Biochemistry with an Industrial Placement Year MBiolSci

Course description

Our five-year MBiolsci Biochemistry with an Industrial Placement Year course allows you to investigate the structure and function of biological systems at a molecular level.

Kick-start your career by spending a year on placement, and then complete a major research project in your final year (known as an integrated masters).

Bringing together biology and chemistry, you’ll study the science that’s behind many medical discoveries. You'll learn about proteins, enzymes, hormones, and receptors, and explore the various ways that biochemistry can be applied to major challenges affecting humanity today, from how we sustainably feed a global population, to healthy ageing and how new drugs are designed.

Explore your modules in detail

At Sheffield, you’ll be encouraged to be creative, think independently, and express your ideas. In the lab you’ll be studying the basis of life right down to the atomic level, completing practicals across molecular genetics, DNA manipulation, and protein structure analysis.

Outside of the lab, you'll get the chance to develop IT solutions to global challenges that could range from how we deliver a sustainable food supply, to how we detect and treat heritable disease.

As you progress through your degree, you'll have the option to specialise in the area of molecular bioscience that interests you across biochemistry, genetics, microbiology, or even biotechnology.

No matter what areas of biochemistry you choose to study at Sheffield, you'll develop practical laboratory and transferable skills that make our graduates attractive to employers, including project management, problem-solving, communication skills, and data analysis.

Your placement year will give you the chance to test out a career path that you're considering. This will take place in year three. Our students have found placements in science and non-science-based roles with a range of organisations including GSK, Thermofisher, the UK Health Security Agency, and the Institute of Cancer Research. Some students have even been offered graduate-level jobs at the end of their placement.

All this experience will prepare you for your research project in year four where you could be laboratory-based, focus on computer modelling, science education, or even science communication.

Your final year is designed to equip you with advanced laboratory skills, ready for a rewarding career in science. You'll spend the bulk of this year focussed on a major research project in an area of biochemistry of your choice and graduate with a masters degree.

Find out where your biochemistry degree could take you

With Access Sheffield, you could qualify for additional consideration or an alternative offer - find out if you're eligible.

• Standard offer
• Access Sheffield offer

English language requirements |

You must demonstrate that your English is good enough for you to successfully complete your course. For this course we require: GCSE English Language at grade 4/C; IELTS grade of 6.5 with a minimum of 6.0 in each component; or an alternative acceptable English language qualification

If you have any questions about entry requirements, please contact the school/department.

Equivalent English language qualifications

Visa and immigration requirements

Other qualifications | UK and EU/international

Graduate careers

You won't be short of career options with a degree in biochemistry from Sheffield.

Employers seek out our graduates because of their ability to communicate complex ideas to a range of audiences, handle data, and work to deadlines, independently and as part of a team.

Many of our graduates choose to pursue a research career, working within higher education, for public bodies, or in research and development institutions around the world. Others are interested in industrial research, joining pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and consumer goods companies like Pfizer, AstraZeneca, and Reckitt. 

Many of our graduates go on to work in healthcare, joining the NHS, private healthcare providers, or charities; working in analytical labs or specialised healthcare sectors. Some students opt to progress into postgraduate medicine or begin training to become Physician Associates.

Further study in areas including veterinary science, physiotherapy, or teaching, or taking the next step towards a PhD is another popular route. 

A good degree from a great university can take you far, whatever you want to do. We also have graduates putting their transferable skills to good use in marketing, human resources, science communication, IT and teaching with Top 100 employers like GSK, Google and Aldi.

You can find out more about where a Biochemistry degree can lead to on our careers webpages.