Course summary

Our degree courses with Foundation year offer the opportunity to prepare you for advanced study before you progress onto a full honours degree at the University of Westminster. Whether you do not feel ready for degree-level study, don’t have the right qualifications, want to change your subject specialism or return to study after an absence from education, we aim to encourage a broad range of students to undertake our Foundation year in order to progress onto their full honours degree with us. The Foundation year is designed to give you the opportunity to explore new ideas, opening up new perspectives on the key debates within your chosen field. During the foundation year, you will explore a range of creative disciplines and get a chance to develop in your chosen field, benefiting from workshops in our high-end facilities and working with leading academics who will encourage you to become a confident and creative thinker. Core modules accelerate your academic and professional development and you will also take modules within your chosen field, giving you the chance to develop a cross-disciplinary perspective on your course. On successful completion of the Foundation year, you will be able to move on to study for the Biochemistry BSc Honours over a further three years study. Our Biochemistry BSc will give you the skills and knowledge to establish yourself in a range of careers related to biochemistry, including the pharmaceutical, diagnostic and biotechnology industries. Biochemistry is a pivotal degree discipline and a fundamental part of all the biological sciences. It is the study of living systems at the molecular level, and biochemists study the ways in which cells and organisms are formed. This involves examining the structure and function of molecules found in living systems, as well as experimental investigations of the properties of biological systems ranging in complexity from cell extracts to whole organisms, and elucidating the roles of specific genes in the cells in which they are expressed. The foundation of our course is our thriving research in diverse areas of biochemistry, including biotechnology, cancer biology, membrane transport, molecular diagnostics and therapeutics, plant biochemistry, and protein structure. In this degree, you'll gain a sound foundation in chemistry, biochemistry, molecular biology and analytical biochemical techniques. Your laboratory and research skills will be developed throughout your degree, culminating in your final-year project in which you'll undertake original research of your own.