Marine Biology with a Year in Applied Research

An academic understanding of ocean life across the world has never been more important.

Our four-year Marine Biology degree with a year abroad is highly practical and fieldwork based and our unique location gives students easy access to a variety of study habitats including exposed rocky shores, steep cliffs salt marshes and estuarine mudflats.

Marine Biology at Swansea University has a strong reputation and draws students from across the world and is based on our stunning Singleton Park campus overlooking Swansea Bay.

Your learning will be shaped by inspirational and internationally-renowned academics including Professor Rory Wilson – Chief Scientific Consultant behind National Geographic’s Great Migrations, and Dr Richard Unsworth – advisor on the globally acclaimed BBC series Blue Planet II.

The third year of this programme is spent 3 on a research project. Each students' experience and activity will depend on the field and specialism of the hosting organisation.

Your Marine Biology Experience will include: • A flexibly structured degree path means you have the opportunity to study abroad, work in industry or undertake research for a year, either locally, nationally or overseas. • All second-year students receive training at sea. • Our state-of-the-art teaching and research facilities include the Centre for Sustainable Aquatic Research, a Zoological Museum, a custom-designed 18 metre catamaran-class survey vessel, and a unique visualisation centre that displays multi-dimensional information from animal tracking data. • Field courses available near and far allow you to work varied habitats. You can explore the spectacular marine coastal ecosystems of the Gower Peninsula on our doorstep, and natural life in distant lands such as India, Borneo and Puerto Rico.

We are ranked: • 11th in the UK for Research Quality (Complete University Guide 2025) • 1st in the UK for Learning Opportunities (NSS 2024) *Based on the average positivity score across questions 5 to 9 in the NSS 2024 when ranked against universities featured in the Times Good University Guide.