The Student Room Group

Doing a foundation year at uni

Hi,
I’m 16 and in my first year of sixth form. My subjects are Biology, English Literature and Psychology. I am interested in doing Biomedical sciences at university but most of the requirements need chemistry which I didn’t pick. Currently it’s too late to change my subject so I considered doing a foundation year but looking into it I don’t really understand how it works.
e.g King’s College states that to do their biology and chemistry foundation year I need a biology and chemistry A level at BBB. I had thought that foundation years were equivalent to A Levels. Can anyone explain this in more detail?
Thanks
Original post by TickleMePunk
Hi,
I’m 16 and in my first year of sixth form. My subjects are Biology, English Literature and Psychology. I am interested in doing Biomedical sciences at university but most of the requirements need chemistry which I didn’t pick. Currently it’s too late to change my subject so I considered doing a foundation year but looking into it I don’t really understand how it works.
e.g King’s College states that to do their biology and chemistry foundation year I need a biology and chemistry A level at BBB. I had thought that foundation years were equivalent to A Levels. Can anyone explain this in more detail?
Thanks


Foundation years are offered for some courses as a way to get onto the course by doing an extra prep year.
The advantage is they can accept lower grades sometimes or they can cater for students who dont have the right subject combination to get onto the main degree from year 1. They are also sometimes reserved for international students.

The kings course I am looking at appears to be targeted at international students who dont have the grades to get into the main Bio and Chem courses, so they pay for foundation for an extra year of study, which would aim to take them from a B to an A or better.

You need to look at other unis and foundation courses for ones which cater for people who havent done the subjects and it provides for home students. You should also scout round or contact Kings to check if they have other foundations.
Alright, thanks very much for the clarification :h:
Original post by 999tigger
Foundation years are offered for some courses as a way to get onto the course by doing an extra prep year.
The advantage is they can accept lower grades sometimes or they can cater for students who dont have the right subject combination to get onto the main degree from year 1. They are also sometimes reserved for international students.

The kings course I am looking at appears to be targeted at international students who dont have the grades to get into the main Bio and Chem courses, so they pay for foundation for an extra year of study, which would aim to take them from a B to an A or better.

You need to look at other unis and foundation courses for ones which cater for people who havent done the subjects and it provides for home students. You should also scout round or contact Kings to check if they have other foundations.
Reply 3
For biomed many unis don’t require chemistry, the only ones that do are in London
Reply 4
Manchester Newcastle and Sheffield don’t require chemistry biology and psychology are fine
Thanks for your reply:h:
Unfortunately, due to medical reasons I don’t have the option of moving out of London long term
Original post by ja7801
For biomed many unis don’t require chemistry, the only ones that do are in London
Thanks for your reply :h:
Unfortunately due to medical reasons, moving out of London isn’t an option right now
Original post by Fsofoxy
Manchester Newcastle and Sheffield don’t require chemistry biology and psychology are fine
Original post by TickleMePunk
Hi,
I’m 16 and in my first year of sixth form. My subjects are Biology, English Literature and Psychology. I am interested in doing Biomedical sciences at university but most of the requirements need chemistry which I didn’t pick. Currently it’s too late to change my subject so I considered doing a foundation year but looking into it I don’t really understand how it works.
e.g King’s College states that to do their biology and chemistry foundation year I need a biology and chemistry A level at BBB. I had thought that foundation years were equivalent to A Levels. Can anyone explain this in more detail?
Thanks

Queen Mary's in London will accept people onto their Biomedical sciences degree with Biology and one other science, and they list Psychology as one of the subjects they consider a science.

An alternative to the Foundation year could also be to begin Year 12 again in September with Chemistry, Biology and whichever subject you prefer out of English Lit and Psychology?
Thanks for your reply :h:
I’m gonna look further into Queen Mary’s and some others
Original post by harrysbar
Queen Mary's in London will accept people onto their Biomedical sciences degree with Biology and one other science, and they list Psychology as one of the subjects they consider a science.

An alternative to the Foundation year could also be to begin Year 12 again in September with Chemistry, Biology and whichever subject you prefer out of English Lit and Psychology?

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