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psychology or biology at uni

Originally i wanted to do psychology at uni, but now after a lot of research I am really interested in the biology courses. I want to do an Msci or a Mbiol, but i cant decide between the two subjects. animal conservation etc really interests me and i could do this with the biology degree and just the course in general seems interesting but at the same time i love psychology. also with psych ik to get a good career i would probably have to do a phd where this is less important with bio.
does anyone do biology or psychology at uni and can you say how you feel about the course

also the two courses i was mainly looking at was the mbiol at Univeristy of Bath and the msci psychology at Univeristy of York.

Reply 1

random_matt

Even completing a postgraduate course the career outlook for psychology is tiny at best. That's assuming you are focused on the clinical area.

Reply 2

uniofleicSTEM

Official Rep

Hi @zosss 👋

Have you considered Biological Sciences (MBiolSci)? This degree will allow you to keep your options flexible, whilst also focussing on areas of interest such as Global Change Biology and Conservation, Neurobiology and Animal Behaviour.

Overall, you'll cover a wide-range of subjects including:

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Biochemistry

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Genetics

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Microbiology

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Neuroscience

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Physiology

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Zoology

On our MBiolSci course page you can see an exact run-through what the course offers and the modules you'll cover throughout the 4-5 years of the degree.

Also (forgot to mention) there is an option to spend your third or fourth year studying abroad at one of our partner institutions or working in an industrial placement. 🤩🌎️ So you can really enhance your skillset during your degree!

If you are interested, or have any further enquiries, you can submit them on the ➡️ Submit Course Enquiry link here. Alternatively, have a look at all the other Biological Science Courses you can study here - there are so many specialisms you can choose from!

Reply 3

Uni of Southampton Students

Official Rep

Hello @zosss,

It may be worth considering what you might want to do for a career in the future and whether you would need a specific degree for this. The national careers service is a great resource!

At the University of Southampton, it is possible to take psychology with a minor in another subject. Or you can choose one optional module per semester (apart from the first semester of first year) from any course as long as it doesn't clash in timetabling. Many of our modules include aspects of biology, for example in the first year we do a module called behavioural neuroscience which discusses movement, eating, sleep, the biology of the brain, etc. I am currently doing a module in my second year called perception which also includes a lot of biology regarding vision. You can see more about the modules here.

I have really enjoyed studying psychology so far as the course at Southampton can be customised, and I love how it links in with other subject areas too such as sociology, biology, history, criminology, etc.

Are you currently attending college or sixth form and do you have access to a careers advisor? If so, it might be good to look into this.

Hope this helped and let me know if you have any other questions!

Poppy, 2nd Year Psychology

(edited 1 month ago)

Reply 4

University of York

Official Rep

Original post by zosss

Originally i wanted to do psychology at uni, but now after a lot of research I am really interested in the biology courses. I want to do an Msci or a Mbiol, but i cant decide between the two subjects. animal conservation etc really interests me and i could do this with the biology degree and just the course in general seems interesting but at the same time i love psychology. also with psych ik to get a good career i would probably have to do a phd where this is less important with bio.
does anyone do biology or psychology at uni and can you say how you feel about the course
also the two courses i was mainly looking at was the mbiol at Univeristy of Bath and the msci psychology at Univeristy of York.

Hi!

Have you signed up for our PG online open day? You can learn more about the university and course - and chat to staff and current students! 🙂

Reply 5

University of Bath

Official Rep

Original post by zosss

Originally i wanted to do psychology at uni, but now after a lot of research I am really interested in the biology courses. I want to do an Msci or a Mbiol, but i cant decide between the two subjects. animal conservation etc really interests me and i could do this with the biology degree and just the course in general seems interesting but at the same time i love psychology. also with psych ik to get a good career i would probably have to do a phd where this is less important with bio.
does anyone do biology or psychology at uni and can you say how you feel about the course
also the two courses i was mainly looking at was the mbiol at Univeristy of Bath and the msci psychology at Univeristy of York.

Hi there Zosss,

Sorry I'm coming to this a bit late, but its great to hear you're considering Bath!

I personally did psychology at UG level and I really enjoyed it - varied course modules, excellent teaching and opened up a variety of job opportunities afterwards in a lot of different fields. However if you're leaning towards biology and conservation, that's great to hear!

Our MBiol course is 4 years long with the integrated masters and can be 5 years if you apply for the version with a placement (we also have a BSc version with a placement for 4 years if you decided against doing the integrated masters). If I were you I'd definitely opt for a version of the course with a placement year because not only is this a fun chance to do something fun, new and different for a year, it also gives you the chance to earn some money, try out a career, get some stellar experience for your CV and maybe even act as a foot in the door for future employment should you wish to go back to the same company after you graduate.

What I would say is that whilst psychology gives you access to a lot of different job fields, to carry on in psychology and secure a job here you'd likely need to do further study, with courses and jobs both being very competitive, whereas for biology there may not be the same level of competitiveness.

I would advise you choose your uni firstly based on the course contents and which you find most interesting, secondly based on the campus and whether or not you feel at home there, and thirdly based on the area/city, whether you like it there and what the cost of living is like.

I hope that helps and best of luck whichever option you choose!

Holly
University of Bath