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Microbiology

Entry requirements


A level

A,A,A

Must include: A in Biology A in Physics, Chemistry or Mathematics General Studies and Critical Thinking are not accepted. If you are made an offer you will be required to achieve a pass in the practical endorsement in all science subjects that form part of the offer.

Cambridge International Pre-U Certificate - Principal

D3,D3,D3

D3 in Biology D3 in Chemistry, Mathematics or Physics D3 in another subject

International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme

38

Must include: 6 in Biology at higher level 6 in Chemistry, Mathematics or Physics at higher level *Mathematics Analysis and Approaches or the Applications and Interpretation syllabi will be accepted at higher level with no preference.

UCAS Tariff

144

We've calculated how many Ucas points you'll need for this course.

About this course


Course option

3years

Full-time | 2024

Subject

Microbiology

Focus your study on all types of microorganisms and acquire theoretical and practical skills for a career in microbiology on this three-year course.

Biological Sciences at Imperial aims to understand the behaviour of living systems from the level of cells up to whole organisms and ecosystems.

This course focuses on all types of microorganisms, including bacteria, fungi and viruses.

You'll learn the fundamental science of different types of microorganisms, as well as the important biotechnological, industrial, medical, food and agricultural applications.

After developing your understanding of the fundamentals of microbiology, you'll move on to advanced study. Here, you can tailor the course to your interests and complete a research project that's laboratory, data or field-based.

Your teaching will be enriched by an internationally leading research programme, with teaching delivered through laboratory work, lectures, tutorials, seminars and site visits.

Our teaching is enriched by the Department’s internationally leading research programme, so you’ll be learning at the very cutting edge of the subject. You will also benefit from access to our outstanding facilities, including for genomic and cell biology studies, tissue culture suites and the most modern microscopes.

The structure of the Department's courses means that transfer between different Biotechnology and Biochemistry degrees is usually possible up until the end of the second year. If you are an international student, transferring to a different course could have an impact on your visa, but our International Student Support Team are here to help advise and support you.

As well as your main Imperial degree (BSc), you will also receive the award of the Associateship of the Royal College of Science (ARCS) on completion of this course.

Modules

We recommend reviewing our course page for the latest information regarding the curriculum (including core and optional modules) and course structure, as this information may be subject to periodic change.

Tuition fees

Select where you currently live to see what you'll pay:

Channel Islands
£9,250
per year
England
£9,250
per year
EU
£41,650
per year
International
£41,650
per year
Northern Ireland
£9,250
per year
Republic of Ireland
£9,250
per year
Scotland
£9,250
per year
Wales
£9,250
per year

The Uni


Course location:

Imperial College London

Department:

Life Sciences

Read full university profile

What students say


How do students rate their degree experience?

The stats below relate to the general subject area/s at this university, not this specific course. We show this where there isn’t enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

Microbiology and cell science

Sorry, no information to show

This is usually because there were too few respondents in the data we receive to be able to provide results about the subject at this university.


Who studies this subject and how do they get on?

42%
UK students
58%
International students
32%
Male students
68%
Female students
95%
2:1 or above
6%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

A
A
A

After graduation


The stats in this section relate to the general subject area/s at this university – not this specific course. We show this where there isn't enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

Microbiology and cell science

What are graduates doing after six months?

This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.

£26,000
high
Average annual salary
97%
med
Employed or in further education

Top job areas of graduates

18%
Business, finance and related associate professionals
13%
Business, research and administrative professionals
11%
Information technology and telecommunications professionals

If you want a career in microbiology, then this is the degree to take. The recession hit the job market for microbiologists particularly badly, but things have improved very significantly since then, and microbiologists are now amongst the most employable biological sciences graduates. We don't produce many graduates in the subject every year and a lot take further qualifications on graduating. Microbiology graduates who want to leave the lab can find jobs in most industries - not just in health and hospitals, but in the food and drink, water and ecology sectors, too.

What about your long term prospects?

Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.

Microbiology and cell science

The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.

£25k

£25k

£33k

£33k

£36k

£36k

Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.

Explore these similar courses...

Higher entry requirements
University of Nottingham | Nottingham
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UCAS Points: 112-147
Lower entry requirements
University of Strathclyde | Glasgow
Immunology and Microbiology
BSc (Hons) 4 Years Full-time 2024
UCAS Points: 120-135
Nearby University
University of Reading | Reading
Microbiology
BSc (Hons) 3 Years Full-time 2024
UCAS Points: 120-147

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This information comes from the National Student Survey, an annual student survey of final-year students. You can use this to see how satisfied students studying this subject area at this university, are (not the individual course).

This is the percentage of final-year students at this university who were "definitely" or "mostly" satisfied with their course. We've analysed this figure against other universities so you can see whether this is high, medium or low.

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This information is from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), for undergraduate students only.

You can use this to get an idea of who you might share a lecture with and how they progressed in this subject, here. It's also worth comparing typical A-level subjects and grades students achieved with the current course entry requirements; similarities or differences here could indicate how flexible (or not) a university might be.

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Post-six month graduation stats:

This is from the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education Survey, based on responses from graduates who studied the same subject area here.

It offers a snapshot of what grads went on to do six months later, what they were earning on average, and whether they felt their degree helped them obtain a 'graduate role'. We calculate a mean rating to indicate if this is high, medium or low compared to other universities.

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Graduate field commentary:

The Higher Education Careers Services Unit have provided some further context for all graduates in this subject area, including details that numbers alone might not show

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The Longitudinal Educational Outcomes dataset combines HRMC earnings data with student records from the Higher Education Statistics Agency.

While there are lots of factors at play when it comes to your future earnings, use this as a rough timeline of what graduates in this subject area were earning on average one, three and five years later. Can you see a steady increase in salary, or did grads need some experience under their belt before seeing a nice bump up in their pay packet?

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