Program Overview

Neuroscience (BSc)

Overview

This 3-year Neuroscience degree explores all aspects of the nervous system, from the molecular to the behavioral. Students will discover the processes behind brain disorders and study the wider aspects of physiology, pharmacology, and the immune system.

Entry Requirements

For Academic Year 2025/26

• AAB including Chemistry and one further science subject
• International Baccalaureate Diploma: Pass with overall score of 34 points, with 17 points at higher level, including 5 and 6 points at Higher Level in Chemistry and one further science subject
• BTEC: D in the BTEC Extended Certificate plus AA in A Level Chemistry and one further science subject
• Access to HE Diploma: 60 credits with a minimum of 45 credits at Level 3 of which 39 credits must be at Distinction and 6 credits at Merit
• Irish Leaving Certificate: H1, H2, H2, H2, H2, H2 to include Chemistry and one further science subject
• Scottish Qualification: Offers will be based on exams being taken at the end of S6
• Cambridge Pre-U: D3, D3, M2 to include Chemistry and one further science subject
• Welsh Baccalaureate: AAB from 3 A levels including Chemistry and one further science subject or AA from two A levels including Chemistry and one further a science subject and B from the Advanced Welsh Baccalaureate Skills Challenge Certificate

For Academic Year 2026/27

• ABB including Chemistry and one further science subject
• International Baccalaureate Diploma: Pass with overall score of 32 points, with 16 points at higher level, including 5 and 6 points at Higher Level in Chemistry and one further science subject
• BTEC: D in the BTEC Extended Certificate plus AA in A Level Chemistry and one further science subject
• Access to HE Diploma: 60 credits with a minimum of 45 credits at Level 3 of which 30 credits must be at Distinction and 15 credits at Merit
• Irish Leaving Certificate: H1, H2, H3, H3, H3, H3 to include Chemistry and one further science subject
• Scottish Qualification: Offers will be based on exams being taken at the end of S6
• Cambridge Pre-U: D3, M2, M2 to include Chemistry and one further science subject
• Welsh Baccalaureate: AAB from 3 A levels including Chemistry and one further science subject or AA from two A levels including Chemistry and one further a science subject and B from the Advanced Welsh Baccalaureate Skills Challenge Certificate

Course Structure

Year 1

• Chemistry of Life
• Fundamentals of Biochemistry
• Fundamentals of Cell Biology and Physiology
• How to Think Like a Scientist
• The Human Genome and Disease

Year 2

• Flow of Genetic Information
• Immunology, Infection and Inflammation
• Optional modules:
  • Applied and Environmental Biochemistry
  • Bioinformatics
  • Cell Biology
  • Engineering Replacement Body Parts
  • Ethics in Science, Engineering and Technology: Jekyll and Hyde
  • Evolution
  • Exploring Proteins: Structure and Function
  • Global Health
  • Global Sustainability Challenges
  • Mathematical Methods in Chemistry I
  • Medical Microbiology
  • Plant Development and Function
  • Population and Community Ecology
  • Principles of Pharmacology
  • Vertebrate Development

Year 3

• Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience
• Pharmacology of Neuropsychiatric Disorders
• Optional modules:
  • Biofilms and Microbial Communities
  • Bioinformatics and Systems Biology
  • Biomedical Parasitology
  • Biomedical Technology
  • Bioscience Business
  • Bioscience Education
  • Cancer Chromosome Biology
  • Cellular and Molecular Pathology
  • Current Topics in Cell and Developmental Biology
  • Evolution and Development
  • Evolution and Genetics
  • Immunology
  • In-Silico Research Project
  • Laboratory Research Project
  • Microbiomes and Health
  • Molecular Cell Biology
  • Molecular Pharmacology
  • Molecular Recognition
  • Molecular and Structural Basis of Disease
  • Neurodegenerative Disease
  • Plant Cell Biology
  • Regulation of Gene Expression
  • Science Communication
  • Selective Toxicity
  • Systems Neuroscience

Tuition Fees

• UK students: £9,535
• EU and international students: £30,500

Careers and Employability

• Employability skills: research, critical thinking, commercial awareness, self-management, confidence, communication, teamwork, creativity, problem-solving, resilience
• Career pathways: academic researcher, neuroscientist, pharmaceutical researcher, science communicator, clinical scientist, biotechnologist, healthcare scientist, clinical neuropsychologist, neurologist, neuropharmacologist
• Wider career opportunities: laboratory technician, clinical research assistant, data analyst, neurological charity fundraiser, management trainee, actuarial analyst, science writer, neuroimaging technician, secondary school teacher, university lecturer

Funding and Scholarships

• University of Southampton bursary
• Undergraduate scholarships
• Engineering Excellence Scholarship
• Southampton Physics and Astronomy Achievement Scholarship
• Black Futures Postgraduate Research Scholarships (Environmental and Life Sciences)
• Black Futures scholarship
• GREAT Scholarships 2025 – Egypt
• GREAT Scholarships 2025 – France
• GREAT Scholarships 2025 – Ghana
• Horizon Europe fee waiver
• Innovation and Social Impact Scholarships
• Southampton Business School Postgraduate UK Scholarship
• Southampton Genomics Talent Scholarship
• Southampton History Patricia Mather and Helen Patterson Scholarship
• Southampton MA Holocaust scholarships
• Southampton Philosophy David Humphris-Norman Scholarship
• Southampton Philosophy MA Scholarship
• Southampton Photonics Impact Scholarship
• Southampton UK Alumni Music Scholarship
• Study in Art and Media Technology Scholarship
• The National Institute for Health and care Research South Central INSIGHT Programme
• The South Coast Doctoral Training Partnership Social Science PhD Studentships
• Winchester School of Art Progression Scholarship

Research Areas

• Biochemistry
• Biomedical Sciences
• Biotechnology
• Cell Biology
• Chemistry
• Genetics
• Immunology
• Microbiology
• Molecular Biology
• Neuroscience
• Pharmacology
• Physiology

Institutes, Centres, and Groups

• Active Living
• Advanced Fibre Applications
• Advanced Laser Laboratory
• Advanced Project Management Research Centre
• Antibody and Vaccine Group
• Astronomy Group
• Autism Community Research Network @ Southampton (ACoRNS)
• Bioarchaeology and Osteoarchaeology at Southampton (BOS)
• Bladder and Bowel Management
• Cell and Developmental Biology
• Centre for Defence and Security Research
• Centre for Developmental Origins of Health and Disease
• Centre for Digital Finance
• Centre for Eastern European and Eurasian Studies (CEEES)
• Centre for Empirical Research in Finance and Banking (CERFIB)
• Centre for Geometry, Topology, and Applications
• Centre for Global Englishes
• Centre for Global Health and Policy (GHaP)
• Centre for Green Maritime Innovation (cGMI)
• Centre for Health Technologies
• Centre for Healthcare Analytics
• Centre for Human Development, Stem Cells and Regeneration
• Centre for Imperial and Postcolonial Studies
• Centre for Inclusive and Sustainable Entrepreneurship and Innovation (CISEI)
• Centre for International Film Research (CIFR)
• Centre for International Law and Globalisation
• Centre for Internet of Things and Pervasive Systems
• Centre for Justice Studies
• Centre for Linguistics, Language Education and Acquisition Research
• Centre for Machine Intelligence
• Centre for Maritime Archaeology
• Centre for Medieval and Renaissance Culture (CMRC)
• Centre for Modern and Contemporary Writing (CMCW)
• Centre for Political Ethnography (CPE)
• Centre for Research in Accounting, Accountability and Governance
• Centre for Research on Work and Organisations
• Centre for Resilient Socio-Technical Systems
• Centre for Transnational Studies
• Child and Adolescent Research Group
• Clinical Ethics, Law and Society (CELS)
• Clinical Legal Education
• Computational Nonlinear Optics
• Cyber Security Academy
• Data Science Group
• Digital Oceans
• EPSRC and MOD Centre for Doctoral Training in Complex Integrated Systems for Defence and Security
• Economic Theory and Experimental Economics
• Economy, Society and Governance
• Electrical Power Engineering
• Environmental Hydraulics
• Gas Photonics in Hollow Core Fibres
• Geochemistry
• Global Health (Demography)
• Global Health Community of Practice
• Gravity group
• High Power Fibre Lasers
• Hollow Core Fibre
• Human Genetics and Genomic Medicine
• Infection
• Infrastructure Group
• Institute of Developmental Sciences
• Institute of Maritime Law (IML)
• Integrated Photonic Devices
• Interdisciplinary Musculoskeletal Health
• International Centre for Ecohydraulics Research (ICER)
• Language Assessment and Testing Unit (LATU)
• Laser-Direct-Write (LDW) Technologies for Biomedical Applications
• Law and Technology Centre
• Long Term Conditions
• Magnetic Resonance
• Mathematical Modelling
• Medicines Management
• Molecular and Precision Biosciences
• Multiwavelength Accretion and Astronomical Transients
• National Biofilms Innovation Centre (NBIC)
• National Centre for Research Methods
• National Infrastructure Laboratory
• Nature-Based Ocean Solutions
• Nonlinear Semiconductor Photonics
• Ocean Perception Group
• Operational Research
• Optical Engineering and Quantum Photonics Group
• Paediatrics and Child Health - Clinical and Experimental Sciences
• People, Property, Community
• Photonic Systems, Circuits and Sensors Group
• Physical Optics
• Primary Care Research Centre
• Quantum, Light and Matter Group
• Silica Fibre Fabrication
• Silicon Photonics
• Skin Sensing Research Group
• Southampton Ethics Centre
• Southampton Health Technology Assessments Centre (SHTAC)
• Southampton High Energy Physics group
• Southampton Imaging
• Southampton Theory Astrophysics and Gravity (STAG) Research Centre
• Stefan Cross Centre for Women, Equality and Law
• String theory and holography
• The India Centre for Inclusive Growth and Sustainable Development
• The Parkes Institute
• Tony Davies High Voltage Laboratory
• Ultrafast X-ray Group
• Vision Science
• WSA Exchange
• Work Futures Research Centre (WFRC)