Program Overview

Chemistry with Biological and Medicinal Chemistry BSc

The University of Sheffield offers a BSc Chemistry with Biological and Medicinal Chemistry course, accredited by the Royal Society of Chemistry. This three-year course provides students with fundamental chemistry knowledge and explores topics such as pharmacokinetics, toxicology, and drug design.

Course Description

The course is designed to prepare students for the growing demands of the healthcare sector and pharmaceutical industry. Students will gain hands-on experience from the start of their degree, learning laboratory skills and techniques in specialist teaching labs. The course covers core concepts spanning organic, inorganic, physical, and analytical chemistry, as well as biological and medicinal chemistry.

Modules

The course structure includes:

• First year:
  • Fundamentals of Chemistry 1
  • Fundamentals of Chemistry 2
  • Essential Skills for Chemists
  • The chemical world around us: from biological chemistry to sustainability
• Second year:
  • Reactions of common functional groups in organic chemistry
  • Theory and application of spectroscopic and analytical techniques
  • Structure, bonding, and reactivity of coordination complexes and main group compounds
  • Energy states and shapes of molecules
• Third year:
  • Advanced spectroscopy
  • Investigating organic reaction mechanisms
  • Organometallic compounds and their use in catalysis, materials, and devices
  • Chemistry at surfaces and interfaces

Learning and Assessment

Students will learn through lectures, small group tutorials, workshops, practical sessions in the lab, and research projects. Assessment methods include laboratory work, coursework, online quizzes, examinations, essays, and other written work.

Entry Requirements

The standard offer for this course is AAB at A Level, including Chemistry. Alternative qualifications, such as International Baccalaureate, BTEC Extended Diploma, and Access to HE Diploma, are also accepted. English language requirements include GCSE English Language at grade 4/C or IELTS grade of 6.5 with a minimum of 6.0 in each component.

Graduate Careers

Graduates from this course have a wide range of career options, including roles in the pharmaceutical, consumer goods, and chemical industries. Many graduates also pursue careers in finance, computer programming, communications, market research, and business development.

Department

The School of Mathematical and Physical Sciences is leading the way with groundbreaking research and innovative teaching. The department has a strong focus on research, with many academics bringing first-hand industrial and business experience to their teaching.

Facilities

The department has outstanding facilities, including specialist teaching labs for organic, inorganic, and physical chemistry. Students also have access to state-of-the-art chemistry laboratories and several multi-million pound materials science facilities.

University Rankings

The University of Sheffield is a world top-100 university, ranked 92nd in the QS World University Rankings 2026. The university is also number one in the Russell Group for student experience and has a strong reputation for research, with 92% of its research rated as world-leading or internationally excellent.

Fees and Funding

Tuition fees for 2026 entry have not been confirmed, but the 2025 annual tuition fee is £9,535 for home students and £30,570 for overseas students. The university offers a range of scholarships and bursaries to help fund student study, including automatic scholarships worth up to £10,000 for overseas fee-paying students.

Placements and Study Abroad

Students may have the opportunity to add an optional industrial placement year as part of their course, converting the three-year course to a four-year Degree with an Industrial Placement Year. The university also offers study abroad opportunities, with over 250 University partners worldwide.