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is biomedical sciences a good degree?

im interested in studying it at uni but i keep hearing people call it "btec medicine" and that it's for medicine rejects :frown:

. if you're genuinely interested in biomed and you don't just see it as a stepping stone then is there anything wrong with studying it at uni?

Reply 1

A.B HTR

Original post by cleetus58

im interested in studying it at uni but i keep hearing people call it "btec medicine" and that it's for medicine rejects :frown:

. if you're genuinely interested in biomed and you don't just see it as a stepping stone then is there anything wrong with studying it at uni?

Nothing wrong at all, it’s a very interesting and intellectually stimulating course. But I would advise looking into what you can do after uni and wether or not the degree is right for you and what you feel you might want to do (as you won’t know till your doing the course). But I would also look at other courses as I know there are very similar courses to biomed that are slightly but may be more suitable for you.

(edited 2 years ago)

Reply 2

Mesopotamian…

It’s absolutely fine to do it if you’re genuinely interested in biomedical sciences and it’s career path. I have friends who have graduated from this subject and went on to/are trying to pursue careers within the field without any intention of doing medicine.

Reply 3

sabana

It's a great degree and is a respectable course in its own right. If you're interested in it you should go for it!

My brother studied it and is now a biomedical scientist on band 6 pay. He loves his job and recently bought a house.

Reply 4

artful_lounger

Universities Forum Helper

It depends what you want to do. If as above you want to become a doctor then there's no point doing a BMS degree first if you can apply to medicine in the first instance (or take a year out to retake subjects and then apply in a gap year etc).

If you actually want to become a biomedical scientist (in the NHS or otherwise) then an IBMS accredited BMS degree is required. Ideally you want to do one that includes integrated placements in NHS labs to enable you to register with the HCPC on graduation, like those that are part of the NHS Practitioner Training Programme (PTP). More info on the PTP courses and providers here: https://nshcs.hee.nhs.uk/programmes/ptp/ - the relevant specialisms for BMS trainees are the "Life Sciences" specialisms.

If you want to go into (academic) biomedical research then it's a perfectly fine option. Although in that case, most biomolecular type bioscience degrees would also be good options e.g. biochemistry, genetics, physiology, pharmacology, etc, etc. So it would really just depend on what "flavour" of bioscience you want for your undergrad degree.

(edited 2 years ago)

Reply 5

brightammonite

If you are seeing biomedical sciences as an end-goal opposed to a stepping stone, it is a very worthwhile subject and very interesting. As it was mentioned earlier in the thread, make sure the course you pick to study is accreditied by the IBMS, as you cannot call yourself a biomedical scientist without accreditation. The IBMS website has a list of universities with accredited courses, so I can recommend checking there to find a course which may interest you.

Reply 6

University of Portsmouth Student Rep

Official Rep

Original post by cleetus58

im interested in studying it at uni but i keep hearing people call it "btec medicine" and that it's for medicine rejects :frown:

. if you're genuinely interested in biomed and you don't just see it as a stepping stone then is there anything wrong with studying it at uni?

Hia!

please don't be put off by people saying biomed isn't a good degree, its a great degree and can take you right into a great job (BMS). However it doesn't just have to be that as you could use the biological knowledge to enter other jobs such as biomedical research, different areas of NHS lab jobs or you could go onto a postgrad and do something completely different like biotechnology. So its more than just a stepping stone for sure!

UoP rep - Ben :tongue: