Course summary

Our Medical Physics course has a special focus on the physics that keeps us alive: from the fluid mechanics that maintains the blood flowing in our veins, to the forces acting on our bones and tissues that support our dynamic living form. You’ll also learn about the medical techniques and technologies developed by physicists and used in the NHS, such as radiotherapy, ultrasound scanning and MRI machines. At the start of your course, you’ll cover the essential physics behind everything else you’ll study: heat, motion, electricity, magnetism and quantum mechanics. You will also start to study the human body as a physical machine, and how electronics can be used to model biological systems. You’ll learn through lectures and practical labs so you won’t be learning about abstract topics in isolation. You’ll run experiments using the equipment in our modern laboratories to help you understand how important theories apply to the real world. You’ll explore essential physics in even more depth in your second year. You’ll also continue to specialise in medical physics, with modules on the tissues of the human body, medical imaging and biomedical instrumentation. In programming classes you can learn skills that are key to medical physics and valuable in many graduate careers, from data science to computer game design. In the third year, you can branch out into lots of different areas and complete your own research project in medical physics. In your core modules, you’ll learn how computational techniques are used to examine medical problems and simulate natural systems, as well as studying topics like particle physics and nuclear physics. Optional modules include quantum mechanics and dark matter. Accredited by the Institute of Physics (IOP) for the purpose of fully meeting the educational requirement for Chartered Physicist.