Program Overview

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Key Facts

UCAS Tariff

Course duration

5 years

Available for September start 2025

Further details on entry requirements

Course Overview

This five-year course includes an integrated foundation year, after which the syllabus follows that of the standard four-year course, BSc Plant Biology (with integrated year in industry) (C202).

BSc Plant Biology will provide you with real-life opportunities to challenge your knowledge and think creatively. You will benefit from many fieldwork opportunities looking at both environmental and agricultural scenarios.

At Aberystwyth you will be studying in an area rich in a variety of stunning landscapes, providing excellent fieldwork opportunities in natural and semi-natural habitats and ecosystems including the Cardigan Bay coastline, freshwater environments, woodlands, heaths, moorland and alpine habitats. Many nature reserves are within easy reach, including Snowdonia and the Brecon Beacons National Parks.

Our world-class facilities include botany gardens with a wide range of temperate and tropical plants, an extensive range of growth rooms and glasshouses, a museum of historic botanical specimens, and plant genetic resources collections and databases. We are also home to the National Plant Phenomics Centre, giving you the possibility of engaging with our world-leading plant breeding programmes.

The year in industry is taken in your fourth year in the UK or overseas, is supervised and assessed, and will count towards your degree grade. During your year in industry, you will pay a discounted tuition fee.

Aberystwyth also has its very own and unique ‘Phyte Club’ where students from across the University assemble weekly to botanise at our Botanical Garden, in horticultural glasshouses and the field.

Modules September start - 2025

Year 1

• Communication Skills | BR01520 | 20
• Molecules and Cells | BR01340 | 40
• Organisms and the Environment | BR01440 | 40
• Practical Skills for Biologists | BR01220 | 20

Year 2

• Cell Biology * | BR17520 | 20
• Crop, grassland, soil and agricultural land management * | BR18040 | 40
• Genetics, Evolution and Diversity | BR17120 | 20
• Microbial and Plant Diversity * | BR19920 | 20
• Skills for Biologists * | BR16820 | 20

Year 3

• Agronomy and Crop Improvement * | BR27620 | 20
• Climate Change: Plants, Animals and Ecosystems | BR21120 | 20
• Controlled Environment Crop Production and Horticulture | BR23520 | 20
• Research Methods * | BR27520 | 20

Year 4

• Integrated Year in Industry | BRS0060 | 60

Year 5

• Frontiers in Plant Science | BR35820 | 20
• Microbial Pathogenesis | BR33720 | 20
• Research Project * | BR36440 | 40

Careers

Career opportunities for Plant Scientists are truly excellent, with many jobs and few trained scientists in this area, and we are perfectly placed to help you exploit UK and international links. Our graduates are working in conservation management, industrial and government-funded plant research institutes and the scientific civil service.

Teaching & Learning

What will I learn?

In the first year you will take a range of introductory modules.

In the second year you will explore the amazing diversity of life on Earth, and gain a thorough grounding in the biology essential to understand biota, including physiology, genetics, cell biology and microbes. You will look at the fundamental principles of ecology and the relationships between species, covering energy transfer, intra- and inter-species interactions and resource utilisation. You will learn about soil composition and key soil processes, and will be introduced to the evolution, biodiversity, physiology and human exploitation of the land flora. You will study the development and management of British habitats, and consider future challenges such as responding to global climate and conserving biodiversity. You will also develop the necessary practical skills required for research in biology through a series of linked experiments.

In the third year you will study plant physiology, the horticultural production of plants and crop production. You will consider habitats, landscapes and the communities of species that reside within them, and gain essential practical skills. You will acquire species identification and surveying skills and apply them first-hand in a residential field course during the Easter vacation. You will investigate the impact of climate change as one of the major future challenges to global biodiversity, and apply your learning to problems and solutions through field excursions and practical classes.

In the fourth year, you will undertake your work experience placement. You may undertake some or all of your industrial year abroad, if you wish.

In the final year you will gain an appreciation of plant science research and learn about microbial pathogenesis. You can choose to study topics like crop and grassland science or genomics, or take part in field courses, which offer you the chance to visit some of the world’s key biodiversity hotspots and tropical rainforests. A research project will allow you to perform in-depth research under the guidance of a supervisor. Your project may be based on laboratory experiments or fieldwork exercises, comprise a computer modelling exercise or involve data analysis.

How will I be taught?

The course will be delivered through lectures, workshops, tutorials, seminars, field courses and practicals.

Assessment

You will be assessed through essays, practical exercises, oral presentations, worksheets, experiments reports, statistical exercises, posters, wikis, literature reviews, field notebooks and exams.

Typical Entry Requirements

UCAS Tariff

A Levels

Available to those who are studying for, or who have completed Level 3 qualifications (eg, A-Levels or BTEC diploma) and to mature-aged candidates without formal qualifications who have suitable background education, experience and motivation.

GCSE requirements

(minimum grade C/4):
English or Welsh, Mathematics and Science

BTEC National Diploma:

Available to those who are studying for, or who have completed Level 3 qualifications (eg, A-Levels or BTEC diploma) and to mature-aged candidates without formal qualifications who have suitable background education, experience and motivation.

International Baccalaureate:

Available to those who are studying for, or who have completed Level 3 qualifications (eg, A-Levels or BTEC diploma) and to mature-aged candidates without formal qualifications who have suitable background education, experience and motivation.

European Baccalaureate:

Available to those who are studying for, or who have completed Level 3 qualifications (eg, A-Levels or BTEC diploma) and to mature-aged candidates without formal qualifications who have suitable background education, experience and motivation.

English Language Requirements:

See our Undergraduate English Language Requirements for this course. Pre-sessional English Programmes are also available for students who do not meet our English Language Requirements.

Country Specific Entry Requirements:

International students whose qualification is not listed on this page, can check our Country Specific Entry Requirements for further information.

The University welcomes undergraduate applications from students studying the Access to Higher Education Diploma or T-level qualifications, provided that relevant subject content and learning outcomes are met. We are not able to accept Access to Higher Education Diplomas or T-levels as a general qualification for every undergraduate degree course.
Our inclusive admissions policy values breadth as well as depth of study. Applicants are selected on their own individual merits and offers can vary. If you would like to check the eligibility of your qualifications before submitting an application, please contact the Undergraduate Admissions Office for advice and guidance.