MSc Cell Biology

The University holds regular open days, where you will have the opportunity to tour the campus and find out more about our facilities and courses. On this day, you will find out more about the course and meet academic and admissions staff who will be able to answer any questions you have. For more information, see Open days .

Please apply via our online application form . See the application and selection section for details of the supporting documents we require.

We recommend that you apply as early as possible. We reserve the right to close applications if the course is full.

We require the following documents before we can consider your application:

• Transcript of your studies to date.
• Degree certificate (if you have already graduated).
• Personal statement or statement of purpose.

• Curriculum vitae (CV). Please explain any laboratory or project experiences gained outside your standard undergraduate laboratory practicals, which should also be listed in the official application form.

• Two academic references. You must provide the contact details of two referees in your application form.

Both references are compulsory, and at least one should be from a lab or project supervisor. Your referees will be contacted directly and asked to provide a letter of reference. When providing referee details, you must ensure the email addresses are accurate and official, typically ending with an institutional domain. We do not accept references provided from a personal email address, for example, Hotmail or Gmail.

If any of the supporting documents are not in English, you must also provide us with official or certified English translations.

If English is not your first language, we require proof of your English language. If you have already taken an English language qualification, please include your certificate with your application.We may be willing to consider your application without this document, but if we choose to make you an offer, the conditions will include IELTS (or equivalent qualification).

Project structure, expectations and goals

On this research-focused master's in Cell Biology you will undertake a half-year project in the laboratory of a leading biologist. You will develop your skills in relevant lab techniques and receive training in data analysis, management and oral/written presentation, all in the context of your own original cell biology project. This will prepare you for future job or PhD interviews, where you can substantiate your achievements and demonstrate project ownership, understanding and professional standards.

To achieve this goal, you will take part in seminars, workshops, small group tutorials and units in statistics and laboratory skills. The learning methods and units are designed to prepare you for laboratory environments and for undertaking research. They will also give you key transferable skills, such as effectively extracting and understanding information from scientific literature and seminars.

You will also learn how to adapt to both scientific and public audiences, developing your science communication skills through oral presentations, poster presentations or written reports. This will prepare you for elevator pitches in job or PhD interviews and equip you for a career in academic research, the biosciences industry, as a science writer or in similar professional areas where experience in research will be valued. The skills you gain will help you make informed career choices about the professional area you may want to work in.

Information about cell biology projects

Please be aware that this course will not offer traditional lectures introducing you to cell biology. Instead, it will focus on enhanced research-related training in this field. You should already have conceptual knowledge and understanding in the scientific area of your interest when you start the course.

You will choose your own laboratory project from a list provided by your programme director after you start the course. We have over 300 research-active labs that give access to a wide selection of projects. The Cell Biology MSc provides you with access to a broad range of model systems and topics including mechanisms of endomembrane trafficking, cytoskeletal regulation, processes of proteostasis, cell adhesion and morphogenesis, glycobiology, signalling and more. For an idea of the breadth of available projects, browse our research pages.

This course is ideal if you aspire to a research-related career in cell biology, but are open to various directions of investigation. Once you've been allocated to one of your chosen projects, you will contact your supervisor, who will guide you through writing a literature review and project outline. This will prepare you for six months of hands-on experimental work in your supervisor's laboratory, giving you the opportunity to take ownership of your own science project.

PhD with integrated master's

If you're planning to undertake a PhD after your master's, our Integrated PhD programme will enable you to combine your postgraduate taught course with a related PhD project in biology, medicine or health.

This course aims to:

• Provide you with real laboratory experience embedded in an active research team, where you can take ownership of your research project and gain an understanding of strategic and experimental approaches to problem-solving in the biological sciences.
• Ensure you have a working understanding of how to apply advanced and cutting-edge scientific methods in your field of research.
• Enable you to efficiently capture complex science from literature or research seminars.
• Give you transferable skills in critical reasoning and reflection, collaborative team working, communication, problem solving and decision making.
• Develop your skills in science communication in spoken, written and poster form, both in specialist and plain English terms, preparing you for future PhD or job interviews.
  

A wide range of research projects: We have over 300 research-active labs offering a wide range of research topics, providing you with the opportunity to pick a project that is tailored to your career.

Experiencing lab environments: You will receive direct one-to-one support from an experienced researcher during the entire programme, including a six-month experimental project embedded in a research-active laboratory and team.

Intense training in research-relevant skills: In addition to the experimental skills learned and applied during your project period, you will study course units dedicated to laboratory skills, statistical analysis, experimental design and research ethics.

Learning to capture research topics and fields: You will learn how to search, store and understand information, and structure this in a literature review, which will capture the scientific field and context of your research project. You will be supported by your supervisor during this process. In addition, you will attend scientific seminars and present your understanding of the content. You will be guided on how to prepare for the seminar, optimise note-taking and structure your presentation.

Transferable skills in science communication: Communicating complex information for a range of audiences is an essential skill in specialist professions. You will develop your skills in presenting in oral form, as a podcast, at a poster session and in written projects on topics given to you, and when reporting on your own project work. Attention will be given to both scientific and plain English communication, the latter being ideal training also for job interviews.

We use a range of teaching and learning methods, including tutorials, workshops, seminars and research placements.

Find out more by visiting the postgraduate teaching and learning page.

• written reports on your research projects and tutorials
• oral presentations
• written assignments
• posters
• multiple choice exams
• critical assessment of literature
• online statistics exercises.

"I thoroughly enjoyed my undergraduate degree at Manchester. It was during my final year that I realised how much I relished being a part of current scientific research while learning a myriad of new skills and techniques. I therefore decided that a research-based master's course was the next step for me.

"It is the combination of a fantastic university with a global reputation in research and teaching, and a vibrant city that meant I chose to stay in Manchester for another year."
Sophie McEntegart

Read more from our students on the Biology, Medicine and Health blog.

This course will prepare you for a research-related career, which can be at academic institutions, research-based companies, in science writing or any other profession where research experience is valued, for example, in funding organisations or certain branches of patent law.

You'll receive intense training and have the opportunity to take ownership of a research project and demonstrate professionalism in all aspects of your work. You'll learn to operate in teams and to communicate your science in efficient and audience-adequate ways. This will enable you to perform to a high standard in PhD or job interviews, being able to influence panels through substantiated descriptions of your achievements. The transferable skills you develop are designed to help facilitate your career progression.

Most students will go on to undertake PhD studies at Manchester or elsewhere, or continue their career in the industrial sector. The rapid expansion of biomedical science and the ever-increasing demand for advanced biological analyses and experimentation at all levels of complexity emphasises the need for suitably trained research graduates.