Unaccredited Biomedical sciences degrees

[Shimy]

This is for anyone who works in a university within the above department or perhaps whose dc is studying Biomedical science currently.

Biomedical science degrees to my knowledge, offer 3 pathways: scientific Research , lab work (HCPC) or Medicine. Without accreditation, you cannot work as an HCPC. Most of the newer universities are accredited which allows their students to register as an HCPC as well as follow a research path if they so choose. The higher ranked universities, Cambridge, Bath et al and all of the RG except Queen Mary are running non accredited degrees and I’m very curious as to their rational for this. Can anyone shed some light?

Strathclyde. I'm not sure in which way it's accredited (wasn't really listening in that depth) but it was definitely pitched as "it gives you options".

www.strath.ac.uk/courses/undergraduate/biomedicalscience/

The course at Strathclyde is accredited by the IBMS and the RBS. The best of both worlds.

the IBMS accreditation only qualified the student to work for the NHS

Literally - ?

Apart from, do all other employers recruiting for 'no specific subject' grad jobs automatically turn down anyone with a degree accredited by the IBMS, I suppose I mean, so private hospital groups wouldn't look at you? They seem all too keen to employ medical consultants trained largely at public expense.

The University of Birmingham along with a few more RG universities has Roual Society of Biology accreditation for its courses.

My degree was IBMS accredited and I don't work in the NHS at all... I probably will at some point. I got my degree on 12th September and by the 21st October I was working in a Chemistry lab. It's not my dream job, but BMS, whether accredited or not gives you some very transferable skills that you can take to most scientific disciplines. The only thing I will say is if. You. Know 100 percent that you want to be a registered Biomedical Scientist then do the accredited course and make sure you do the sandwich year to complete your registration portfolio. I didn't do the sandwich year so I was very lucky to have got a job in science. I Know a few people from my Course have struggled obtaining work as employers like experience.

MarchingFrogs this is what the admissions tutor told us. I had asked what the difference was between the two accreditations, and he explained that having the RSB accreditation meant that graduates had a wider choice of options than if their course was IBMS accredited.

Also IBMS accredited courses all have to cover the same modules whereas RSB and non accredited courses could offer more module flexibility. The course at her university allows students to switch their degree specialism (within the Biomedical and Biomolecular suite of programmes) at the end of their first year. Most students stay with biomedical sciences, but some go on to pharmacology, some do biomedical genetics, some do physiological sciences, some choose biochemistry, and a very few transfer to medicine.

We were lucky enough to have a long chat with him as we visited for a campus tour and not an open day. He gave us an hour and a half of his time.

All the universities on this link have RSB accreditation.

DD has a BA Biomedical Degree - she particularly looked at ones which DIDN'T have registration, as she didn't want to do research or work in the NHS. Her first year was studied along with the Medics, and her second and third years were specialised, with a wide range of options. Her third year also included a full on research project. You really have to look very carefully at each and every university prospectus, as for BioMed they are all very different.

She is now happily working in a medical consultancy in London.

Baaaahhhhh a BA? Not a BSc?

Oxford's course is a BA?

So it is. Seems odd that a science degree is a BA at Oxford.

Yes, Oxford. Natural Sciences at Cambridge, is also BA. DD didn't go for that as it had too many modules she wasn't interested in, the Oxford course had more "medical" options, which is what she wanted. BA in these types of courses seem to be an Oxbridge "thing".

Baccalaureus artium (BA) can cover a very wide range of subjects. The Latin route, ars, can mean ability, theory, tactic, skill, trick, power, character, knowledge, science, stratagy, technique, business, learning, method, practice, profession, trade, craft, etc. In mediaeval universities, all baccalaureate (bachelors) degrees would have been BAs.

The BSc has only existed since it was introduced by the University of London in 1860.

That's interesting. Thank you SirTobyBelch