Biomedical science vs Biological sciences????

The A-levels I am taking are Biology, Psychology and English literature.

My concern is how much chem is needed in terms of Biomed. I have looked at some unis e.g. keele which only requires bio, and Manchester would allow only Biology plus another science (Psychology) if your grades are AAB or higher.
Cardiff also offers Biomed with just one Hard science
But because I am only taking Biology, would it be stupid to take Biomed if Chemistry is desired?

The other option is a Biology or Biological science degree. I know the course is more flexible and you get to study topics like animal science and biodiversity.

After Uni I was thinking of going down the research route and becoming a Clinical scientist in Haematology through the STP NHS programme. The STP requires any bio degree.
Also if there is anyone taking the STP course are there any GCSE requirements? so far it has only stated you need a Biology related degree.

Also if I don't end up doing an STP would I have more options after doing a Biomedical science degree or a Biological science degree?

Thank you :smile:

(edited 3 years ago)

Reply 1

Uni of Hull Students

Official Rep

Original post by Arrnab

Hi @Arrnab

If you wish to know about these types of degrees we have 'ask a student' available through our website with biology and biomedical science students available to chat to. These students will be able to advise you what their experience is of the degrees we offer here at Hull and potentially give an indication as to how much chemistry is involved in our Biomedical Science degree.

Our Biomedical Science course at Hull, applicants should have A-Level Biology/ Applied Science at Grade C or above (Or merit from relevant BTEC). Applicants who have taken the reformed A-level must have passed the practical element. A typical offer is BBC / 112 UCAS Points (2021 entry). More detail about the course is available on our website. This course Is accredited by the Institute of Biomedical Science and has been designed with the help of NHS Clinicians.

Our Biological Science course at Hull, our entry requirements are BBB / 120 UCAS Points (2021 entry). As with Biomedical Science, applicants should have A-Level Biology/ Applied Science at Grade C or above (Or merit from relevant BTEC). Applicants who have taken the reformed A-level must have passed the practical element. More details can be found on our website.

I hope this helps

Emily
University of Hull Student Representative.

Reply 2

Keele Students

Official Rep

Original post by Arrnab

Hello there! I just wanted to jump on the thread to tell you a bit more about Keele! You are correct about the entry requirements for Biomedical Sciences at Keele. Keele require two Science A levels which include Biology and Psychology. If you are worried about how Chemistry heavy the course is going to be, you can chat with a current Biomedical Science student, at Keele, through this link- https://www.keele.ac.uk/study/chat/?unibuddy=%3Flevel%3DUndergraduate%26label%3DUndergraduate&ub_medium=product&ub_source=University%20Popcard&ub_campaign=&ub_content=

There are also many dual honours courses, involving Biology and Human Biology, taught at Keele. This includes Biology and Psychology as well! If you are interested in finding out more about these courses, you can do so through this link- https://www.keele.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/undergraduatecourses/

I hope this helps! If you have any other questions, please don't hesitate to ask! :smile:

Reply 3

Harisejaz829

I am in the same exact situation as you, same subjects at a level, same chemistry problem, and same degree options! Lol
And I also want to go into the NHS STP

Reply 4

Arrnab

Original post by Harisejaz829

I am in the same exact situation as you, same subjects at a level, same chemistry problem, and same degree options! Lol
And I also want to go into the NHS STP

OMG I'm so glad i'm not alone!
After much consideration I have decided to do Biomedical science as I want to study diseases further. I have also chosen to do a non- accredited course as It offers course flexibility and I have more choice in modules and I can choose to do further studying/research
Below are a list of unis that accept only Bio + another science like psychology:
Sheffield - AAB
Manchester- AAB
Cardiff - AAB
Southhampton - AAB
all are Russel group unis :smile:

I am also looking at Keele - ABB , which is an Accredited course in case I change my Mind

honestly not sure what i wanna do after the degree, u got any ideas?

Reply 5

University of Sheffield Alumni

Official Rep

Hi @Arrnab,

Great to hear you're thinking about studying Biomedical Sciences at Sheffield! As someone who recently studied Molecular Biology as their undergraduate degree (Sheffield's answer to Biological Sciences), I understand that it can sometimes be hard to decide what you want out of a job in the future. This is totally normal, and I would say that studying at a world-leading university like Sheffield opens so many doors to you - both within and outside your field of study.

I'd really recommend checking out our student profiles on the biosciences webpages to get an idea of what different students went on to do after their degree. There's also a great page with some different example job roles some graduates have gone on to do - you don't have to stay in science just because you studied a science degree!

The extended research project you take in your third year of study can also be a really great way to explore an area of interest, and think about your future career. You can check out the Biomedical Sciences course structure here. I know in my discipline that my third year research project led me to pursue a more specialist master's degree, looking into Medical Genetics and working within the NHS via the STP.

I hope this helps you decide where you want to study. If you have any more questions do let me know - they don't have to be course related!

-Ben
Sheffield Graduate
BSc Molecular Biology (2019)
MSc Human and Molecular Genetics (2020)

Reply 6

Harisejaz829

I have been researching a lot and can do a few things with both biomedical and biological degrees such as :
- Postgraduate in Physician Associate (you start at the level and pay of a Junior doctor and basically do the same things)
- Teaching (of course)
-If you get an accredited degree you can go straight into biomedical science role which is an option for a few years before changing
-postgraduate in medicine ( very competitive)
-and entry into the STP (which is what I would like to do the most) and specialise in a wide variety of specialisms - I would like to do neurophysiology

Reply 7

FreshBlaze

I'm in a kind of similar situation studying A levels biology chemistry and sociology thinking about studying biomedical science
I wanna go down the STP route but I've heard that it's quite competitive (maybe just as competitive as graduate entry medicine/dentistry) because of how there's people with masters and phDs applying but i'm still going for it

Reply 8

Beecar98

I’d just like to mention, in terms of the chemistry aspect, a lot of BioMed courses will go through a lot of the basic/A-level chemistry in your first year, to make sure that everyone is up to speed. So I wouldn’t worry too much about not having done chemistry at A-Level :smile:

Good luck with everything

Reply 9

Arrnab

Original post by University of Sheffield Alumni

My dream is also work with the NHS and do the STP programme but I hear it is very competitive ! I was thinking specialising in genetics or haematology.
Thank you for the links it's very helpful.
Wish you the best.

Reply 10

University of Sheffield Alumni

Official Rep

Original post by Arrnab

Anytime! Glad you found this useful. If you want to talk to me more about what it's like studying Genetics at Sheffield, or about accessing the Genomics stream of the STP you are welcome to message me via my profile on Chat to Us :smile:

-Ben
Sheffield Graduate
BSc Molecular Biology (2016-19)
MSc Human and Molecular Genetics (2019-20)