Keele University
UCAS Code: F1F5 | Bachelor of Science (with Honours) - BSc (Hons)
Entry requirements
56 UCAS points
56 UCAS points
GCSE/National 4/National 5
GCSE English Language at grade C (or 4) OR Level 2 Functional Skills in English AND GCSE Maths at grade C (or 4) OR Level 2 Functional Skills Maths
56 UCAS points
56 UCAS points
T Level
Pass overall (D&E).
UCAS Tariff
56 UCAS Tariff points from at least 1 A Level/Level 3 qualification. We will also consider applicants who may not have traditional academic qualifications but have work experience or vocational qualifications.
About this course
**Foundation Year**
Our Foundation Year provides an excellent alternative route to Keele, providing a unique opportunity to better prepare for your chosen degree, and with guaranteed entry onto your undergraduate course once you successfully complete your Foundation Year. This extra year of study can improve your academic skills, expand your subject knowledge, give you a better understanding of higher education and, perhaps most importantly of all, build your confidence. On the Keele Foundation Year, you'll study on campus, joining our undergraduate community from the outset, with access to all the facilities and support that you'd get as an undergraduate student at Keele.
**International Students**
For International Students, Foundation Years are delivered through our dedicated on-campus provider, Keele University International College. Applications for International Foundation Years are also handled by KUIC; please do not apply via UCAS as the University will not be able to process your application and you may still be charged the UCAS application fee. To find out more and to apply for an International Foundation Year, visit https://kuic.keele.ac.uk/
**Why choose this course?**
- Top 10 in the UK for Forensic Science (Complete University Guide, 2025)
- Develop your practical and professional skills in our indoor and outdoor crime scene simulation facilities.
- Use a wide variety of industry-standard instrumentation in Keele's state-of-the-art Central Science Laboratories.
- Chemistry at Keele is Top 5 in the UK for student positivity* National Student Survey (NSS) 2024 (Broad-based universities) *based on overall student satisfaction, which is an average score across 27 questions asked in the NSS
- Gain a certification in expert witness training
Forensic Chemistry covers a breadth of topics and enables you to build practical, analytical, problem-solving and research skills, preparing you for exciting career opportunities.
Advancements in chemistry are driving modern forensic evidence analysis. In this programme you’ll develop skills vital for today’s chemists and deepen your understanding of chemistry’s core principles, from atomic bonding to techniques for measuring and observing chemical reactions.
You’ll explore the techniques used for the recovery and analysis in crime scene investigation (CSI) and discover how chemical analysis of evidence forms the backbone of forensic science. There's a focus on how modern analytical techniques can detect the compounds in forensic materials and how concepts from physical and inorganic chemistry can explain what we observe in chemical reactions.
You’ll enhance your CSI skills and knowledge in areas such as drug-related crime, pharmacology, forensic imaging, and blood spatter analysis, and you’ll gain confidence in communicating forensic findings to diverse audiences.
**About Keele**
Keele University was established in 1949 by the former Vice-Chancellor of Oxford University. Founded to meet the needs of a changing world, Keele has always had a pioneering vision to be a different kind of university.
We excel in both teaching and research, with some of the most satisfied students in England, and research that is changing lives for the better at a regional, national and global level.
Our beautiful 600-acre campus is one of the biggest in Britain – but all the most important services and facilities are on your doorstep, with accommodation, teaching spaces, facilities including a medical centre, sports centre and pharmacy, and a range of shops, eateries and entertainment venues – including the Students’ Union – clustered around the centre.
Modules
For a list of indicative modules please visit the course page on the Keele University website.
The Uni
Keele University
School of Chemistry and Physical Science
What students say
We've crunched the numbers to see if the overall teaching satisfaction score here is high, medium or low compared to students studying this subject(s) at other universities.
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.
Forensic and archaeological sciences
Teaching and learning
Assessment and feedback
Resources and organisation
Student voice
Who studies this subject and how do they get on?
Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)
Chemistry
Teaching and learning
Assessment and feedback
Resources and organisation
Student voice
Who studies this subject and how do they get on?
Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)
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.
Forensic and archaeological sciences
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.
Top job areas of graduates
Chemistry
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.
Top job areas of graduates
Chemistry graduates are in demand from a wide range of industries, from the food, oil, chemicals and pharmaceuticals to consultancy, technical analysis and teaching. They're also prized by business and finance employers for their research and data handling skills — anywhere there is research and data to be explained, you can find chemistry grads. If you want a career in research, you need a doctorate, so start planning now if you fancy one of these exciting and challenging jobs - but good students can usually get grants to take a doctorate, so don't worry about the financing if you think you have what it takes. The recession wasn’t too kind to chemists, particularly in the pharmaceutical industry (one of the key employers for chemists), but things are getting back to normal for this flexible group and it's one of the few degrees that is bucking the current trend and increasing graduate numbers.
What about your long term prospects?
Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.
Forensic 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.
£19k
£29k
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.
Chemistry
The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.
£23k
£26k
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.
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This is what the university has told Ucas about the criteria they expect applicants to satisfy; some may be compulsory, others may be preferable.
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This is the percentage of applicants to this course who received an offer last year, through Ucas.
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This is what the university has told Ucas about the course. Use it to get a quick idea about what makes it unique compared to similar courses, elsewhere.
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Course location and department:
This is what the university has told Ucas about the course. Use it to get a quick idea about what makes it unique compared to similar courses, elsewhere.
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Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF):
We've received this information from the Department for Education, via Ucas. This is how the university as a whole has been rated for its quality of teaching: gold silver or bronze. Note, not all universities have taken part in the TEF.
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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.
Have a question about this info? Learn more here
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.
Have a question about this info? Learn more here
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.
Have a question about this info? Learn more here
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?
Have a question about this info? Learn more here