BSc NATURAL SCIENCES WITH A PLACEMENT YEAR

Our Natural Sciences course is ideal if you wish to study more than one area of science while retaining a larger degree of flexibility than traditional joint degrees allow. You’ll study modules from a minimum of two of the main disciplines: biology, chemistry, computing, environmental sciences, mathematics and physics. And you’ll have the opportunity to study specialist topics as your degree programme develops. Whichever subjects you choose, you will be learning at the forefront of your chosen disciplines with our stimulating, research-led teaching programme. 

Our programme will give you an appreciation of complex concepts from across contemporary science. You’ll experience what is required of a skilled scientist: from the deliberation needed to design an experiment, including consideration of the results, to the excitement of discovering something new. And by spending your third year on an industrial placement, you’ll gain truly invaluable, hands-on experience of how this applies to a real working environment. 

This highly competitive degree provides you with vital knowledge of several scientific disciplines, and its flexibility allows you to direct your learning around your own interests or career goals. 

You’ll acquire technical skills and subject-specific knowledge as well as transferable skills desired by employers, including high levels of literacy and numeracy, data collection, collation and management, understanding and analysing complex systems, devising strategies of intervention, critical thinking, time management, organisational and analytical skills, teamwork and communication skills. 

In your final year you will complete a supervised research project, which can be in a combination of disciplines. 

About

Biology alone will not beat cancer; environmentalists alone will not mitigate global warming: scientific advances are forged through shared knowledge and collaboration. By studying Natural Sciences you’ll gain an appreciation of complex scientific concepts, and be able to approach them from more than one angle. 

Our radically interdisciplinary Natural Sciences programme gives you the opportunity to create your own unique degree, crossing conventional boundaries and tailoring your learning to suit your interests from across the sciences. You could study any combination of biology, chemistry, computing, environmental sciences, mathematics and physics, with knowledge from one complementing the other. 

On our four-year Year in Industry course you’ll gain practical and professional experience by spending your third year of study on placement. You’ll have the opportunity to immerse yourself in a commercial environment and acquire invaluable experience as well as developing a greater understanding of the application of your scientific interests. And we have links with leading organisations including Astra Zeneca, Aviva, the Environment Agency and GlaxoSmithKline. 

Placement Year and Study Abroad

Relevant work experience is an incredible asset in today’s competitive job market, and our Year in Industry programme ensures you’ll graduate one step ahead of other students. You’ll gain first-hand knowledge, secure valuable contacts, and learn how to put theory into practice, working within time and financial constraints. 

You will be expected to seek your own work placement. In the first two weeks of your second year you will write a CV and apply to a range of companies. Not only will this ensure that you work within your preferred field, it will also provide you with the essential job-hunting skills you will require after graduation. We will, of course, offer our guidance and support while you are identifying and negotiating placement opportunities. Current industrial links include local and national government, Astra Zeneca, the Environment Agency, GlaxoSmithKline and ICI. 

During this year you’ll be supported by an industrial supervisor and a mentor from the university. You and your industrial supervisor will feed back during the placement to ensure that it is progressing well, and your UEA mentor will visit you during the year. 

Please note that we cannot guarantee any student a work placement as this decision rests with potential employers. 

If you are unable to secure a work placement by the end of your second year you will have the option to transfer onto the equivalent degree programme without a Year in Industry. 

Alternatively, you have the option to take a Year Abroad, in Australasia, Canada, United States or Europe, by studying on the BSc Natural Sciences with a Year Abroad. 

After the Course

You will graduate exceptionally well prepared for your future career, having gained skills that are highly valued by employers, and with practical experience in the work environment. 

Many Natural Sciences graduates continue to specialise in their chosen scientific fields across a broad range of careers, including forensics, teaching, science journalism and laboratory research. You might also choose to progress to postgraduate study or research 

We work with UEA’s Careers Service to support you at every stage of your course, from finding paid or voluntary work opportunities and choosing a career, through to applying for graduate jobs and further study. 

Career destinations

Example of careers that you could enter include: 

• Forensic science 

• Teaching 

• Science journalism 

• Laboratory research 

• PhD and Master’s programmes 

• Environmental management and conservation.