MSc Bioarchaeology

Bournemouth University

United Kingdom, Bournemouth

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Home/United Kingdom/Bournemouth /Bournemouth University/MSc Bioarchaeology

Bournemouth University

United Kingdom , Bournemouth

Key Facts

Program Level

Master by Course Work

Study Type

Full Time

Delivery

On Campus

Campuses

Main Site

Program Language

English

Start & Deadlines

Next Intake DeadlinesSeptember-2026

Apply to this program

Go to the official application for the university

Duration 1 year(s)

Tuition Fee

GBP 18,900 / year

Next Intake September-2026

MSc Bioarchaeology

About

Course details

Contact hours and assessment

Details of the assessment methods and contact hours for each unit of the course can be found in the programme specification.

Download the programme specification (pdf 208kb)

Why study MSc Bioarchaeology at BU?

Animal bones and human remains are amongst the most common finds on archaeological excavations of all periods
The archaeological profession has an increasing need for staff with osteoarchaeological training, to assist in the interpretation of archaeological sites and understanding the human experience in the past, particularly their relationship with animals
Choose specialist optional units within the overall context of bioarchaeology, for example Applications of Zooarchaeological Science or Palaeanthropology and Palaeolithc Archaeology
Provides you with an excellent foundation if you want to pursue a career as a specialist osteoarchaeological practitioner, or pursue doctoral level study in bioarchaeology
Access to an incredible collection of skeletal remains, comprising more than 700 human specimens and over 500 reference skeletons of mammals, birds, fish and reptiles and specimens - one of the largest such collections to be held by any UK university.

Find out more about the content of this course.

Requirements

Entry Requirements

You can find details of the international qualifications we accept, and what level of study they apply to, on our entry requirements for non-UK students' page.

Please see below some examples of the qualifications for entry:

India: Bachelor’s degree (4 years) from a recognised HE institution with a minimum overall result of 55%
Nigeria: Bachelor's degree from a recognised institution with a minimum classification of 2:2
China: Chinese Bachelor's (Honours) degree from a recognised higher education institution with 65% or above
Turkey: Bachelor’s degree (Lisans Diplomasi - four years) with a minimum overall GPA of 2.3/4.0
Vietnam: Bachelor's degree/Bang tot nghiep dai hoc with an average score of 6.5/10, or 2.25/4, or a Master’s degree/Thac si.

All applications will be subject to a minimum grade and your degree may need to be in a relevant subject area.

English language requirements

If English is not your first language, you will need to provide evidence that you understand English to a satisfactory level. English language requirements for this course are normally:

IELTS (Academic) 6.0 with minimum 5.5 in each component, or equivalent.

View further information about our English language requirements.

Bournemouth University International College offers a number of pre-sessional English and preparatory programmes to prepare international students for postgraduate study at BU. Admission to the degree is guaranteed on successful completion of your course to the required level.

English Program Requirements

IELTS (Academic) 6.0 with minimum 5.5 in each component, or equivalent.

View further information about our English language requirements.

Career

Careers

Forensic archaeology is an expanding international field. Upon completion of the course you will join other BU graduates who are acknowledged as some of the most experienced forensic archaeologists in the field.

This will open up a wide range of career prospects for you, and you could end up work anywhere in the world examining crime scenes, mass graves & disasters and educating other researchers in new forensic science approaches.

There is an increased demand for archaeologists and the profession has been placed on the government list of skilled occupation shortages.

Further study

If you want to continue your studies after achieving your Master’s, you can look into our range of doctoral programmes.

Where are they now? Alumni updates

There are lots of exciting careers you can embark on once you've graduated from BU. Below is a list of what some of our graduates are up to now.

Russel Harris

Russel graduated from BU with an undergraduate degree BSc (Hons) Archaeology in 2002 and stayed at BU to complete a MSc degree in Forensic Archaeology which he graduated from in 2004. Russel then went on to be employed by Lincolnshire Police as a Crime Analyst before specialising as an Financial Investigator.

Bernice Jones

Bernice is a former undergraduate obtaining a BSc (Hons) Archaeological and Forensic Sciences degree in 2019 and a recent MSc Bioarchaeology degree in 2020. Her MSc dissertation focused on Zooarchaeology. Bernice now works for Oxford Archaeology which is one of the biggest Commercial archaeology companies in the UK.

Sam Walker

Sam is a former BU Archaeology undergraduate and obtained his MSc Osteoarchaeology degree in 2014. Sam was a student member of one of our Zooarchaeology research projects in Russia. Sam also worked for Bournemouth Archaeology on commercial projects before starting his PhD in Norway (some of which he has spent as a visiting PGR here at BU). He specialises in bird bone remains.

Gabrielle Delbarre

Gabrielle graduated from BU in 2014 with an MSc in Osteoarchaeology. While completing her MSc she worked part-time at the National History Museum in London as a Curation Assistant and Documentation Officer within the Anthropology Collections in the Earth Sciences Department. She went on to work as a Curator and Collection Manager at Hengistbury Head Visitor Centre and Kingfisher Barn Visitor Centre in Bournemouth. Gabrielle has returned to work at BU in the Archaeology & Anthropology Department as a Demonstrator where she manages the Anthropology and Zooarchaeology laboratories, one of the largest collections of human remains and faunal skeletal material in the South of England.

Fee Information

Costs and fees

You can find full information about the deposits required and how to pay your fees in our postgraduate fees and funding section, including details of the Postgraduate Loan (subject to fee status).

All fees are quoted in pounds sterling and are per annum. Fees quoted are for tuition only unless stated otherwise. Your tuition fees will be the same for each year of your course.

Find out more about living expenses for postgraduate students

Tuition Fee

GBP 18,900

Application Fee

GBP