Bachelor of Science (BSc)

BSc Pharmacology with Entrepreneurship

Develop your entrepreneurial skills while you study pharmacology to enhance your employability.
  • Duration: 4 Years Full Time
  • Year of entry: 2025
  • UCAS course code: B217 / Institution code: M20
  • Key features:
  • Study abroad
  • Study with a language
  • Accredited course

Full entry requirementsHow to apply

Meet us

Discover if Manchester is right for you with an online or in-person meeting.

Learn more

Manchester experience

We offer world-class teaching and exciting opportunities to shape your future.

Discover

Discover more about Biosciences at Manchester

Discover

Fees and funding

Fees

Tuition fees for home students commencing their studies in September 2025 will be £9,535 per annum (subject to Parliamentary approval). Tuition fees for international students will be £34,500 per annum. For general information please see the undergraduate finance pages.

Tuition fees are considerably lower for your placement year. Please see the fees page for full details.

Policy on additional costs

All students should normally be able to complete their programme of study without incurring additional study costs over and above the tuition fee for that programme. Any unavoidable additional compulsory costs totalling more than 1% of the annual home undergraduate fee per annum, regardless of whether the programme in question is undergraduate or postgraduate taught, will be made clear to you at the point of application. Further information can be found in the University's Policy on additional costs incurred by students on undergraduate and postgraduate taught programmes (PDF document, 91KB).

Scholarships/sponsorships

Students participating in placements outside the UK may be able to apply for funding from the UK's Turing scheme depending on eligibility. Priority will be given to students from low income households.

Course unit details:
Introduction to Laboratory Science

Course unit fact file
Unit code BIOL10401
Credit rating 10
Unit level Level 1
Teaching period(s) Semester 1
Available as a free choice unit? No

Overview

The unit consists of five online practical sessions and four laboratory sessions introducing the fundamental experimental approaches in bioscience and biomedical research. Students will gain experience of a diverse array of experimental organisms ranging from microbes to humans; and gain experience of DNA, proteins and other biomolecules. In addition, students are required to engage fully with the online data-handling exercises, as the mathematical concepts introduced there are essential for practical science.

Aims

To introduce students to the basic skills and techniques that underpin laboratory investigation; to build the expertise and knowledge that will be required by students to undertake both the Introduction to Experimental Biology unit offered in the second semester, and the practical modules offered at level 2.

Learning outcomes

By the end of their first year students are expected to: have an understanding of a range of practical techniques and skills appropriate to the biosciences; experience experiments taking into consideration health and safety requirements; make detailed experimental observations, and record, analyse and evaluate experimental and other scientific data; analyse experimental data using appropriate statistical methods; be able to modify or design related experiments; communicate experimental work by means of written, or computer-assisted, reports and assignments; use information technology in the research, analysis and presentation of scientific data; relate knowledge acquired in this unit to theoretical material covered in the lecture units; work both independently and as part of a team; be able to make critical evaluation of both their own work and that of their peers; and reflect upon their skills development during their first year.

Syllabus

All students will be expected to complete the same practicals (online and in the teaching laboratories) Prior to attending the laboratory sessions, students must complete the Health and Safety module (BIOL12000) The sessions currently include: • Practical 1: Is this Blood Real? • Practical 2: Algae for Biofuel • Practical 3: Haematology, Pulses and Pressure • Practical 4: Microbial Detectives • Practical 5: DNA Plasmids and Electrophoresis Each online practical will have a compulsory ‘test your understanding’ quiz delivered via Blackboard, to be completed.

Knowledge and understanding

Relate knowledge acquired in this unit to theoretical material covered in the lecture units

 

 

Intellectual skills

  • Analyse experimental data using appropriate statistical methods
  • Be able to modify or design related experiments

Practical skills

  • Have an understanding of a range of practical techniques and skills appropriate to the biosciences
  • Experience experiments taking into consideration health and safety requirements
  • Make detailed experimental observations, and record, analyse and evaluate experimental and other scientific data

Transferable skills and personal qualities

  • Communicate experimental work by means of written, or computer-assisted, reports and assignments
  • Use information technology in the research, analysis and presentation of scientific data
  • Work both independently and potentially as part of a team and reflect upon their skills development during their first year

Employability skills

Analytical skills
Data generated in the practical sessions need to be analysed using mathematical/statistical methods and presented in appropriate ways.
Group/team working
Practical's could require students to work either in a pair or in larger groups (4-6) to share equipment; coordinate experimental techniques; contribute to, and share, class data to improve the validity of the experiments.
Problem solving
The whole point of the practicals is to enable students to tackle research problems in future. The formal written assessment asks the students to design and improve experiments, use mathematical concepts and make sense of data to solve biological problems. They practise these skills in the practical classes. The students are required to answer research questions by performing experimental techniques or by gathering data and reaching justifiable conclusions.
Research
The students are required to answer research questions by performing experimental techniques or by gathering data and reaching justifiable conclusions.

Assessment methods

Method Weight
Other 10%
Written exam 80%
Set exercise 10%
MCQ exam 80% Set exercises – online data handling 10% Laboratory Class attendance and completion of Online Practical quizzes 10%

Feedback methods

The questions or exercises in the online resources and in the ‘test Your Understanding’ quizzes are there to test your understanding and you should get feedback on your answers from staff or demonstrators in the lab sessions. You will get feedback on your overall performance for the unit in the form of the final mark released in Semester 2. Practice questions will be made available during the semester and should support your preparation for the examination. Drop-in sessions for help with data-handling will be available each week

Recommended reading

Practical Skills in Biomolecular Sciences; Reed et al., Pearson

Available as an ebook (http://lib.myilibrary.com/Open.aspx?id=463009)

Study hours

Scheduled activity hours
Assessment written exam 1.5
Practical classes & workshops 31
Seminars 2
Independent study hours
Independent study 65.5

Teaching staff

Staff member Role
Ruth Grady Unit coordinator

Return to course details