Pharmacology
University of Bristol
UCAS Code: B212 | Master of Science - MSci
University of Bristol
UCAS Code: B212 | Master of Science - MSci
Entry requirements
A level
Standard offer: AAB including Chemistry and one of Biology (or Human Biology), Physics, Mathematics or (Further Mathematics). Contextual offer: BBB including Chemistry and one of Biology (or Human Biology), Physics, Mathematics (or Further Mathematics). Please visit: bristol.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/entry-requirements-qualifications/contextual-offers/ for more information about contextual offers.
Access to HE Diploma
Access to HE Diploma in Science, Biomedical/ Medical/ Health Science or Psychology (or similar titles). The 45 graded Level 3 credits must include: 24 credits at Distinction and 21 at Merit or above; and at least 12 credits (with 9 at Distinction) from Chemistry units; and at least 12 credits (with 9 at Distinction) from units in one of the following subjects: Biology, Human Biology, Physics, or Mathematics. Mature students can contact [email protected] to check the suitability of their Access course.
Requirements for principal subjects are as for A-level, where D1/ D2 is A*, D3 is A, M1/ M2 is B, and M3 is C.
International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme
Standard offer: 34 points overall with 17 at Higher Level, including 6, 5 (in any order) at Higher Level in Chemistry and one of Biology, Physics, Mathematics (either Analysis and Approaches or Applications and Interpretations). Contextual offer: 31 points overall with 15 at Higher Level, including 5, 5 at Higher Level in Chemistry and one of Biology, Physics, Mathematics (either Analysis and Approaches or Applications and Interpretations). Please visit: bristol.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/entry-requirements-qualifications/contextual-offers/ for more information about contextual offers.
Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)
DDD in Applied Science BTEC National Level 3 Extended Diploma, with Distinctions in five required Chemistry units.
Scottish Advanced Higher
Advanced Higher: AB (in any order) in Chemistry and one of Biology, Physics, Mathematics or Mathematics of Mechanics.
Scottish Higher
Standard higher: AAABB.
Requirements are as for A-levels, where you can substitute a non-subject specific grade for the Welsh Baccalaureate Advanced Skills Challenge Certificate at that grade.
UCAS Tariff
We've calculated how many Ucas points you'll need for this course.
About this course
The MSci Pharmacology degree is a four-year degree with an extended research project in the final year. This degree provides the opportunity to gain an excellent knowledge of pharmacology and apply it to experimental research. The extended project will provide valuable day-to-day experience of what it is like to be a researcher and develop the skills required to embark on a career in research.
The first three years of this degree follow the BSc Pharmacology course, with the opportunity to study a number of core pharmacology units in the first two years. These units will introduce you to the fundamentals of drug action and how drugs interact with their targets.
The degree is focused on the pharmacology of the nervous and cardiovascular systems and provides extensive investigation into how drugs are being used in a variety of disorders. You will also be able to choose further units in the first two years, including biochemistry, molecular genetics, infection and immunity, cellular and molecular medicine and mammalian physiology.
Third-year units emphasise the molecular mechanisms of drug action within the nervous and cardiovascular systems. These units are taught from the current scientific literature and will take you to the forefront of current research, which you evaluate by undertaking a literature-based research project.
The final year of the MSci Pharmacology will focus on an extended research proposal within a research laboratory using advanced techniques. Alongside the project, you will take units that will develop valuable skills in communicating science to the public and will develop a portfolio of public engagement activities.
This final year will instil a range of skills essential for understanding how to plan and conduct research projects; these skills are widely applicable to future employment and will also benefit those considering future PhD training.
Tuition fees
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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?
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Pharmacology
Teaching and learning
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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.
Pharmacology
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
As only a relatively small number of students study pharmacology or toxicology, these statistics refer most closely to the graduate prospects of pharmacy graduates, so bear that in mind when you review them. Only a handful of students take first degrees in pure toxicology every year — the subject is more popular at Masters level. Pharmacology is a degree that tends to lead to jobs in the medical and pharmaceutical industries, and outcomes are improving again after a difficult time in the last few years. Jobs in pharmacology are often very specialist and so it’s no surprise that pharmacologists are amongst the most likely of all students to go on to a doctorate — if you want a job in research, start thinking about a PhD. As for pharmacy, unemployment rates are below 1% and 95% of pharmacy graduates had jobs as pharmacists (mostly in retail pharmacists) six months after they left their courses - employment rates have gone up significantly in the last couple of years.
What about your long term prospects?
Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.
Pharmacology
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
£32k
£40k
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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