BSc Neuroscience with Industrial/Professional Experience / Course details

Our BSc Neuroscience with Industrial/Professional Experience course will enable you to gain experience of the workplace on a year-long placement during your degree, making you more attractive to potential employers after graduation.

You will examine how the brain and nervous system work to generate behaviour, perception, movement, sleep, memory and other key functions.

The course covers a range of topics, including biology, pharmacology, physiology, motor systems, sensory systems and more, with the opportunity to choose optional units in particular areas of interest.

You will spend your first year studying fundamental principles before going on to specialise in your second and final years.

In Year 3, you will have the opportunity to go on a placement with one of our `trusted partner' organisations in the UK or abroad.  Alternatively, you can choose to arrange your own placement (subject to approval from the School of Biological Sciences).

Placements range from research project work to roles in education, the biotechnology industry and science communication.

Our course has Advanced Accreditation from the  Royal Society of Biology , which recognises academic excellence in the biosciences and highlights degrees that educate the research and development leaders and innovators of the future.

Foundation year available

You can prepare for the full degree course if you do not have the appropriate qualifications for direct entry by undertaking our foundation course  first.

Wide range of placements

Choose from placements with our partner organisations in the UK or overseas.

There are reduced tuition fees for the placement year.

Flexibility to transfer between courses

You can transfer between most of our biological sciences degree courses at the end of your first year or, in some cases, later.

You will benefit from a wide range of teaching and learning methods that suit the content and aims of each course unit.

These range from lectures and tutorials to practicals and research projects, including the  final year project .

Find out more about how you will learn and see a typical Year 1 timetable on our  teaching and learning  page.

Assessment methods vary widely to suit the nature of the course unit and each level of study.

• Lecture units are usually assessed by written exam (multiple choice, short-answer or essay-based), which are held at the end of an academic semester in either January or May/June.
• Field courses are usually assessed via oral and written presentations, group work and/or projects.
• Practical units are usually assessed by experimental report and/or short written assignment and/or written exam.
• The proportion of independent study assignments increases during each year of study.

Year 1

Lecture units are usually assessed by e-learning activities during the unit and multiple choice exams at the end of the semester. Year 1 contributes 10% to your overall degree mark.

Year 2

Lecture units are usually assessed by a combination of e-learning activities during the unit and short answer-based exams at the end of the semester.

Year 2 contributes 30% to your overall degree mark.

Placement year

You will write a scientific placement report, which is submitted and assessed when you return to University in your final year. The mark for the report, and the associated viva voce oral examination, contribute approximately 10% towards your overall degree mark.

Final year

Lecture units are usually assessed by essay-based exam. Students also take two 'honours' papers: degree programme-specific examinations comprising essays and data-handling problems.

A significant part of the year (accounting for one-quarter of the overall degree mark) is the project, which is assessed by literature review and a written report.

The final year contributes 60% to your overall degree mark.

Find out more about what it's like to study at Manchester on the  Biology, Medicine and Health Student Blog .

Learning facilities

Our modern teaching labs are equipped for a range of biological and biomedical techniques. The following are just a few of the techniques you could undertake during your degree:

• electroencephalography (EEG) and electrocardiography (ECG)
• electroretinography (ERG) and electromyography (EMG)
• dissection and histology
• immunofluorescence microscopy
• polymerase chain reaction (PCR)
• DNA sequencing
• spectrophotometry

Our computing facilities include access to over 200 PCs in dedicated clusters and e-learning tools including online lecture notes, discussion boards, lecture podcasts and quizzes.

You will also have access to the University's other facilities for undergraduate students .

Research facilities

As a final year student, you have the opportunity to undertake a project in the labs of our world-class bioscience researchers.To support our research, we have extensive research facilities equipped with high-quality technology.