Course content

The goal of medicinal chemistry is to support the search for new drugs to treat conditions such as heart disease, obesity and cancer. You’ll work in well-equipped laboratories and be taught by a team of engaging academics.

The chemistry courses at Keele provides an innovative curriculum and high quality teaching. Practical Chemistry is taught in teaching laboratories and staff have direct experience of working in pharmaceutical companies and can therefore challenge you to develop the rigorous and demanding scientific approach that the industry expects. In your final year you will undertake a research project and learn how to conduct effective independent research. You’ll develop essential skills for employment, such as problem solving, presentation and communication.

The industrial placement year provides a fantastic opportunity for you to gain invaluable work experience, and takes place between your second and third year of study with us. You will gain directly transferable skills for the job market, which will give you a headstart when applying for jobs after graduation; you may even meet your future employers!

This degree is accredited by the Royal Society of Chemistry.

 Chemistry is also available as a Combined Honours degree. It can be studied in the following combinations.

• Astrophysics and Chemistry
• Biochemistry and Chemistry
• Biology and Chemistry
• Chemistry and Environmental Science
• Chemistry and Human Biology
• Chemistry and Mathematics
• Chemistry and Neuroscience
• Chemistry and Physics

You may also be interested in

• Chemistry
• Chemistry with Industrial Placement Year
• Chemistry with Integrated Master's
• Chemistry with Medicinal Chemistry
• Chemistry with Medicinal Chemistry with Integrated Master's

Detailed course information

Year One

Our modules are designed for you to focus on the fundamental aspects of chemistry and necessary laboratory and analytical skills in preparation for advanced study.

From bonding to reactivity, spectroscopy to lanthanides, a range of topics are taught as part of our Chemical Structure and Reactivity module. A wide range of teaching styles are used from traditional lectures and problem classes to team-based learning workshops. Through the KLE, our virtual learning environment, you have access to all the course materials as well as specially developed screen casts and edited lecture captures to help you with your studies. Feedback on marked coursework is focused on showing you where you can develop your understanding and improve your performance.

In the laboratory you will engage in a highly innovative and cutting edge laboratory course designed to equip you with the basic skills required by a practising chemist. This includes how to handle chemicals safely; measure out chemicals and solutions accurately; choose and use appropriate glassware and undertake reactions; use spectrometers such as IR and UV/vis and interpret the spectra; to analyse and present data. You will be trained how to keep an accurate laboratory notebook and write up technical reports.

As part of our commitment to the environment and sustainability we have dedicated one whole module to this topic in which students are invited to explore how chemistry contributes to solving the worlds environmental problems. These activities are also designed to improve your group working and writing and presentational skills.

Year Two

Here you begin to specialise and build up your knowledge in medicinal chemistry alongside improving your knowledge of chromatographic, analytical and spectroscopic chemistry, and improving your synthetic skills. The Medicinal and Biological Chemistry 1 module builds upon fundamental topics in organic, inorganic and physical chemistry, demonstrating their importance to medicinal and biological chemistry. It examines the three dimensional chemical structure of drug targets, the interaction of drug molecules with the body and the process of drug discovery. Principles of drug design and mechanism of action are illustrated by modern examples of rational drug discovery and applied to the challenge of developing a new drug from its initial identification and subsequent development, through to its large-scale preparation.

In the Industrial Chemistry module your focus will be on understanding the international pharmaceutical business.

During Years 1 and 2 you are encouraged to choose the following electives which will improve your knowledge of human physiology and biochemical processes – Biology of the Human Organism, and Sex and Survival.

Year Three

The industrial placement year provides a fantastic opportunity for you to gain invaluable work experience. The industrial placement year takes place between your second and third year of study with us. Finding an industrial placement requires you to be focused on seeking and applying for placements as they are advertised. We will support you and remain in regular contact with you during your placement. When you return for your third year of study, you will already have the necessary time management and critical thinking skills to hit the ground running with your research project. 

Year Four

Medicinal and Biological Chemistry 2 examines the important features in the life cycle of a drug (formulation and drug delivery, advanced metabolism and the detection and analysis of metabolites) and highlights the importance of collaborative drug discovery and the role of a medicinal chemist in the pharmaceutical industry. Topics in Medicinal Chemistry gives you have the freedom to choose the areas of chemistry that interest you so you can tailor it to your interests. Current topics include Enzymes, Biosynthesis, Diastereoselectivity, Asymmetric Synthesis, Colloids, Zeolites, Main Group Chemistry.

These modules sit alongside mainstream advanced chemistry modules designed to give you the breadth of knowledge needed for your future career and as demanded by the Royal Society of Chemistry accreditation scheme. In Year 3, you will also undertake a Synoptic Topics in Chemistry module. 

Instead of scripted practicals you will undertake a medincinal chemistry research project and dissertation under the direct supervision of a member of staff and in an area of medicinal chemistry that is of interest to you. This gives you the experience of what it is like to conduct your own research project, making the day to day decisions on how to undertake the reactions and measurements and interpret the results of your experimentation.

Entry requirements

Keele is committed to ensuring equality of opportunity to all our applicants with the potential and motivation to succeed, regardless of background. On that basis we operate a range of 'alternative offer' schemes with clear eligibility criteria.

The entry grades outlined in this section indicate the likely offer or range of offers which would be made to candidates along with any subject specific requirements. This is for general information only. Keele University reserves the right to vary offer conditions depending upon a candidate’s application. Read more about our undergraduate entry requirements for United Kingdom and International students.

A Level requirements

GCSE requirements

• Maths at C (or 4)
• English Language / Literature at C (or 4)

BTEC

• BTEC requirements DMM
• You must have taken Chemistry units, please contact us for advice

If you don't think you'll meet the entry requirements specified, you may be able to gain entry to this course via a Foundation Year.

International Baccalaureate

• 29 points to include Higher Level Chemistry at 6 or above.

Access to HE Diploma requirements

• Obtain Access to Higher Education Diploma with 112 UCAS Tariff points including a minimum of 30 Level 3 credits at Distinction in Chemistry related units. Please contact the Admissions Team for advice.

Please note

• Reformed GCSE grades for England are stated in brackets
• If applicant has not had opportunity to sit AS level in England, please contact the Admissions team

Foundation year

You may choose to study this course via foundation year.

If you’re returning to education following a break, wish to study a new subject or don’t have the grades or sufficient equivalent experience for direct entry to this course, a foundation year may be a good option for you.

Following successful completion (including any additional progression requirements) of the foundation year you can progress on to this course.

The foundation year offers September starts across all subjects, and January starts across all science, humanities, social sciences and business routes.

The January intake excludes the Veterinary Medicine and Surgery degree with Foundation Year and other health-related foundation Year degree

For more details visit our foundation year webpages.

Foundation year

Fees and funding

Going to university can be a daunting as well as an exciting experience. It can be difficult to understand the true costs of being a student, as well as the financial support that is available to help you meet those costs.

We can help you to manage your funds, create a budget and ensure that you receive any funding for which you may be eligible. We also offer financial support such as the Keele University Hardship Fund and emergency loans.

For more information visit our money, advice and guidance section.

Career prospects

96% of Keele graduates were in a job or further study within six months of graduating (HESA, 2017)

Our Medicinal Chemistry graduates have excellent employment prospects, whether at the cutting edge of drug discovery or in a wide range of related fields. For example you might go to work for a pharmaceutical company, either as a research scientist or in a more business related role. Alternatively, you might work as a development chemist taking lead drug compounds through to a manufacturing scale or an analytical chemist profiling the metabolites of a potential drug.

Previous employers

• Vision Express
• Pharmaron UK Ltd
• Macdermid Performance Solutions
• Johnson Matthey
• GSQ
• Endeavour Speciality Chemicals Ltd
• Dartex Coatings Ltd
• Ashfiel Healthcare Communications
• NHS
• Education First
• Halifax
• IBM
• United Utilities

Jobs that a graduate of this course could go on to do:

• Research Scientist
• Clinical Biochemist
• Forensic Scientist
• Toxicologist
• Clinical Research Associate
• Analytical Chemist
• HE Lecturer
• Operational Researcher
• Chemical Engineer
• Pharmacologist

Regardless of which career you pursue after Keele, employers will want evidence of the range of skills and personal qualities you possess and which are required for the job. Your degree is clearly important in this respect but don’t forget the extra-curricular activities, positions of responsibility, jobs and voluntary work you may have been engaged in while studying at Keele. These activities allow you to demonstrate the skills and personal qualities required by employers and will be vital in your attempts to secure graduate employment.

Find out more about our careers and employability services, including career planning, alumni mentoring, jobs, internships, starting your own business and much more.

Teaching and facilities

You will experience a wide range of teaching styles and methods from traditional lectures and tutorials to team-based learning and screencasts, online, offline individually and in groups we aim to give you the opportunity to learn in many ways. Our assessment feedback loops combining feedback on how you can improve, with opportunities on how you present your work, are aimed at helping you improve your chemical knowledge as well as your marks. Our undergraduate students receive free online access to our core text books which, with our own bespoke online materials and lecture capture, give you the opportunity to learn in the best ways to suit you.

Three further members of staff will tell you about some of the distinctive methods of teaching that we use on our courses, to give you the best possible chance of success in your time with us.

• Dr Matt O'Brien showcases some of the interactive digital teaching methods that we use, such as interactive screencasts on key concepts
• Dr David McGarvey highlights why we are proud of the teaching that we deliver on our Chemistry/Medicinal Chemistry programmes
• Dr Laura Hancock talks about Team Based Learning (TBL) - a collaborative form of teaching that allows students to achieve as much as possible in workshops

Chemistry is a practical subject and much of your training will be undertaken in our superb laboratories. The Central Science Laboratories is a world class facility in which to learn how to become a professional chemist. You will gain hands-on experience with modern state-of the art equipment and instrumentation which gives you the opportunity to undertake novel Chemical and Medicinal Chemistry research.

The new state of the art Chemistry laboratories in the Central Science Laboratories are an integral part of the Lennard-Jones laboratories where Chemistry academics and researchers are located. The two new teaching laboratories, a 35 fume hood teaching lab and a large open lab, have been designed to complement the exisiting excellent teaching facilities which include our large teaching laboratory, the spectroscopy suit, the analytical labaratory and the NMR suite. These now create an interconnected collection of Chemistry laboratories all on one floor with a large faculty computor teaching facility two floors above.