MChem CHEMISTRY

From the materials we make to the medicines we take, chemistry shapes our relationship with the world around us. So understanding how chemicals interact at a molecular level is not only fascinating, but also of critical importance. 

Our Master’s course will provide the academic training you need to become a professional chemist. Our cutting-edge research in chemical sciences underpins our teaching – through lectures, workshops, small group tutorials and practicals – ensuring your learning is at the forefront of scientific thought. 

Making a choice between an MChem or BSc course can be difficult. If you’re unsure which course is right for you, don’t worry. You’ll be given advice before you begin studying and while you’re a student here. And, because of the common structure of our courses, you can transfer between the MChem and BSc in your first or second years. 

About

This is the chemistry degree you should choose if you aspire to becoming a professional chemist. Our four-year integrated Master’s course will give you the in-depth academic training you need to follow your chosen career path. 

A key benefit to our MChem course is the emphasis we place on laboratory-based teaching, and the development of practical skills. Your lab work will include synthesis of new compounds, characterisation of these compounds by spectroscopic methods, and the study of their individual properties. 
In the final two years of your degree, you’ll tailor your study to specialise in the areas that reflect your interests and career aspirations. You’ll also undertake an individual research project. 

Accreditation

This course is accredited by the Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) for partially meeting the academic criteria for Chartered Chemist (CChem). 

After the Course

What are your career options after Chemistry?

A better question might be what career options are not open to you after chemistry, as you’ll see from the huge range of careers that our graduates have followed. 
Our chemistry degrees provide the skills that employers are looking for – high level subject knowledge combined with problem solving, IT, analytical skills, instrumentation, time management, organisation, and team and individual work. 
UEA Chemistry has been ranked 1st for career prospects in The Guardian 2020 and again 1st for graduate prospects in the Complete University Guide 2022. 
Many of our graduates secure positions in emerging chemistry industries, such as Iceni Diagnostics (a UEA spin off company developing lateral flow test technology, including for Covid-19), and leading pharmaceutical companies (Glaxo SmithKline, AkzoNobel or Sanofi), chemical and advanced technology companies (Johnson Matthey, Dell or British Airways) with roles in research, management, product development and quality control. 
Others have used their chemistry degree to pursue more diverse career options. These range from further research degrees (MSc or PhD) towards academic positions, to teaching training (PGCE) to become schoolteachers, through to careers in publishing (RSC and Wiley editors), computing (ANDigital) and even banking (Barclays), insurance (Aviva), and almost everything in between. 
At UEA, we have a great team to support graduates in securing excellent career starts through CareerCentral. In the School of Chemistry, our Director of Employability coordinates internal and external events and makes sure that all additional key skills training elements are present in our curriculum from year 1, allowing Chemistry graduates to present a highly competitive CV. The skills training is embedded within our modules, especially in years 3 and 4, but in addition, all students benefit from chemistry careers drop-in sessions and 1to1 guidance, plus chemistry specific employers events and fairs. 
We also encourage our students to participate in the UEA award, which is a certificate from the University, recognising a range of extracurricular activities that students can undertake while at university, to help them develop other skills to become highly employable. To complement undergraduate studies, we offer a wide range of internships during the summer break (6-12 weeks) supported by the University and different funders, for students in their second and third year of their degrees. These provide additional opportunities to experience work and develop key skills in one of the many diverse research areas being pursued in the School of Chemistry. 
“During the internship I have been exposed to a range of techniques such as bacterial transformation, recombinant protein expression and SDS-PAGE, all of which I would only have read about or been briefly introduced to in my undergraduate studies. I strongly suggest that if you are focused on research that you apply for as many experience opportunities as possible and refine your CV as best you can for that first interview.”- Jack Fendley, 2nd Year intern student, working on oligomerisation of the chlamydia protein TarP for cell invasion, with Dr Tharin Blumenschein over the summer 2021, funded by a Tim Pickup UEA Internship. 

Career destinations

A degree at UEA will prepare you for a wide variety of careers. We've been ranked 1st for Job Prospects by StudentCrowd in 2022.

Examples of careers that you could enter include: 

• Research scientist 
• Healthcare 
• Government 
• Data analyst 
• Academic 
• Teacher