Our three-year BSc Medical Microbiology course will give you a broad understanding of microbiology with an emphasis on topics of medical relevance, allowing you to understand how microbes live, as well as ways to disrupt disease processes. You'll study the importance of bacteria, viruses and other microbes in the environment and as pathogens. You’ll also discover how we can manipulate their genetic makeup to put microbes to good use in biotechnology, how we can tackle the threat of antimicrobial-resistant infections, and the role that microbiology continues to play in supporting the global response to pandemics such as COVID-19.

From your first year you’ll study modules that span the molecular biosciences covering microbiology, biochemistry, genetics and molecular biology. Alongside these modules you’ll have the freedom to explore complementary topics across the breadth of bioscience, such as biomedicine, ecology, plant science and zoology. This flexibility allows you to study microbiology in greater depth, keep your interests broad or even switch to another degree programme within the biosciences. No matter what modules you choose to study, you’ll develop the practical laboratory and transferable skills that make our graduates attractive to employers including project management, problem solving, communication skills and data analysis.

We’ll give you plenty of opportunities to apply your new skills and knowledge too. You’ll be in the lab completing in-depth practicals across molecular genetics, DNA manipulation and protein structure analysis, and you’ll get the chance to use cutting-edge equipment to run your own in-depth research projects.

Whether you choose to focus solely on microbiology, or study a range of topics across the molecular biosciences and beyond, your personal tutor will support you to tailor your degree to your interests and career goals.

Whether you want to pursue a career in science, apply your skills in industry, or continue your studies, Sheffield biosciences graduates are highly sought after due to their specialist laboratory and field skills, ability to solve problems, handle and analyse data, and effectively communicate complex ideas to a range of audiences.

Our students secure roles with leading scientific organisations like GSK, AstraZeneca, Cancer Research, the Environment Agency, Wildlife Trusts, and the Natural History Museum. Transferable skills are embedded and developed throughout our degrees, which means year on year many of our graduates join top 100 employers like the BBC, Deloitte, the Civil Service, and the NHS Graduate Management Training Scheme. You can also apply your degree to other varied careers including bioinformatics, marketing and science communication, teaching and science policy. Some students go on to further study.

If you want to gain work experience as a recognised part of your degree we have a dedicated BSc Medical Microbiology with a Year in Industry programme. You can test out a career path that you're considering between your second and third year - whether that's in the lab or applying your scientific knowledge and transferable skills in industry, and earn a salary while you're doing it.

This course is accredited by the Royal Society of Biology which shows employers that you've developed the practical skills and scientific knowledge that they're looking for.