BSc Applied Medical Sciences

Your first year is made up of compulsory modules covering the essential foundations of biochemistry, including human physiology, chemistry, molecular genetics, and microbiology.

In Year 2, you will choose from one of three Employability Strands (subject to eligibility):

• Medical Science in Practice – Are you interested in the contemporary practice of medicine in the UK? Do you want to learn more about the day-to-day role of a doctor? Led by one of Wales’ leading clinical educators, this module provides students with insight into these topics via lectures and clinical observation. As outlined above, if you meet the minimum criteria, this option can help you secure a guaranteed interview for Swansea University’s competitive Graduate Entry Medicine programme.
• Medical Science in Research - Are you keen to answer the unanswered questions of the medical sciences and contribute knowledge to the scientific community? Through this pathway, you will learn how to perform, communicate, and critique research to fill important knowledge gaps. From engaging in research, many of our BSc students have progressed to postgraduate research programmes at the MSc or PhD level, at Swansea University, or other UK or international institutions.
• Enterprise and Innovation - If you would prefer to focus on translating ideas into real-world benefits, you may be interested in the Enterprise and Innovation pathway. This option teaches you how to apply your knowledge to creatively develop new products and services. Students on this pathway may have the opportunity to complete summer placements in industry. As you progress through your studies, you will further develop your knowledge, studying specialised topics including infectious diseases, human immunology, neuroscience, and genetics.

In your third year, you will complete an independent research project under the guidance of a professional research scientist. Previous students have conducted projects in a broad range of areas, from novel treatments for leukaemia to giant viruses to analysis of hospital data and applying virtual reality in healthcare. Alongside the research project, you will study specialised modules in areas such as reproductive biology, nanotoxicology, diabetes, and cancer pharmacology to further enhance your subject-specific knowledge.

With a strong entrepreneurial and innovation slant, our BSc in Applied Medical Sciences is ideal if you are interested in a career in emerging science, product development, pharmaceuticals, or biotechnology.

It also provides an excellent base for graduate entry into more clinically focused studies, including medicine, post-graduate research or Physician Associate Studies.

Examples of careers that graduates in this area have progressed to are included below:

• Biomedical/NHS/clinical scientist (with further study/training)
• Biotechnologist
• Clinical data analyst/epidemiologist
• Forensic scientist (with further study)
• Medical doctor (with further study of a Graduate Entry Medicine degree)Microbiologist
• Pharmacologist/drug development roles
• Physician Associate (with further study)
• Product development or quality assurance in the industry
• Research scientist (may require further study such as a MSc or PhD)
• Roles in industry, academia, or government laboratories such as Senior Scientist or Technical Expert
• Science writer
• Secondary school teacher (with further study)
• Toxicologist

You can find more information on our Applied Medical Science degrees by visiting our Biomedical Science Quick Guide.

Careers and Employability

Swansea Employability Academy (SEA) will support you at each stage of your career journey helping you build a bright future.

Our career support services include:

• Employability workshops, employers’ talks, bespoke events and careers fairs
• Individual advice and guidance from professionally qualified career advisers
• Help with finding jobs, internships, work placements and volunteering opportunities
• Access to information resources on a wide range of career management topics
• Advice and guidance on postgraduate study and funding
• Funding to support student internship opportunities and Student Society/Club events.

We also provide help and advice for Swansea University Alumni up to two years after you graduate.

Why Applied Medical Sciences at Swansea?

A Combination of Compulsory and Optional Modules Gives You the Scope to Tailor Your Studies to Your Particular Interests, Career Aspirations, or Plans for Post-Graduate Study.

You will benefit from access to the Medical School's state-of-the-art research and teaching facilities, including the anatomy suite and research laboratories. Swansea University’s BSc in Applied Medical Sciences is one of the only undergraduate programmes of its kind in the UK that offers Year 1 students experience of cadaver-based anatomy. You will also join the Medical School’s dynamic research community when completing your final year research project.

This degree is part of our ‘Medical Science in Practice’ Pathway to Medicine programme. Provided you meet the minimum entry requirements for Graduate Entry Medicine and have completed the Pathway, you will be guaranteed an interview for our flagship Graduate Entry Medicine MBBCh course, which is consistently ranked top 5 in the UK

During each year of your degree, you will be required to study 120 credits, consisting of compulsory and optional modules. Learning will be facilitated using an approach that includes lectures, laboratory practical classes, independent learning, and small groups. Whilst the programme will be academically rigorous, there will be support from Personal Tutors who are dedicated to helping you succeed in your studies and future career in science and medicine.

We are proud to provide an outstanding educational experience, using the most effective and research-supported learning and teaching approaches, carefully tailored to suit the specific needs of your course. The Applied Medical Sciences course consists primarily of in-person, on-campus teaching, enabling full engagement with your lecturers and fellow students.

Practical skills sessions, lab work seminars, and workshops predominantly take place in person, allowing for group work and demonstrations. We also operate virtual labs and Simulated Learning Environments which will facilitate greater access to training opportunities in the future. However, our approach also includes the use of some online learning to support and enhance traditional face-to-face teaching.

Provision of lecture slides and recordings also allows for more flexibility to revisit material, to revise for assessments and to enhance learning outside of the classroom. Some modules have extra resources in our Virtual Learning Platform, Canvas, such as videos, slides and quizzes enabling further flexible study.

This course may offer some modules taught through the medium of Welsh or bilingually for students who consider themselves to be fluent Welsh speakers. For more details on the provision available see the Welsh Provision expander below.