Program Overview

Women's Health iBSc

Key Information

• Course type: Single honours
• Delivery mode: In person
• Study mode: Full time
• Duration: One year
• Application status: Open
• Start date: September 2025
• Application deadline: 29 June 2025

Course Description

The Women's Health Intercalated BSc will provide you with insight into current research topics and appropriate research techniques in obstetrics and reproductive physiology, as well as the related fields of assisted conception, stem cell research, women's mental health, and pediatrics. It will give you an understanding of common disease processes in pregnancy and the early-life origins of health and disease, and underline the importance of hypothesis testing by efficient experimental design.

Key Benefits

• Research training in the field of women & children's health
• Opportunity to experience both clinical and laboratory research
• One-year course leading to an intercalated BSc
• Teaching by experts in the fields of assisted conception, stem cell research, women's mental health, and global women's health
• A proven career pathway for future clinical research fellows in obstetrics and paediatrics

Course Essentials

The objective of this one-year intercalated degree course is to give you an insight into current research topics and develop appropriate research techniques in obstetrics and reproductive physiology and the related fields of assisted conception and stem cell research. It will provide you with a strong scientific foundation for a future career in reproductive and women's health or in clinical research, and an understanding of the research background of evidence-based medicine.

Course Aims

• To give you a broad understanding of matters of current social and ethical concern surrounding maternity and childbirth
• To deepen your appreciation of common problems in obstetrics in contemporary societies and to explore the ways these are managed
• To equip you with the core technical skills necessary to engage with the key debates in the field of obstetrics research, policy and ethics
• To develop the skills you will need for successful multi-disciplinary, multi-professional and multi-agency work and research in Women & Children's health
• To develop your written and oral presentation skills in the communication of scientific literature and to instil a critical approach to the reading of biomedical research papers
• To provide practical experience in the techniques used in physiology and to equip you with the skills to progress to postgraduate study
• To enable you to attain a level of competence in the design and execution of a research project appropriate to H level standard and to reinforce a basic understanding of the importance of experimental design and statistical analysis

Base Campuses

• Guy's Campus: The Faculty of Life Sciences & Medicine, Faculty of Dentistry, Oral & Craniofacial Sciences, and the Institute of Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience are based at the riverside Guy's Campus, next to the Shard
• Waterloo Campus: Waterloo campus is home of the Florence Nightingale Faculty of Nursing & Midwifery and facilities for other faculties

Regulating Bodies

• King's is regulated by the Office for Students

Entry Requirements

• Full details on how to apply for King's internal students are included on KEATS
• For further information please see the Intercalated webpage
• Application deadlines:
  • King's internal students: 26th January 2025
  • External students: 29th June 2025
• Entry requirements for MBBS students:
  • King's students must have passed Stage 1 and Stage 2
  • External students must have first time passes for years 1 and 2 and all SSCs
• Entry requirements for Dental students:
  • BDS students are required to pass year 2 at the first attempt and year 3 or 4 if applicable
• Entry requirements for Veterinary students:
  • Veterinary students are required to pass year 2 at the first attempt and year 3 if applicable

Teaching Methods

• Lectures
• Seminars
• Self-Study
• Lab Work
• We will use a delivery method that will ensure students have a rich, exciting experience from the start
• Face-to-face teaching will be complemented and supported with innovative technology so that students also experience elements of digital learning and assessment
• We will teach you through a combination of lectures and seminars, and we expect you undertake a significant amount of self-study to compliment this
• Only the Maternal & Fetal Health Project will involve lab work

Module Details

Assessment

• Coursework
• Exams
• Your performance will be assessed through a combination of coursework and written examinations
• Forms of assessment may typically include written examinations, essays/ reports, and oral presentations, and will vary depending on the modules chosen

Structure

• Courses are divided into modules
• You will normally take modules totalling 120 credits
• Select a year of study:
  • Year 1
• Required modules:
  • Maternal & Fetal Health Project (45 credits)
  • Reproductive Physiology (15 credits)
  • Assisted Conception (15 credits)
  • Perinantal Mental Health (15 credits)
• Optional modules:
  • Introduction to Stem Cells (15 credits) - this is a Level 5 module
  • Introduction to Regenerative Medicine (15 credits) - Introduction to Stem Cells is a pre-requisite for this module
  • Cardiovascular & Respiratory Control (30 credits)
  • Birth Defects (15 credits)
  • Women and Children's Global Health (15 credits)
  • plus any modules offered in the School of Bioscience Education, subject to timetabling and approvals

Employability

• The intercalated BSc programme in Women's Health is a proven career pathway for future clinical research fellows in obstetrics and paediatrics
• The iBSc Programme will prepare medical students to gain a broad understanding of matters of current medical, social and ethical concern surrounding maternity and childbirth and deepen your appreciation of common problems in obstetrics in contemporary societies and to explore the ways these are managed in the UK and abroad
• Many of our graduates have gone on to study a postgraduate degree e.g. PhD, and we have a high retention rate of students within the Department of Women & Children's health who have returned as clinical research fellows
• Others have gone on to pursue careers in public health and general practice

Tuition Fees

• Full time tuition fees UK: £9,535 per year
• Full time tuition fees International: £35,800 per year
• Please note that the International tuition fee is subject to annual increases in subsequent years of study, in line with King's terms and conditions
• All International applicants to Undergraduate programmes are required to pay a deposit of £0 against their first year's tuition fee
• This deposit is payable when you firmly accept an unconditional offer to study with us, and will be offset against your tuition fees when you join King's

Additional Costs

• Books if you choose to buy your own copies
• Clothing for optional course related events and competitions
• Library fees and fines
• Personal photocopies
• Printing course handouts
• Society membership fees
• Stationery
• Graduation costs
• Travel costs for travel around London and between campuses

Funding

• To find out more about bursaries, scholarships, grants, tuition fees, living expenses, student loans, and other financial help available at King's please visit the Fees and Funding section.