Biomedical Science - Clinical Biomedical Research

Discover how to carry out research in clinical settings and work alongside experts to address a healthcare challenge. How do you effectively carry out research in a clinical environment? And what can we do to improve healthcare practice and strategies? Join us to uncover the answers and prepare to shape the future of healthcare.

This course is designed for healthcare professionals or life sciences graduates interested in research. You’ll also be a great match if you work in clinical trials or are progressing from our Healthcare Research Skills and Methods PgCert.

Kickstart your research career Research and innovation are in our DNA. Edward Jenner, whose groundbreaking work contributed to the eradication of smallpox, completed his medical training at St George’s in 1770. More recently, our research has helped accelerate the treatment of tuberculosis, malaria, HIV and Covid-19.

From patient engagement to laboratory analyses, you’ll experience the entire clinical study cycle. We’ll also share the latest research insights – our experts are exploring everything from new therapies for neonatal disorders and cancer, to how plants might help us make medicines accessible.

Why St George's? NIHR Clinical Research Facility – we carry out early-phase translation and complex clinical studies. Our clinical trials benefit from our expertise in measuring laboratory endpoints on site and with rapid turnaround.

Expert research community – you’ll have access to specialist equipment and expertise in clinical, epidemiological and laboratory research. Your project might involve working with clinical samples or staff on our hospital sites.

Intense research training – completing an MRes means you’ll spend nine months working on a research project and receive one-to-one training. Past students have even been listed as authors of published papers.

Course content Whichever biomedical science pathway you pick, you’ll complete three core modules: Research Methods, Statistics, and Research Project Planning and Management.

All the core modules provide advanced training in biomedical research and help you interpret data. You’ll develop specialist skills in tissue culture, handling of clinical specimens, flow cytometry, gene cloning and protein techniques, microbiological techniques and more.

Throughout the year, you’ll also develop specialist knowledge in clinical biomedical research. We’ll look at how to carry out studies in a clinical environment and implement strategies needed to improve current healthcare practices.

Your research project Unlike MSc courses, you’ll complete an extensive research project which involves spending up to nine months working as part of a research team. This may provide an opportunity to work with clinical samples or staff on our hospital sites.

During the first term, you’ll meet potential supervisors and pick a project. Past projects have explored immunity and pain in osteoarthritis, the impact of occult carbon monoxide exposure and tools to manage polypharmacy in acute care.