BSc or MBiolSci?

Biology is an enormous subject and many careers now require the additional specialisation and depth of experience provided by postgraduate qualifications. For many students MSc courses are not affordable, with fees that are significantly higher than at the undergraduate level, no student loan arrangements, and a limited number of bursaries.

Both our 3 year BSc. and 4 year MBiolSci. degree programmes provide exceptional training and research experience in organismal biology. Our 4 year Masters in Biological Sciences degrees (MBiolSci) provide an affordable and efficient means of gaining postgraduate-level skills, with a seamless continuity of training over 4 academic years in one of the top-ranked UK biosciences departments.

The MBiolSci is designed specifically for students who wish to pursue professional careers in biology, both in industry or academia. It adds an extra year of research experience and advanced training in professional scientific skills including writing papers for publication, developing research funding proposals and communicating scientific findings to the press and general public. And it does so while benefiting from undergraduate student financial arrangements (fees, loans and bursaries).

So, why choose the MBiolSci over the BSc? If you are interested in a research focused course and are thinking of a career where research training will be beneficial (there are many!), you should think of applying because:

1. Cutting-edge research experience.  You will work alongside internationally recognised scientists and their research teams in a department top rated for research.  We currently operate a policy of only one MBiolSci student per member of staff which ensures an exceptionally high quality of supervision, training and support.
2. Enhance your final degree result. Most students show significant improvement in performance between second and third year. Many students at the end of their third year are performing just below the first class standard. The 4th year often enables many students to raise their final degree result to first class.  To date, ~50% of our MBiolSci students have graduated with first class degrees, the remainder with upper seconds.
3. Affordability.  Our courses are significantly cheaper than doing a BSc followed by an MSc, and are subject to undergraduate finance arrangements.
4. Employment / further study.  Our MBiolSci degrees provide you with much stronger depth and breadth of research skills than BSc degrees, with enhanced presentation skills and project management experience that equip you exceptionally well for positions which require these skills.  The in depth research experience will give you chance to see whether research is something you want to pursue, and give you a strong headstart if you do.

No risk, and keep your options open

Here is the way application for the MBiolSci works. Let's say that you apply for the four year MBiolSci course. If we make you the AAA offer and your grades are AAA or higher, then obviously you are accepted onto the course. If your grades are AAB, and you've made Sheffield your first choice, we automatically offer you a place you on the equivalent three year BSc course.  This is automatic and does not require you to apply for both options.

All offers we make for our MBiolSci courses through UCAS thus have a built-in insurance offer for the BSc course. If you apply for an MBiolSci course and narrowly miss your required grades, we guarantee to accept you onto the BSc course providing you fully meet the entry requirements for that course.

You cannot transfer from the BSc course to the MBiolSci course, so if you are interested in the MBiolSci you need to apply for it at the outset. However, if you decide the MBiolSci is not for you then you can, at any time in the first two years, transfer to the BSc.

Progression into the 4th Year

To ensure that only students who will benefit from the extended research experience are admitted to the final year of the MBiolSci, candidates must pass all second year modules, attain an overall mean mark of 60% in their second year and 65% in their third year research project. By far the majority of students on our MBiolSci courses have attained these requirements. Students who do not meet the necessary standards are required to transfer to the BSc course and can graduate at the end of year 3 with a BSc.