Undergraduate study

Overview

• A Single Honours course taught by research scientists, hospital biomedical scientists and clinical staff
• Accreditation by the Institute of Biomedical Science (IBMS)
• Specialist optional modules in the second and third years to provide a choice of routes according to interests
• All students undertake a practical research project in the third year
• Can be combined with an optional Science Foundation Year for students who have not studied Chemistry to A- or AS-level
• An optional industrial placement is available between the second and third years. If taken in an approved training laboratory, this may provide an opportunity to begin work towards completion of an IBMS Certificate of Competence Registration Portfolio
• An opportunity, at the end of the first year, to apply for transfer to the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) approved Applied Biomedical Science programme with an integrated pathology laboratory placement. This course is also IBMS-accredited and successful graduates will also be awarded an IBMS Certificate of Competence, providing the necessary qualifications for licentiate membership of the IBMS (subject to availability of places and selection criteria). More information.

Biomedical Science

The Biomedical Science course differs from the University’s normal degree pattern in that it is a Single Honours course. Nevertheless, it still conforms to Keele’s interdisciplinary pattern and contains modules taught by staff from within the School of Life Sciences, the School of Medicine and the Pathology Service of the University Hospital of North Staffordshire.

The Biomedical Science course comprises a unique blend of those sciences that form the basis of the modern methods used in the diagnosis, prevention and treatment of disease and in related areas of research. You will learn about the workings of the human body in health and disease from the cell and molecular level right through to whole-body physiology. You will also gain first-hand experience of the organisation and operation of the Pathology Service in a busy teaching hospital that serves a large population base. The accredited Keele degree prepares you for a wide variety of careers, for example working in a hospital pathology laboratory, or alternatively, to pursue the many career options in research, industry, sales, marketing, etc. open to a bioscience graduate.

Course Content

Initially, you will gain a thorough grounding in mammalian biology and biochemistry to permit you to build up a detailed appreciation of the relationship between normal metabolic events and those disturbances of cell structures, intercellular signalling systems and the immune system that contribute to the gross pathology. Later modules will build on this foundation to give you a good insight into the ever-expanding subject of the relationship between disease and the human genome. In addition to these core areas the programme will also cover key subject areas, including clinical chemistry, haematology and transfusion science, histopathology, cytology, medical microbiology, virology and immunology. Throughout the course various modules seek to integrate the core Bioscience and key subject areas to give the overall picture of the biology of human disorders and disease and to look at the disease process from a medical practitioner’s perspective.

First Year 
You begin the course with an Introduction to Medical Laboratory Sciences during which you will meet and learn from Biomedical Scientists based in the NHS pathology service. You will also take a group of modules which introduce the four cornerstones on which modern medical biochemistry and molecular biology are built: Proteins and Enzymes; Information and Inheritance; Metabolism: Major Metabolic Pathways; and Cells and Organelles.

Introduction to Human Physiology and Human Physiology and Pathology modules cover the function and dysfunction of the human body at the organ level while serving to provide grounding in the functional organisation of the nervous system. In all of these, you will have opportunity to develop practical skills in a comprehensive programme of laboratory classes.

You will be able to integrate these subjects and apply your knowledge and understanding of Biomedical Science to the analysis of case-based clinical scenarios in Case Studies in Medicine, which uses problem-based learning, in small student-led tutorial groups, to encourage team work as well as develop discursive and investigative skills.

Second Year 
You will begin to select a combination of modules that reflects your own developing interests within the broader field of Biomedical Science. All students take the modules Medical Laboratory Sciences I and II, which discuss the role of the Biomedical Scientist in the NHS Pathology Service. These provide practical experience in modern diagnostic methodologies as well as an understanding of the multifaceted nature of the modern clinical environment. In addition, you will take a range of Biochemistry modules that consider, for example, the relationship between altered metabolism and disease (Metabolism in Health and Disease); how cell activities are controlled by hormones and other signals (Endocrinology and Cell Signalling); and the ways in which the developing understanding of the human genome affects the diagnosis and treatment of disease (Gene and Protein Engineering). You will also study aspects of the immune system and learn about structure and function and how the mammalian body copes with infection (Molecular, Cellular and Structural Immunology) whilst the module Human Genetics examines the importance of human diversity and the environment in relation to health and disease. The module Research and Analytical Skills teaches you the skills that you will need for your final year research project, including how to design experiments, how to analyse and interpret data analysis and how to carry out literature searches.

On completion of the second year you can either choose to undertake a one-year industrial placement in an approved hospital, academic or industrial laboratory, or you can elect to move straight into the third year of your course at Keele.

Third Year 
Core modules including Biology of Disease and Acquisition, Analysis and Communication of Information build on and consolidate your learning of the subject as well as developing valuable communication skills. You also have a choice from modules that cover topics that reflect the research interests of the staff. In addition, all Biomedical Science students undertake a practical research project. This gives you the opportunity to investigate one of a variety of areas of medically-related research. You will learn skills of report writing, poster and oral presentation and data analysis as well as having opportunity to use techniques and equipment not encountered earlier in the course.

Biomedical Science Modules Currently on Offer

First Year
Nature’s Tools: Proteins and Enzymes
Information and Inheritance
Metabolism: Major Metabolic Pathways
Cells and Organelles: Biochemical Aspects of Cell Biology
Introduction to Medical Laboratory Sciences
Case Studies in Medicine
Introduction to Human Physiology
Human Physiology and Pathology

Second Year
Medical Laboratory Sciences I & II
Metabolism in Health and Disease
Gene and Protein Engineering
Molecular, Cellular and Structural Immunology
Research and Analytical Skills
Human Genetics
Endocrinology and Cell Signalling
Professional Relationships
Elective

Third Year
Experimental Research Project
Non-experimental Research Project
Biology of Disease
Biochemistry in Practice: Acquisition, Analysis and Communication of Information
Clinical Pathology
Biochemistry and Therapy of Disease
Structural Biology and Macromolecular Function
Case Studies in Biomedical Science
Behavioural Neurobiology
Neurobiological Basis of Brain Disease
Neurobiology of Vision and Hearing
Advances in Medicine
Human Parasitology

Applied Biomedical Science

If you wish to follow a career in the pathology laboratories of the NHS, during your first year of study on the Biomedical Science programme, you may apply for selection onto the HCPC-approved and IBMS-accredited Applied Biomedical Science (ABMS)* route. ABMS graduates are eligible to apply for HCPC registration as Biomedical Scientists.

Following a common first year of study, you will combine your academic studies with an integrated training programme in a pathology laboratory, with placements over the Easter and Summer vacations. Whilst the majority of the second year curriculum is shared with the usual Biomedical Science route, you will undertake a year-long core module Professional Relationships, which will provide preparation for your placement and which aims to develop your appreciation of the skills and attitudes necessary for working as part of a team in a multi-professional health care environment. In the third year, a core module, Case Studies in Biomedical Science, builds on experience gained in the placement and uses student-centred problem-based learning to explore topical issues relating to health trends within the UK.

A further core module, Applied Biomedical Science Placement ensures that you meet all the HCPC Standards of Proficiency necessary for eligibility for HCPC registration as a Biomedical Scientist.

*Availability of this route is limited by placement availability. Due to the selection procedure during the common first year of study, students applying for Biomedical Science cannot be guaranteed a subsequent transfer to the Applied Biomedical Science course.

Four-Year course with Industrial Placement

As indicated previously, the opportunity exists for you to undertake a 48-week placement at the end of the second year. This year can provide not only practical skills training, but also valuable transferable skills and time for personal development. Many students find that the experience they have gained during this year proves particularly beneficial when they return to Keele for their final year, and in the early stages of their career. Students who are considering a career within the NHS Pathology Service may have the opportunity to use their placement year to begin work towards completion of an IBMS Certificate of Competence Registration Portfolio, which can then lead to HCPC registration on graduation, if their placement is in an approved laboratory.

You should note that applicants for NHS placements and those intending to follow a career in the NHS will be required to make a full disclosure of all criminal convictions or police cautions (even if the offence is considered to be spent) on application to the NHS. Disclosure of a criminal record will not automatically prevent employment and each case will be considered individually.

Study Abroad

If you take the study abroad option, you cannot graduate with an IBMS-accredited Biomedical Science degree.

Codes and Combinations

All students who study a science subject are candidates for the degree of Bachelor of Science (with Honours) (BSc Hons).

Foundation and Single Honours Courses available:

Teaching and Assessment

In addition to the lecture courses and small group tutorials, laboratory classes are used to introduce you to modern analytical and diagnostic techniques, and to give hands-on experience of equipment used in both routine diagnosis and research in a modern hospital laboratory. You will also be given many opportunities to become familiar with word processing, spreadsheets and graphics software as well as computer-based routes into the scientific literature.

All modules are assessed within the semester in which they are taught. Most contain elements of both ‘in-course’ assessment (in the form of laboratory reports, essays, posters, oral presentations.) and formal examination, although some are examined by ‘in-course’ assessment alone. Normally, modules that are assessed by both examination and ‘in-course’ assessment are organised such that 25% of the mark derives from coursework and 75% from the formal examination.

Programme specifications (new window)

Skills and Careers

Biomedical Science graduates emerge with a thorough knowledge of molecular biology and medical science which allows them to take up a career in one of the health care professions, in a hospital laboratory, with a medical instrument or pharmaceutical company, or as a medical research scientist. Graduates with good honours degrees are also eligible to study for higher degrees in a wide variety of medically-related, scientific disciplines.

Biomedical Science destinations for graduates who completed their undergraduate course in 2011:

Of those who responded:

Want to work in?

Many students are excited by careers that utilise the academic knowledge and skills developed on their degree:

• Biomedical Scientist
• Toxicologist
• Clinical Cytogeneticist
• Haematologist
• Immunologist
• Clinical Biochemist
• Microbiologist
• Clinical Molecular Geneticist

What else?

For those who do not wish to pursue a career directly related to their degree, here are some career ideas to open up options:

• Science Writer
• Medical Sales Representative
• Patent Attorney
• Science Teacher

Visit our Careers pages (new window)

International Admissions
Telephone: +44(0) 1782 733274
Email: international@keele.ac.uk

Course Information
Tel: (01782) 733054
Email: a.c.loweth@keele.ac.uk