Hi. If you want to work in the NHS, you need to have HCPC registration. For that, your course must be accredited by the Institute of Biomedical Science (IBMS). In the link below, you can download a guide of universities and courses which are accredited:
https://www.ibms.org/go/qualifications/ibms-coursesAt Glagow, the University of Strathclyde has a Biomedical Science BSc which is accredited so you can do that and be eligible for HCPC reg and NHS healthcare biomed scientist work.
If the university/course is not listed, then it is not accredited and hence you cannot have the HCPC registration unless you do further study/training (e.g. MSc). I have just finished a biomed degree at University of Birmingham and it is not accredited by IBMS so if I wanted to work in the NHS as a healthcare scientist then I need to get further qualification.
NHS Scientist Training Programme (STP) is a good option if you are thinking of NHS science work.
As for the job itself, I could tell you about my degree and career options. I specialised in cancer in my final year (took a cancer module and did a research project in this field). I can work in university research labs and publish my work in scientific journals, or I can work in scientific companies (e.g. companies that develop antibodies to aid research and clinical diagnostics). If I want to become a lecturer and run my own research then I need to do a PhD.
The job as a research scientist is quite good and you can manipulate experiments to adjust to what you need to find out. Your work can be "translated" into clinical trials and you may be working with consultants that run tests on patients. In the lab, you will be working with cells, chemicals and with animals in various ways (e.g. testing drug effects).
At the basic starting level (e.g. lab assistant/technician) you will be earning around £18,000-£20,000 pa. If you qualify further and are more experienced (e.g. senior lecturer and run your own research), you can be earning up to about £70,000 pa.
I don't know much about NHS scientists, but from what I heard you can progress up the bands with further qualification and more experience. The salary ranges are probably similar to those in research (all depends on qualifications and experience). The job itself involves running routine specialised diagnostic tests in labs and you will be working with tissue biopsies and fluids like bloods and urine. Some specialties involve more patient contact than others (e.g. fertility treatment work). I would suggest getting some work experience in hospital labs if you can to get a better idea of what a career is like. I know more about research career rather than clinical so try contacting work experience department or the labs themselves to ask if they do work experience.
Hope this helps
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