Chemistry with Medicinal Chemistry (With options for placements) - MChem (Hons)

University of Southampton

Use your passion for chemistry to play a role in the discovery of life-saving medical treatments. You’ll learn about every aspect of the drug development cycle: the design of molecules with the potential to treat disease, understanding how they will interact with the body, and testing the effectiveness and safety of new treatments. The final year of your degree includes an extended project that can be taken within our research facilities, as part of a year-long industrial placement or as an external placement at a university overseas. A university placement could take you to Australia, New Zealand, Canada, the USA, Singapore or almost anywhere in the world. Most placements within industry are paid, and whichever type you choose you’ll gain specialist experience and transferable skills which will impress employers.Learn from inspiring academics and take advantage of their expertise to inform on the many career opportunities in the pharmaceutical sector. This course is also excellent preparation for a PhD, which is the next step for over 40 per cent of our chemistry graduates. It is also a pathway for graduate entry into medicine.

Study in refurbished laboratories, which opened recently as part of a £12m investment in Chemistry’s facilities. In this spacious, bright and modern environment you’ll gain hands-on practical experience with equipment such as NMR and IR spectrometers and X-ray diffractometers. There are also laptops for each student to record their practical work. It’s the same high-tech equipment you’ll find in industry or academic labs, and you’ll learn to make and analyse your own samples, with full support and training – all excellent preparation for any potential placement and future career.

We’re a Russell Group University, this means you’ll learn from staff who are changing the world through research – for example by designing new cancer drugs and developing synthetic DNA for use in the testing of contagious diseases. Our academics will share their expertise with you, bringing the most up-to-date knowledge to your seminars and lectures. In addition, the breadth of their research activities gives you plenty of choice for your third-year project topic.

You’ll be part of a supportive Chemistry community, with a personal academic tutor to provide any extra help you need, both academically and personally. During the first two years we limit small group tutorials to a maximum of five students, so you’ll have plenty of time and attention from your tutors. Between classes, the Chemistry department will be your ‘home’ on campus, where you can grab a coffee in the common room, catch up with friends and talk to staff. CV and interview skills workshops will help you secure your placement and future employment after your degree, and we’ll support you with regular catch-ups throughout the six months that you’re on your placement.