Neuroscience including Preliminary Year BSc (Hons)

Our Neuroscience degree with Preliminary Year is a four-year course. The Preliminary Year covers key topics in Biology, Chemistry and Mathematics and leads to a BSc in any of the subjects offered by the School of Biosciences. The purpose of the Preliminary Year is to provide students who don’t have a sufficient background in science with the basis of scientific knowledge to enable them to thrive in the year one curriculum and beyond.Neuroscience is the study of nervous systems, their component nerve cells and the functioning of the brain. The human brain contains one hundred thousand million such cells. How it works may be regarded as one of the most alluring and baffling of all questions on the frontiers of understanding. Can the brain understand the brain? Can the brain understand the mind? Is the brain a giant computer or something more?This degree will demonstrate ways in which we can attempt to answer these questions, using approaches that range from the biochemistry and biophysics of the nerve cell to a psychologist’s investigation of the machinery of the mind. The recent growth of this subject is due to the important contribution neuroscience is making to the understanding and treatment of mental and other neurological disorders, as well as the desire to understand the most complex functioning system evolution has created.The programme combines scientific understanding with the development of academic skills (critical appraisal, evaluation and analysis of data) along with the development of practical, presentation and written skills within a scientific context. The course ultimately aims to produce graduates who are employable, well-informed, versatile and enthusiastic ambassadors for science.The knowledge and skills that you develop during your Neuroscience degree will make you employable in a broad range of scientific careers including research, healthcare, publishing and teaching. The analytical and other skills acquired on the course are also an excellent grounding for many other career paths outside of science. Alternatively you may wish to further your studies by pursuing a higher degree.Distinctive featuresOur degrees are closely linked to the research interests of the staff who teach them, allowing you to experience the excitement of learning in an active research environment. We attract substantial external research funding and this will allow you to make use of the latest equipment, techniques and facilities in your project work. The School also leads the Neuroscience & Mental Health Research Institute, one of the University’s flagship Institutes, allowing access to a wide range of exciting training opportunities.This programme offers a high degree of flexibility with student choice at its core. You have the freedom to decide how your academic experience develops. You can choose to specialise in a particular area or to maintain a wide breadth of learning and explore the interdisciplinary research that underpins much of the School’s success.