The University of Edinburgh
UCAS Code: C200 | Bachelor of Science (with Honours) - BSc (Hons)
Entry requirements
A level
AAA - ABB in one set of exams. These grades should be achieved in one set of exams. Required subjects: A levels: Biology and Chemistry, both at B or above. You must have a grade A in one of Biology, Chemistry, Mathematics or Physics. GCSEs: Mathematics or Physics at B or 6 and English at C or 4.
International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme
37 points with 666 at HL - 32 points with 655 at HL. Required subjects: HL: Biology and Chemistry at 5. SL: Mathematics: Analysis and approaches, Mathematics: Applications and interpretation, or Physics at 6 and English at 5.
Scottish Higher
AAAB (achievement by end of S5 preferred). BBB must be achieved in one year of S4-S6. Required subjects: Highers: Biology and Chemistry, both at B or above. You must have a grade A in one of Biology, Chemistry, Mathematics, Applications of Mathematics or Physics. Advanced Higher Biology and Chemistry are recommended. National 5s: English at C and Mathematics or Physics at B. We accept Higher Applications of Mathematics at C in place of National 5 Mathematics at B.
UCAS Tariff
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About this course
Whether your interests are in pure or applied science and whether you prefer to work at the environmental, organismal or molecular level, now is an exciting time to be a plant scientist.
As well as conserving biodiversity, we need to develop sustainable systems of plant production to secure supplies of food, fibre and industrial feedstock. In addition, bioenergy and synthetic biology are rapidly expanding areas within which plant science is at the forefront.
On this programme, you will investigate:
* how plants grow and develop
* how they respond to and interact with their environment
* how plants evolve and diversify
* how they are used
**Why Edinburgh?**
We have a strong international reputation for plant science research and offer many research opportunities. This ranges from fundamental topics, such as how plants sense time, to applied studies on the future of food production and the biotechnological use of plants as vaccines.
We study plants ranging from single-celled algae, to liverworts, snapdragons and crop plants to answer a wide variety of biological questions.
There is close collaboration with the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh. Your final year project can be based there, or at one of the many plant research institutes in the area.
**Flexibility**
Biological Sciences explores the study of living organisms, covering everything from the interactions of animals in their environment to how genes are expressed.
We offer 12 different biological sciences subject areas, including plant science. Regardless of your initial application choice, you will have the opportunity to explore aspects of each of our programmes in the early years and choose to specialise in whichever one interests you.
Our skills based curriculum will equip you with data analysis, programming and problem-solving skills, as well as teaching you effective communication, and independent thinking, preparing you to be a part of the next generation of scientific thinkers who apply their skills in various contexts.
Tuition fees
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The Uni
Central area campus
School of Biological Sciences
What students say
How do students rate their degree experience?
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Plant sciences
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?
Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)
After graduation
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Plant 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
Only a handful of students take botany for a first degree - the subject is mostly studied at Masters or by doctorate-level graduates, usually after a biology degree. Last year's botany graduates were most likely to be working six month after graduation, but it might be a good idea to go on open days and talk to tutors about what previous graduates from your chosen subject went on to do, or to have a look on their website.
What about your long term prospects?
Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.
Plant sciences
The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.
£22k
£26k
£33k
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 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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