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Physics with Foundation Year

Entry requirements


A level

B,B,C

Including B in Maths and B in Physics. Excluding General Studies

Access to HE Diploma

D:19,M:26

Pass the Access to HE Diploma with 19 L3 credits at Distinction grade and 26 L3 credits at Merit Grade. This must include 12 L3 credits in Maths at Pass Grade and 12 L3 credits at Merit Grade or above in another Physics subject. Please also see our GCSE requirements.

International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme

28

Applicants will be considered with IB 28 OR 554 in three Higher Level subjects. All applicants will be required to have Grade 5 in HL Maths and Physics

Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)

DMM

Applicants studying a BTEC Extended Diploma will also require at least one grade B and a grade B in GCE AL Maths and Physics

Scottish Advanced Higher

B,B,C

including B in maths and B in Physics

Scottish Higher

B,B,B,B,B

Including B in Maths and B In Physics

UCAS Tariff

112-136

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

About this course


Course option

4years

Full-time including foundation year | 2024

Subject

Physics

We believe that fair access to higher education is a fundamental enabler for social mobility and are committed to delivering this through our education. We aim to widen participation and raise attainment - bridging gaps in retention, progression and success - to ensure our students enjoy the best possible outcome.

In support of the University’s Access and Participation Plan this course is only open to UK domiciled students who meet our contextual offer eligibility criteria, or are classed as Mature Students, and who may not have met the entry requirements for first year entry or have not been able to take A-level Mathematics alongside a BTEC L3 Extended Diploma. Check if you are eligible to join this programme on our contextual offer webpages.

- It covers the core mathematics required to successfully complete the Physics degree programme at Exeter

- You’ll be learning in a friendly and structured environment and will be supported academically and personally as you prepare to study the Physics undergraduate degree

- Provided you achieve the specific progression criteria, you will progress into Year 1 of our BSc Physics programme which has a Foundation Year

- Depending upon the qualifications you’ve gained prior to beginning the Foundation programme it may be possible to transfer to an undergraduate programme in Mathematics, Natural Sciences or Engineering which have a foundation year and provided you meet the entry requirements for that programme

- International students looking for a foundation course, please visit our INTO page.

To learn more about modules, assessment methods, facilities and our staff research expertise please visit our course page.

Modules

For a full list of modules please visit our course page.

Assessment methods

Please visit our course page for current assessment methods.

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
£29,700
per year
International
£29,700
per year
Northern Ireland
£9,250
per year
Scotland
£9,250
per year
Wales
£9,250
per year

Extra funding

We understand the financial pressures that undergraduate students can face when arriving at university for the first time and that is why we offer bursaries to complement government loans for low household income families, scholarships for exceptional students, sportspeople and those meeting other criteria as well as expert funding advice and guidance.

For more information, please visit our course page.

The Uni


Course location:

University of Exeter - Exeter campuses

Department:

Physics and Astronomy

Read full university profile

What students say


We've crunched the numbers to see if overall student satisfaction here is high, medium or low compared to students studying this subject(s) at other universities.

86%
Physics

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

83%
Staff make the subject interesting
84%
Staff are good at explaining things
89%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
77%
Opportunities to apply what I've learned

Assessment and feedback

Feedback on work has been timely
Feedback on work has been helpful
Staff are contactable when needed
Good advice available when making study choices

Resources and organisation

85%
Library resources
68%
IT resources
94%
Course specific equipment and facilities
77%
Course is well organised and has run smoothly

Student voice

Staff value students' opinions
Feel part of a community on my course

Who studies this subject and how do they get on?

96%
UK students
4%
International students
74%
Male students
26%
Female students
93%
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.

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.

£25,000
med
Average annual salary
93%
med
Employed or in further education
73%
med
Employed in a role where degree was essential or beneficial

Top job areas of graduates

22%
Information technology and telecommunications professionals
11%
Business, finance and related associate professionals
10%
Teaching and educational professionals

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.

£25k

£25k

£33k

£33k

£34k

£34k

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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Higher entry requirements
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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 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.

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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.

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

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

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