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The uni is right next to UCL and shares labs/some teaching staff, so if you ask your tutor or the lab instructor they can often help you to get lab placements during the summers at labs in UCL. I couldn't do this kind of thing because of my job, but if I wasn't working I would have.
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If you're good at self-study, Birkbeck is ideal as your days are pretty much completely free. The course doesn't have seminars, only lectures, unlike most other unis where the contact hours are far higher.
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As I mentioned before, the course has a massive range of students in terms of ability and academic strength, so it doesn't feel competitive really. I did my first undergraduate degree at the University of Manchester and that was far tougher in terms of competition to stand out/do well. At Birkbeck, if you just show up and actually do the reading/engage with the teaching staff during lectures, you will stand out and have a good chance of being remembered by the staff. Most of the staff are really nice.
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Don't expect to get a "uni experience" at Birkbeck. Even though it is expanding so some of its courses are offered during the daytime in 2024, it is primarily still an evening university. You don't really get that campus life like at other unis, and there is very little hands-on lab time. If you're into sports/societies, Birkbeck is not the place to go.
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You can't choose any modules, they are all compulsory. You don't even get to choose the subject of your final-year research project, which is a HUGE downside, because at most other unis you would get to pick and choose which modules you want to take. It means that if you hate a certain subject (for me, biochem), you still have to do it. I would have loved to do more genetics/human disease/biomed ethics type modules but the course just doesn't offer much range or choice at all. A lot of the modules are focused on cells, protein structure and molecular biology.
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The years are relatively long compared to other unis. You don't finish exams for the summer until the first or second week of July. Most other unis finish in May or June at the very latest.
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You also get very little time for revision - usually only 1-2 weeks max after the end of term before exam week. At Manchester, I recall having at least 3 weeks of revision time before exams, although I'm not sure what other unis are like.
•
The uni is right next to UCL and shares labs/some teaching staff, so if you ask your tutor or the lab instructor they can often help you to get lab placements during the summers at labs in UCL. I couldn't do this kind of thing because of my job, but if I wasn't working I would have.
•
If you're good at self-study, Birkbeck is ideal as your days are pretty much completely free. The course doesn't have seminars, only lectures, unlike most other unis where the contact hours are far higher.
•
As I mentioned before, the course has a massive range of students in terms of ability and academic strength, so it doesn't feel competitive really. I did my first undergraduate degree at the University of Manchester and that was far tougher in terms of competition to stand out/do well. At Birkbeck, if you just show up and actually do the reading/engage with the teaching staff during lectures, you will stand out and have a good chance of being remembered by the staff. Most of the staff are really nice.
•
Don't expect to get a "uni experience" at Birkbeck. Even though it is expanding so some of its courses are offered during the daytime in 2024, it is primarily still an evening university. You don't really get that campus life like at other unis, and there is very little hands-on lab time. If you're into sports/societies, Birkbeck is not the place to go.
•
You can't choose any modules, they are all compulsory. You don't even get to choose the subject of your final-year research project, which is a HUGE downside, because at most other unis you would get to pick and choose which modules you want to take. It means that if you hate a certain subject (for me, biochem), you still have to do it. I would have loved to do more genetics/human disease/biomed ethics type modules but the course just doesn't offer much range or choice at all. A lot of the modules are focused on cells, protein structure and molecular biology.
•
The years are relatively long compared to other unis. You don't finish exams for the summer until the first or second week of July. Most other unis finish in May or June at the very latest.
•
You also get very little time for revision - usually only 1-2 weeks max after the end of term before exam week. At Manchester, I recall having at least 3 weeks of revision time before exams, although I'm not sure what other unis are like.
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