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Forensic Biology and Psychology

Entry requirements


A level

B,C,C-B,B,C

112 UCAS points from GCE A Levels. Typical offer - BCC/BBC The department requires one of the following subjects as essential for entry: GCE A Level: Biology GCE Applied A Level: Applied Science

Access to Science course to include 15 level 3 credits at Distinction and 15 level 3 credits at Merit

International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme

26

26 points including 5 in Biology or Chemistry

Leaving Certificate - Higher Level (Ireland) (first awarded in 2017)

H3,H3,H3,H3,H4

Including H3 in Biology

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

DMM

BTEC Extended Diploma (Applied Science): DMM

Scottish Higher

B,B,B,B

BBBB including Biology, Chemistry or Human Biology

T Level

M

T Level must be in Science

UCAS Tariff

112

Applicants must also have GCSE Maths at grade C/4 or above and GCSE English at grade C/4 or above.

About this course


Course option

3years

Full-time | 2024

Subjects

Forensic biology

Psychology

A Combined Honours degree at Chester gives you the opportunity to study two subjects. You will spend a fairly even amount of time studying each subject area, with possible opportunities to declare a major – minor towards the end of your studies.

**Forensic Biology**
Explore the fast-moving and exciting science behind criminal investigation through the study of biology and practical forensic applications.

This course offers a combination of forensic aspects with a thorough grounding in the traditional science of biology, in particular the molecular biology techniques and DNA profiling. The techniques you will learn are transferable to other biological disciplines and provide a solid foundation for a wide range of graduate employment.

You will gain practical experience in teaching laboratories and crime scene sites, and you will work on projects independently and as part of a team to encourage exploration of cooperation.

Teaching is delivered by an experienced and committed team of lecturers, supported by practising experts from many forensic disciplines, and you will have the opportunity to involve yourself in a range of practices, from crime scene to court.

Emphasis is placed on the development of key broad skills, equipping you with the necessary theoretical basis and practical experience to enter many areas of employment in both forensic and biological sciences.

**Psychology**
Delve deep into the mind and discover more about how people think, behave and feel on our BPS-accredited Psychology degree.

The School of Psychology at Chester offers degrees accredited by the British Psychological Society (BPS). The course structure allows you to study a wide range of areas of psychology through optional modules at all levels, alongside the core modules required for BPS accreditation.

If you’re interested in a professional career in psychology, there are specialist routes through the course where you can take relevant elective modules at each level. This degree will also equip you with a variety of employability skills, including literacy, numeracy, critical appraisal, data handling, communication and logical problem-solving skills.

We also offer an optional further year of study abroad that you take between your second and third years of study. As this is an additional year, this means you can use this as an opportunity to pursue areas of study of your choice, whilst exploring another country and culture.

Modules

For the latest example of curriculum availability on this degree programme please refer to the University of Chester's Website.

Assessment methods

For Forensic Biology, assessments are designed to challenge and encourage both your academic skills and skills valid in the workplace. They include a combination of coursework and end-of-module examinations. Coursework includes essays and reports, data processing and oral presentations. For Psychology, assessment methods for each module vary, but usually include coursework and examinations. Assessments are designed to develop your employability skills as well as allowing you to show your understanding of psychology.

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
£9,250
per year
Northern Ireland
£9,250
per year
Scotland
£9,250
per year
Wales
£9,250
per year

The Uni


Course location:

Chester

Department:

Biological 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.

65%
Forensic biology
73%
Psychology

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

81%
Staff make the subject interesting
81%
Staff are good at explaining things
77%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
77%
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

81%
Library resources
92%
IT resources
92%
Course specific equipment and facilities
50%
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
33%
Male students
67%
Female students
75%
2:1 or above
11%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

C
C
D

Psychology (non-specific)

Teaching and learning

76%
Staff make the subject interesting
88%
Staff are good at explaining things
85%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
75%
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

76%
Library resources
78%
IT resources
74%
Course specific equipment and facilities
81%
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?

93%
UK students
7%
International students
19%
Male students
81%
Female students
83%
2:1 or above
15%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

C
C
B

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

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.

£18,320
med
Average annual salary
100%
high
Employed or in further education

Top job areas of graduates

27%
Science, engineering and production technicians
16%
Natural and social science professionals
14%
Other elementary services occupations

Psychology (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.

£17,000
med
Average annual salary
92%
low
Employed or in further education
39%
low
Employed in a role where degree was essential or beneficial

Top job areas of graduates

25%
Sales assistants and retail cashiers
10%
Welfare and housing associate professionals
9%
Other elementary services occupations

20 years ago, this was a specialist degree for would-be psychologists but now it is the model of a modern, flexible degree subject. One of the UK's fastest-growing subject at degree level, and the second most popular subject overall (it recently overtook business studies), one in 23 of all graduates last year had psychology degrees. As you'd expect with figures like that, jobs in psychology itself are incredibly competitive, so to stand a chance of securing one, you need to get a postgraduate qualification (probably a doctorate in most fields, especially clinical psychology) and some relevant work experience. But even though there are so many psychology graduates — far more than there are jobs in psychology, and over 13,800 in total last year — this degree has a lower unemployment rate than average because its grads are so flexible and well-regarded by business and other industries across the economy. Everywhere there are good jobs in the UK economy, you'll find psychology graduates - and it's hardly surprising as the course helps you gain a mix of good people skills and excellent number and data handling skills. A psychology degree ticks most employers' boxes — but we'd suggest you don't drop your maths modules.

What about your long term prospects?

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

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.

Psychology (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

£21k

£21k

£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.

Explore these similar courses...

Higher entry requirements
University of Chester | Chester
Psychology
BSc (Hons) 3 Years Full-time 2024
UCAS Points: 120
Lower entry requirements
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Psychology (including a Foundation Year)
BSc (Hons) 4 Years Full-time 2024
UCAS Points: 72-84
Nearby University
Glyndwr University, Wrexham | Wrexham
Psychology
BSc (Hons) 3 Years Full-time 2024
UCAS Points: 80-112
Same University
University of Chester | Chester
Biology and Psychology
BSc (Hons) 3 Years Full-time 2024
UCAS Points: 112

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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.

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.

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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

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