Healthcare Science (Radiotherapy Physics)
Swansea University
UCAS Code: B1F3 | Bachelor of Science (with Honours) - BSc (Hons)
Swansea University
UCAS Code: B1F3 | Bachelor of Science (with Honours) - BSc (Hons)
Entry requirements
A level
Including Maths, Physics, Biology or Chemistry
Distinction and Merit profile against the rules of combination. We do not accept Access to Healthcare or Access to Healthcare and Nursing.
GCSE/National 4/National 5
If you are offered a place you will also need: - A Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check, or approved equivalent - NHS Wales Values and Standards of Behaviour. All applicants will be required to have a satisfactory enhanced disclosure and barring service (DBS) check and occupational health check. Any concerns arising from these may be considered at the School of Health and Social Care’s Professional Suitability and Fitness to Practice Panel and may result in admission to the programme being withdrawn.
International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme
345 points.
Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)
Swansea University accepts the Advanced Skills Baccalaureate Wales as fully equivalent to x1 A-Level.
Pass at B and either BB at A level (including Maths, Physics, Biology or Chemistry) or DD at BTEC
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About this course
Swansea University’s BSc in Radiotherapy Physics will give you the expert training you need to begin a rewarding and highly skilled career in the healthcare profession as a dosimetrist in radiotherapy physics.
During your degree, you will learn about using radiotherapy to treat various cancers. You will combine in-depth academic work with practical clinical and technological skills in a range of specialised healthcare settings.
Radiotherapy Physics is a vital field of medicine requiring a high level of responsibility and technical skill. As a radiotherapy physicist/radiotherapy physics technologist, you will work as part of a team to develop individual treatment plans for people with cancer and be responsible for the precise calibration and use of sophisticated radiotherapy equipment. As your career progresses, you will have excellent opportunities for advanced practice and further study to Masters and doctoral level.
Our state-of-the-art facilities allow you to learn and practice your clinical and technical skills in our simulated clinical practice rooms. Equipped with the latest technology and equipment, each room offers a unique environment that replicates a wide range of realistic clinical settings. The rooms provide an excellent opportunity for you to put theory into practice and gain confidence and experience in clinical environments.
You will spend around half of your course on clinical placements giving you greater insight into the skills you have learnt with our expert clinical teaching team. Clinical Placements will teach you how to present to patients and will embed your learning into your practise.
The course is accredited by all the major regulatory bodies, and you will benefit from our strong links with the NHS and local health boards, with our nearest hospital being next to our Singleton Park campus. Many of our academic staff in Health Sciences are also practising clinicians, providing invaluable professional insight and expertise.
You will also join a university that is:
• 12th in the UK for Student Satisfaction – NSS 2021,
• 15th in the UK for Course Satisfaction - Guardian University Guide 2023,
• You will also be joining a Top 25 UK University (Guardian University Guide 2024)
Modules
Year 1
· Professional Practice 1
· Anatomy and Physiology for Healthcare Science
· Pathophysiology for Healthcare Science
· Basics of Mathematics and Physics for Healthcare Science
· Scientific Basis of Medical Physics
· Informatics and Statistics
Year 2
· Professional Practice 2
· Research Methods and Statistics
· Instrumentation Signal Processing and Imaging
· Healthcare Science Work Based Placement 1 (Radiotherapy Physics)
· Medical Imaging
· Practice of Radiation Protection
· Medical Equipment Lifecycle
· Non-ionising Radiation and Physiological Measurements
Year 3
· Professional Practice 3
· Healthcare Science Research Project
· Healthcare Science Work Based Placement 2 (Radiotherapy Physics)
· Radiobiology and Clinical Radiotherapy Physics
· Practice of Radiotherapy Physics
Assessment methods
You will be assessed via a variety of methods throughout the three years of study. You will complete written examinations, written assignments, presentations, case-based discussions and assessments of clinical competency. In year three, you will have the chance to complete a research project in your chosen healthcare science programme. The results of this will be presented as part of your dissertation and you will be involved in a peer-assessment scientific poster presentation.
Extra funding
This course is funded by the NHS Wales Bursary Scheme meaning students have their tuition fees covered providing they commit to work in NHS Wales for 2 years following graduation. Places are also available if you receive sponsorship from a healthcare employer and in some circumstances; we may accept self-funded places with standard tuition fees if you are able to secure your own work placement.
The Uni
Singleton Park Campus
Faculty of Medicine, Health and Life 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.
Physics
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.
Physics
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
Although the subject has seen a bit of resurgence in recent years, the UK is still felt to be short of physics graduates, and in particular physicists training as teachers. If you want a career in physics research — in all sorts of areas, from atmospheric physics to lasers - you'll probably need to take a doctorate, and so have a think about where you would like to do that and how you might fund it (the government funds many physics doctorates, so you might not find it as hard as you think). With that in mind, it's not surprising that just over a fifth of physics graduates go on to take doctorates when they finish their degree, and well over a third of physicists take some kind of postgraduate study in total. Physics is highly regarded and surprisingly versatile, which is why physics graduates who decide not to stay in education are more likely to go into well-paid jobs in the finance industry than they are to go into science. The demand and versatility of physics degrees goes to explain why they're amongst the best-paid science graduates.
What about your long term prospects?
Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.
Physics
The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.
£24k
£30k
£32k
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 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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