

Standard Higher: AAAAA.

Requirements are as for A-levels, where you can substitute a non-subject specific grade for the Welsh Baccalaureate Advanced Skills Challenge Certificate at that grade.

UCAS Tariff

112-165

We've calculated how many Ucas points you'll need for this course.

About this course


Course option

3years

Full-time | 2024

Subjects

Philosophy

Physics

Join a University ranked in the UK top five for Physics research (THE analysis of REF 2021) with an excellent reputation for teaching and learning.

This course provides an exciting intellectual challenge from the outset. In year one, you will study physics, mathematics and philosophical topics such as metaphysics, the theory of knowledge and ethics.

Subsequent years allow you to study the overlap between physics and philosophy in depth. You will study the philosophy of science and the foundations and philosophy of physics.

This course gives you the opportunity to develop a physicist's broad range of skills, including problem-solving, numeracy and communication. You will supplement these skills with a philosopher's ability to rigorously analyse complex texts and form coherent arguments on complex subjects.

You will join a friendly department with a very active, award-winning student society.

Think Big bursaries of £3,000 are available to support first-year international undergraduate students in this subject area.

Tuition fees

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

Channel Islands
£9,250
per year
England
£9,250
per year
EU
£29,300
per year
International
£29,300
per year
Northern Ireland
£9,250
per year
Scotland
£9,250
per year
Wales
£9,250
per year

The Uni


Course location:

University of Bristol

Department:

Physics

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.

67%
Philosophy
76%
Physics

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.

Philosophy

Teaching and learning

78%
Staff make the subject interesting
86%
Staff are good at explaining things
86%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
49%
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

65%
Library resources
86%
IT resources
76%
Course specific equipment and facilities
65%
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?

92%
UK students
8%
International students
50%
Male students
50%
Female students
95%
2:1 or above
7%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

A
A
A*

Physics

Teaching and learning

82%
Staff make the subject interesting
86%
Staff are good at explaining things
82%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
73%
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

78%
Library resources
83%
IT resources
86%
Course specific equipment and facilities
57%
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?

90%
UK students
10%
International students
70%
Male students
30%
Female students
80%
2:1 or above
10%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

A
A
A

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.

Philosophy

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.

£21,000
med
Average annual salary
83%
low
Employed or in further education
66%
high
Employed in a role where degree was essential or beneficial

Top job areas of graduates

14%
Business, finance and related associate professionals
13%
Teaching and educational professionals
8%
Sales, marketing and related associate professionals

Although there aren't a lot of jobs around for professional philosophers, philosophy degrees are a relatively popular option, with more than 2,000 students graduating in a philosophy-related subject in 2015 - a little down on previous years, but still healthy. Nearly a quarter of philosophy graduates take a postgraduate qualification, and it's a relatively common subject at both Masters and doctorate level — so if you think academic life might be for you, think ahead about how you might fund further study. For those who go into work, philosophy grads tend to go into teaching, accountancy, consulting, journalism, PR, housing, marketing, human resources and the arts while a few go into the computer industry every year, where their logical training is highly rated.

Physics

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.

£26,000
med
Average annual salary
92%
low
Employed or in further education
81%
high
Employed in a role where degree was essential or beneficial

Top job areas of graduates

23%
Information technology and telecommunications professionals
14%
Business, finance and related associate professionals
9%
Teaching and educational professionals

Although the subject has seen a bit of resurgence in recent years, the UK is still felt to be short of physics graduates, and in particular physicists training as teachers. If you want a career in physics research — in all sorts of areas, from atmospheric physics to lasers - you'll probably need to take a doctorate, and so have a think about where you would like to do that and how you might fund it (the government funds many physics doctorates, so you might not find it as hard as you think). With that in mind, it's not surprising that just over a fifth of physics graduates go on to take doctorates when they finish their degree, and well over a third of physicists take some kind of postgraduate study in total. Physics is highly regarded and surprisingly versatile, which is why physics graduates who decide not to stay in education are more likely to go into well-paid jobs in the finance industry than they are to go into science. The demand and versatility of physics degrees goes to explain why they're amongst the best-paid science graduates.

What about your long term prospects?

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

Philosophy

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

£21k

£21k

£26k

£26k

£35k

£35k

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.

Physics

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

£27k

£27k

£34k

£34k

£38k

£38k

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.

Explore these similar courses...

Nearby University
Cardiff University | Cardiff
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Higher entry requirements
Royal Holloway, University of London | Egham
Physics with Philosophy
BSc (Hons) 3 Years Full-time 2024
UCAS Points: 136-168
Same University
University of Bristol | Bristol
Philosophy and Economics
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UCAS Points: 112-159

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Course location and department:

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Teaching Excellence Framework (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