Biological Sciences

The health of a nation is of the utmost importance. In order to improve the nation’s health, it is essential that the working of the human body, in both health and disease, is fully understood. To this end, key areas of study include the function and nutritional status of the body, as well as an appreciation of the key areas of drug therapy.

Why QMU?

Queen Margaret University offers degrees in Nutrition, Applied Pharmacology and Human Biology. The first two years of these three courses have almost identical content, allowing all students to get the same grounding in the biological sciences. In these early years, all students will gain a solid understanding and appreciation of the key areas of human physiology, human biochemistry, cell biology, microbiology, pharmacology, immunology and nutrition. In parallel with these core subjects, our students also get the opportunity to enhance their ability in the areas of laboratory practical skills and investigative skills (eg data analysis).

Although we hope that our students have made the correct choices at application, there can be times when a student feels that they would like a change of direction. This can come about as a student starts to gain an appreciation of a wider range of topic areas in the first two years. If this situation does arise, the opportunity exists to change from any one of the three courses listed to one of the others. This change, or transfer, would be the student’s own decision. We hope that the unique structure we offer widens the range of opportunities available to all of our students. In Year Three, the key clinical science topics remain shared across all three courses, but further distinction between the courses also becomes apparent. This results in there being fewer shared modules. Year Four modules differ for the three degrees, either in the module itself or the topic choice within the module.

Our courses are truly international, with students hailing from many countries across the globe. The opportunity to study alongside students from different countries certainly broadens the whole student experience.

Our location near Edinburgh positions us close to many of the leading players in the contract research and pharmaceutical research areas, as well as many large companies, hospitals, research laboratories and government offices. Our approach to learning and teaching Our innovative approach to learning and teaching includes not only the more traditional approaches of lectures and tutorials, but also, importantly for such biological sciences courses, numerous laboratory practicals throughout the course. In addition to these more typical approaches we also utilise communication/ IT workshops, self-study learning packs, group and individual projects, problem solving exercises and case studies. As a student moves through their course, the use of didactic lectures will gradually decrease and be replaced by more student-centred and student-driven approaches. This change in emphasis is mirrored by the move from textbooks as course materials to a more significant use of primary research journal articles and government legislation and guideline documents.

A key part of any course is assessment and to this end we try to use a balanced range of approaches. We do feel that there is a place for the more traditional exam format, alongside some more unique approaches. These include written assignments, individual and group presentations, laboratory and project reports, short tests (MCQs, short answer formats etc.) and oral examinations. Overall, assessment is less exam-based in later years.

Research

The staff involved in teaching the Biological Sciences courses are heavily involved in research into issues related to nutrition and health. Most academic staff are research active and at any given time we have a number of PhD students. Our research is aimed at establishing sound evidence on which to base strategies for improving health, in the context of both treatment and prevention, and draws on expertise in nutritional, biomedical and social sciences. Our academic staff and PhD students are involved in the research in the areas of clinical nutrition and metabolism, public health nutrition, microbiology and immunology, and food choice. This focus on research links in with all of our teaching, particularly in Years Three and Four, and ensures that the content of our courses is both relevant and current.

Career prospects

Career options vary depending on which degree course you undertake. On completion of our degrees, opportunities for our Applied Pharmacology graduates exist in pharmaceutical companies (research and development; clinical trials), university laboratories (research), the sales and marketing of pharmaceuticals, medical information and publishing, and toxicology (the study of the safety aspects of medicines). Similarly, opportunities for the Human Biology graduate can be found in laboratory research, science/ health management and administration, health promotion/health education, science teaching and health product marketing. Opportunities exist for Nutritionists in a wide variety of areas including food companies, health media, fitness and leisure industries, research, health promotion, pharmaceutical industries and public health nutrition. Many graduates from the three courses also choose to study for a higher degree (MSc, MPhil or PhD) or professional training. For the graduates of a multidisciplinary degree, there are many more career outlets.

CASE STUDY

Kylie Conroy, BSc (Hons) Human Biology

I am originally from Australia and after leaving school, I went on to do an apprenticeship in hospitality with a view to one day opening my own restaurant or café after I had done some travelling. My travels brought me to the UK and I spent a few years working in restaurants and bars, but I realised that I wanted to do something different. I was still interested in food, but I was keen for a more scientific career. As my previous qualifications were not science-focused, I did a one year Access course at college which gave me the qualifications to apply for the BSc (Hons) Nutrition at QMU. The content of Years One and Two of QMU’s degrees in Nutrition, Human Biology and Applied Pharmacology is the same and provides a grounding in science. This is great as it means that you can refocus your studies if you enjoy one aspect more than the other.

Enjoying lab work, I decided to change to the Human Biology degree and I'm glad that I changed: I really enjoyed it and although I found it challenging, I believe that if you put in the work you get the results and I did – a First Class Honours. The modules were very interesting and well presented and I really enjoyed the written assignments and delving deep into a particular topic. I was also able to secure a three month studentship at University of Edinburgh where I did some research into depression - which was a brilliant experience. Similar undergraduate studentships are offered in universities throughout the UK and I would highly recommend doing one. It not only gave me good experience, but it also meant that I could see first hand what was involved in laboratory work and real research. Also, through my contacts there I was able to do some further research that formed the basis of my honours project.

Towards the end Year Four, I started thinking about my future. As I had enjoyed laboratory work and researching for my honours project, I quite fancied carrying on to do a PhD. QMU were offering studentships for various topics of research, so I applied and was accepted.

Between graduating and starting my PhD, I went back to work in the lab at Edinburgh University. After finishing my PhD, I’d like to work in industrial research and take a break from studying, with the hope of further study after I’ve gained some work experience. With the changing economy though, who knows what lies ahead. I am just going to finish my PhD and then take it from there. I am keeping my eye on the job market.

Our courses

»BSc/BSc (Hons) Applied Pharmacology

»BSc/BSc (Hons) Human Biology

»BSc/BSc (Hons) Nutrition

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