Biochemistry (with an industrial placement year)

94% of our research overall in Biological Sciences was assessed to be world leading or internationally excellent (REF 2021)

About the course

What are the mechanisms of life?

Studying Biochemistry at Sussex, you’ll explore this question. Taught by leading biochemists and chemists, you’ll:

study life at the molecular scale
explore the chemical processes underpinning the activities of cells and organisms
discover what happens when things go wrong, leading to diseases such as cancer
find out how biochemistry can help us develop new therapeutics.
From Year 1, you’ll be in the lab gaining hands-on practical skills, recording, analysing and interpreting data from your experiments. You’ll learn about current theories in the field, communicating complex topics and working as part of a team.

The course is informed by the latest research. It’s flexible so you can tailor your degree to your interests and career aspirations. You’ll be inspired by modules in areas such as medicinal chemistry, drug discovery, cell signalling and neuroscience. You’ll be supported by a friendly community of scientists in the School of Life Sciences. Our student mentoring programme can also provide you with academic support should you need it.

When you graduate, you’ll have skills in:

purifying and analysing key biomolecules such as nucleic acids and enzymes
exploring genomics data
carrying out your own research project.
With such skills, a variety of careers are open to you, in the pharmaceutical or biotechnology industries, or within forensics. Your data-handling and analytical skills mean you could develop a career both inside and outside of science.

And in addition, the optional year in industry is a great opportunity for you to gain real-world experience of working in the biochemical sector. If your application is successful, you’ll spend your year in industry after Year 2 and before you return to Sussex for your final year. As a graduate, the skills you’ve gained during your industrial placement will give you a distinct advantage in your chosen career.

To help you gain experience and increase your employability, you can apply for an optional placement as part of your course. This can be a fantastic opportunity to gain real-life insight into industry as well as skills valued by employers. You’ll be responsible for applying for and securing your placement. Our dedicated careers team can help you:

find an employer
draft an application
prepare for interviews.

Don’t worry if you’re not successful, you’ll simply transfer to a non-placement version of your course.

MSci or BSc?

We also offer this course without the industrial placement year, or as a four-year MSci.

Location

Study on our beautiful, green campus on the edge of the South Downs National Park and just minutes from the vibrant seaside city of Brighton & Hove. We’re near to Gatwick airport and just over an hour from London.

About the University of Sussex
Our courses, research, culture and campus aim to stimulate, excite and challenge. From scientific discovery to global policy, from student welfare to career development, Sussex innovates and takes a lead. And today, in every part of society and across the world, you'll find someone from Sussex making an original and valuable contribution.