Oxford requirement to study Biochemistry (Molecular and Cellular); www.ox.ac.uk
Table of Contents
UCAS code | C700 | Duration | 4 years (MBiochem) | ||
Entrance requirements | A*AA including Chemistry and another science or Maths, with the A* in Maths, Physics, Chemistry, or Biology (or a very closely related subject) | Subject requirements | Chemistry and another science or Maths Maths Biology (beyond GCSE) |
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Admissions test(s) | None | Written work | None | ||
Admissions statistics* | Interviewed: 52% Successful: 14% Intake: 104 *3-year average 2019-21 |
Contact | Email Biochemistry |
Unistats information for this course can be found at the bottom of the page
Please be aware that if only a small number of people took the course, there may not be any data available.
Utilizing molecular techniques, biochemistry investigates, explains, and manipulates biological processes. The molecular study of life continues to grow at a rapid rate, providing new insights into a wide range of topics, including the origin of life, the nature of disease, and the development of individual organisms. We are now able to analyze biological phenomena in more and more precise molecular terms thanks to potent new methods like NMR spectroscopy and molecular genetics. The design and synthesis of drugs, forensic science, environmental monitoring, and a plethora of other fields have all benefited from these studies. Furthermore, the traditional divisions between cell biology, medicine, physics, and chemistry have been torn down as a result of advancements in biochemistry.
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One of the largest departments in Europe, Oxford’s Biochemistry Department focuses on the following areas of study: Biology of cells; Genetics and development; Biology of RNA and the genome; Processes of Disease and Infection; Systems biology and microbiology; furthermore, Primary Science and Sub-atomic Biophysics. The division is very dynamic in research, with around 300 postgraduate understudies and exploration staff. The undergraduate course’s scope and teaching are based on the breadth and excellence of these activities. In addition to having access to a wide variety of printed and online journals, the department has excellent facilities for research and teaching as well as excellent digital resources.
Research placements/international opportunities
The fourth-year project, which lasts for 23 full-time weeks and is an important part of the Oxford Biochemistry course, allows students to conduct in-depth research under the guidance of an academic instructor. You select a project, design your experiments, plan your research schedule, and present your findings to other researchers in the field. Employers place a high value on the acquired work experience. Additionally, the project gives you a chance to consider your interest in and aptitude for a career in research.
The Biochemistry Department and related departments like Molecular Medicine, Clinical Biochemistry, Pathology, and Pharmacology offer a wide variety of fourth-year research projects. A self-organized project can also be carried out outside of the university or even the United Kingdom.
A typical week (Years 1-3)
During Years 1-3, your weekly timetable will be divided between lectures (typically eight to ten a week), tutorials and classes (1 to 3 a week) and practicals (averaging 1 full day a week). The remaining time will be spent on independent study (set reading or problem-solving exercises). Tutorials are usually 2-4 students and a tutor. Class sizes may vary depending on the topic but are usually no more than 10-12 students. The ratio of demonstrators to students during practical sessions is usually about 1:12.
Most tutorials and lectures are delivered by staff who are tutors in their subjects, many of whom are world-leading experts with years of experience in teaching and research. Some tutorials and lectures may be delivered by postdoctoral researchers, while tutorials are occasionally delivered by postgraduate students. Departmental classes and practicals are supervised by a senior member of staff and largely delivered by postdoctoral researchers or postgraduate students who are studying at doctoral level.
Year 4
In your fourth year, you will pick and finish a venture, enduring 23 full-time weeks (in addition to 2 for reviewing), which will permit you to investigate exhaustively, both lab based examination and explicit late advances in natural chemistry. Under the oversight of an examination bunch pioneer, you will plan your own tests, figure out how to design research projects and present your outcomes and thoughts – orally and written down – to different laborers in the field. In a format suitable for publication, the research project is presented in a dissertation.
Advanced skill training will be provided during the project’s first three weeks. In addition to the project, you will be required to write a review article-length essay. The first term will require you to be in Oxford for 12 weeks, with a two-week break over Christmas. You will proceed with your undertaking over the two months of the subsequent term and initial 3 weeks of the third term, presenting your task exposition from that point. Additionally, you will present your project in person.
Employers place a high value on the gained experience, but the project will also give you a chance to consider your aptitude and enthusiasm for a career in research. You will write a review article on a topic that interests you as part of the research project, with help from a subject matter expert.
A combination of grades from courses taken in the second and third years, the fourth-year assessment of the research project, and the review article are used to determine the final degree class. You will graduate with an MBiochem, a master’s degree, and invaluable research experience as a result of this additional work in your final year. This will provide you with excellent preparation for further study or a variety of careers. A combination of scores from assessments of work completed in the second, third, and fourth years determines the final degree class.
Visit our Academic Year page to learn more about the structure of our teaching year.
Course structure
YEAR 1 | |
COURSESFive courses are taken:
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ASSESSMENTFirst University examinations: five written papers; satisfactory practical record |
YEARS 2 AND 3 | |
COURSES Teaching is done along five themes:
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ASSESSMENTSummative assessments (four, two-hour assessments) Final University examinations, Part I: seven written papers; satisfactory practical record |
YEAR 4 (EXTENDED FIRST TERM) | |
COURSES
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ASSESSMENTAssessment of the research project, along with broader research skills displayed in the written work – the project dissertation and the review article. |
The content and format of this course may change in some circumstances. Read further information about potential course changes.
Academic requirements
A-levels: | A*AA including Chemistry and another Science or Mathematics. The A* must be in Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry or Biology, or a very closely related subject |
Advanced Highers: | For those taking three Advanced Highers, AAB including an A in Chemistry and an A or B in another science or Mathematics, or for those doing two Advanced Highers and one Higher, AAA, including A in AH Chemistry and A in another Science or Mathematics at AH or H level. |
IB: | 39 (including core points) with 7 in HL Chemistry and 6 in two other relevant subjects at HL or SL |
Or any other equivalent (see other UK qualifications, and international qualifications) |
Wherever possible, your grades are considered in the context in which they have been achieved. (See further information on how we use contextual data.)
Subject requirements
Essential: | Chemistry to A-level, Advanced Higher, Higher Level in the IB or any other equivalent, plus another science or Mathematics. |
Recommended: | Mathematics to A-level or the equivalent is recommended to students in completing the course and, although not required for admission, may make an application more competitive. |
Helpful: | Biology beyond GCSE or the equivalent (eg AS-level, Scottish Highers, Standard Level in the IB) can be helpful to students in completing the course, although is not required for admission. More detailed information is available on the department website. |
If a practical component forms part of any of your science A‐levels used to meet your offer, we expect you to pass it.
If English is not your first language you may also need to meet our English language requirements.
Applying
All candidates must follow the application procedure as shown in applying to Oxford. The information below gives specific details for students applying for this course.
Written work and admissions tests
You do not need to take a written test or submit any written work as part of an application for this course.
What are tutors looking for?
As biochemistry is not taught as an A-level subject, tutors will not expect you to have a detailed knowledge of the subject. However, if you are shortlisted for interview, tutors will be looking for an informed interest in the subject (originating from news items, books, magazine articles etc) together with an ability to use information (from other school or college subjects, particularly Chemistry) to analyse and solve problems and to construct your own opinions.
Careers
Biochemists play an important role in biological, environmental and clinical fields, with employment areas stretching from healthcare through forensic science to the food and pharmaceutical industries. Typically about 60% of our biochemistry graduates go on to do research or further study, mostly in biochemistry related subjects, while others find employment in industry, commerce or other areas, such as finance and the law. Further details of careers in biochemistry can be found on the UK Biochemical Society website.
Erin, who graduated in 2010, is a clinical scientist for the NHS. She says: ‘My degree not only gave me the knowledge and qualification necessary for a career in Clinical Biochemistry, but the methods of teaching employed at Oxford University have helped me develop an investigative and independent way of thinking, perfect for this career which applies scientific principles to clinical situations.’
We don’t want anyone who has the academic ability to get a place to study here to be held back by their financial circumstances. To meet that aim, Oxford offers one of the most generous financial support packages available for UK students and this may be supplemented by support from your college.
Fees
These annual fees are for full-time students who begin this undergraduate course here.
Fee status |
Annual Course fees |
Home | £9,250 |
Overseas | £44,240 |
Further details about fee status eligibility can be found on the fee status webpage.
For more information please refer to our course fees page. Fees will usually increase annually. For details, please see our guidance on likely increases to fees and charges.
Living costs
Living costs at Oxford might be less than you’d expect, as our world-class resources and college provision can help keep costs down.
Living costs for the academic year starting are estimated to be between £1,290 and £1,840 for each month you are in Oxford. Our academic year is made up of three eight-week terms, so you would not usually need to be in Oxford for much more than six months of the year but may wish to budget over a nine-month period to ensure you also have sufficient funds during the holidays to meet essential costs. For further details please visit our living costs webpage.
Financial support
Home | A tuition fee loan is available from the UK government to cover course fees in full for Home (UK, Irish nationals and other eligible students with UK citizens’ rights – see below*) students undertaking their first undergraduate degree**, so you don’t need to pay your course fees up front.In Oxford is offering one of the most generous bursary packages of any UK university to Home students with a family income of around £42,875 or less, with additional opportunities available to UK students from households with incomes of £27,500 or less. The UK government also provides living costs support to Home students from the UK and those with settled status who meet the residence requirements.
*For courses starting on or after 1 August, the UK government has confirmed that EU, other EEA, and Swiss Nationals will be eligible for student finance from the UK government if they have UK citizens’ rights (i.e. if they have pre-settled or settled status, or if they are an Irish citizen covered by the Common Travel Area arrangement). The support you can access from the government will depend on your residency status. See further details. |
Islands (Channel Islands and Isle of Man) |
Islands students are entitled to different support to that of students from the rest of the UK.Please refer the links below for information on the support to you available from your funding agency:
States of Jersey |
Overseas | Please refer to the “Other Scholarships” section of our Oxford Bursaries and Scholarships page. |
**If you have studied at undergraduate level before and completed your course, you will be classed as an Equivalent or Lower Qualification student (ELQ) and won’t be eligible to receive government or Oxford funding
Additional Fees and Charges Information for Biochemistry (Molecular and Cellular)
All students are required to wear laboratory coats and safety glasses during practicals. These can be purchased from the department at a subsidised cost of £10.
In the final year of the Biochemistry course, students work an extended first term to begin their research project. You will need to be in Oxford for 12 weeks in the first term, followed by a two-week break over Christmas. The extended terms mean that you will need to budget for higher living costs in the final year, as you will be required to be in Oxford for longer than the standard terms.
Contextual information
Course data from Discover Uni provides applicants with statistics about undergraduate life at Oxford. But there is so much more to an Oxford degree that the numbers can’t convey.
The Oxford tutorial
College tutorials are central to teaching at Oxford. Typically, they take place in your college and are led by your academic tutor(s) who teach as well as do their own research. Students will also receive teaching in a variety of other ways, depending on the course. This will include lectures and classes, and may include laboratory work and fieldwork. However, tutorials offer a level of personalised attention from academic experts unavailable at most universities.
During tutorials (normally lasting an hour), college subject tutors will give you and one or two tutorial partners feedback on prepared work and cover a topic in depth. The other student(s) in your college tutorials will be from your year group, doing the same course as you and will normally be at your college. Such regular and rigorous academic discussion develops and facilitates learning in a way that isn’t possible through lectures alone. Tutorials also allow for close progress monitoring so tutors can quickly provide additional support if necessary.
Read more about tutorials and an Oxford education
College life
Our colleges are at the heart of Oxford’s reputation as one of the best universities in the world.
- At Oxford, everyone is a member of a college as well as their subject department(s) and the University. Students therefore have both the benefits of belonging to a large, renowned institution and to a small and friendly academic community. Each college or hall is made up of academic and support staff, and students. Colleges provide a safe, supportive environment leaving you free to focus on your studies, enjoy time with friends and make the most of the huge variety of opportunities.
- Each college has a unique character, but generally their facilities are similar. Each one, large or small, will have the following essential facilities:
- Porters’ lodge (a staffed entrance and reception)
- Dining hall
- Lending library (often open 24/7 in term time)
- Student accommodation
- Tutors’ teaching rooms
- Chapel and/or music rooms
- Laundry
- Green spaces
- Common room (known as the JCR).
- All first year students are offered college accommodation either on the main site of their college or in a nearby college annexe. This means that your neighbours will also be ‘freshers’ and new to life at Oxford. This accommodation is guaranteed, so you don’t need to worry about finding somewhere to live after accepting a place here, all of this is organised for you before you arrive.
- All colleges offer at least one further year of accommodation and some offer it for the entire duration of your degree. You may choose to take up the option to live in your college for the whole of your time at Oxford, or you might decide to arrange your own accommodation after your first year – perhaps because you want to live with friends from other colleges.
- While college academic tutors primarily support your academic development, you can also ask their advice on other things. Lots of other college staff including welfare officers help students settle in and are available to offer guidance on practical or health matters. Current students also actively support students in earlier years, sometimes as part of a college ‘family’ or as peer supporters trained by the University’s Counselling Service.