FdSc Pharmaceuticals

UCAS Code:
940F
Institution:
B50

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Delivered at Wiltshire College and University Centre's Salisbury campus, this course will develop your knowledge of the physio-chemical and biological principles necessary to understand the sourcing, preparation, analysis and properties of medicinal agents. This will include the design, delivery, mode of action, therapeutic application and clinical usage of medicines.

The course will give you sufficient vocational skills and knowledge to be attractive to employers at the end of the two years study, although an additional third year onto a top-up course to achieve a full BSc degree would place all the knowledge gained and skills developed to good use in the field.

If you do not meet the entry requirements for the FdSc, you can opt to take a foundation year before progressing on to the FdSc Pharmaceuticals. Year one on the foundation degree lays the foundation for units in year two and potentially year three. The number of students in any one year will be relatively small so all students will have maximum support from each module and personal tutor. You will need to research current topics in your area of study and a specific module has been designed in the first year to help you understand how best to achieve this.

There is no work placement requirement but in your second year, a Work Related Project may require you to liaise with a local company or organisation, applying your knowledge gained to a real-world issue linked to your area of interest within the programme.

Overall, the course is intended to produce students who are ‘fit for work’ with the theoretical and practical knowledge which would benefit any employer in the pharmaceutical science field.

Image description — Wiltshire college life science facilities 1

Key information

Next start date:

September 2021, September 2022

Location:

Wiltshire College and University Centre, Salisbury

Duration:

2 years full-time, 3 years part-time

Relevant subjects:

Biology

Entry requirements:

For September 2021 entry: 48 UCAS Tariff Points (normally to include Biology), e.g. 2Es or 1C at A Level or an AVCE Double Award at EE or BTEC / City and Guilds National Technical Diploma. Foundation year: 32 UCAS Tariff Points and 3 GCSEs in English, Science and Maths (grade C/4) or equivalent. For more information check out our full entry requirements.

International entry requirements:

If English is not your first language you'll need IELTS (Academic) 6.0 or equivalent. For more information check out our International entry requirements.

Course Details

You will be given the opportunity to participate in lectures and workshops, plan and deliver presentations to your peers, research areas of relevance to the degree programme, critically evaluate the validity and implications of information and work with a variety of scientific instrumentation and software.

All modules are designed to enable you to engage in new areas of knowledge to acquire practical experience of a range of activities relevant to your employment within the Pharmaceutical industry.

Download the programme specification (pdf 400kb)Download the foundation year programme specification (pdf 326kb)

Foundation year

Foundations in Biology: This unit provides the necessary skills and knowledge to gain an understanding of some of the key principles in biology and microbiology. Essential biological practical skills and techniques are built into the practical aspects of the module which supports the theoretical subject material.
Foundations in Chemistry: This unit provides the necessary skills and knowledge to gain a fundamental knowledge of organic, inorganic and physical chemistry. Essential chemical operations such as mole calculations and developing chemical formula will be incorporated into the practical aspects where basic chemical techniques will be introduced.
Mathematical Science Skills: This unit will give you confidence in mathematics allowing you to perform calculations on a range of scientific data and to be able to represent the findings in an appropriate format including graphs. To carry this out, it is essential to be able to convert the data between systems of units and to understand how to present very large and very small numbers in standard form. Basic statistical analysis of tabulated data will be carried out to introduce the concept of confidence limits.
Practical Science: This unit will increase your confidence in identifying suitable scientific practical techniques in order to carry out a wide variety of chemical, biological and physical practical tasks. You will develop your practical scientific skills across chemistry and biology to achieve given outcomes whilst working safely.

Year 1

Essential Biology and Physiology: This module provides you with an understanding of basic cell structures and an awareness of different cell types and relates the structure and activities of cell components to their functions and to cellular activities.
Mathematics for Science: This module will provide you with confidence in performing calculations on a range of scientific data and to be able to represent the findings in an appropriate format including graphs.
Academic Writing Skills: This module prepares you for producing extended pieces of writing on scientific topics using the conventional format that shows clarity and consistency.
Practical Laboratory Skills: This module will provide you with confidence in identifying suitable scientific practical techniques in order to carry out a wide variety of chemical and biological practical tasks.
Fundamental Chemistry: This module provides the underpinning knowledge and skills necessary for a scientist which are studied in greater depth in the remainder of the modules for this programme.
Introduction to Pharmaceuticals and Science: The module aims to introduce you to the mode of action of pharmaceutical drugs that may have a variable physiological effect on an individual.

Year 2

Advanced Chemistry for Pharmaceuticals: This module provides the background in chemical synthesis of pharmaceutical substances usually by organic chemistry reaction pathways and combinatorial chemistry is often the starting point for these syntheses.

Pharmacodynamics and Kinetics: This module will equip you with a fundamental understanding of the actions and fate of drugs in the human body linking this with drug formulations and different routes of administration.

Physiological Biochemistry: Focusing on regulation and communication, this module provides essential information to understand the different modes of cellular communication and how responses are mediated to elicit a change in physiological response or function.

Professional Development Portfolio: This module places the emphasis on the practical approaches towards your personal development planning and self-assessment.

Work Related Project: This module allows you to undertake a period of 200 hours of work related learning enabling you to complete a project relevant to the workplace.

Bioanalytical Techniques: This practical module introduces you to an array of techniques to chemically or physically separate analytes and to characterise the analytes through further processing.

Programme specification

Programme specifications provide definitive records of the University's taught degrees in line with Quality Assurance Agency requirements. Every taught course leading to a BU Award has a programme specification which describes its aims, structure, content and learning outcomes, plus the teaching, learning and assessment methods used.

Whilst every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the programme specification, the information is liable to change to take advantage of exciting new approaches to teaching and learning as well as developments in industry.

If you have been unable to locate the programme specification for the course you are interested in, it will be available as soon as the latest version is ready. Alternatively please contact us for assistance.

Your application

For this course we are looking for applicants who:

Have a strong interest in science
Are looking to develop a career in a scientific field.

How to apply

Selection methods

How we’ll assess your application

We look at individual applications and make a tailored offer based on your potential to succeed on the course considering a range of factors, including your academic achievements, work and other experience, predicted grades, reference and personal statement, and in some cases, your performance at an interview/selection test.

If you meet one or more of our contextual data indicators for educational disadvantage (such as being in care, living in a low participation neighbourhood or in an area with less advantaged socio-economic characteristics), your offer could be between 8-24 points below the published tariff.

Our offer making process

Our offer making will typically be based on your most recent graded qualifications, including any required subjects where applicable. We'll consider all qualifications on the UCAS tariff tables when assessing your application, although these may not be part of our offer.

If you do not meet the criteria of your original offer, we may still offer you a place. We will review your whole application and consider all academic qualifications (including those not in the offer) and the rest of the application to see if you have the academic potential to succeed on the course. If we feel the answer is yes, we will still confirm your place.

Entry requirements

FdSc entry requirements

We use the UCAS Tariff to show our entry requirements and will accept a combination of grades from your qualifications. You can use the UCAS calculator to see how your qualifications equate to tariff points.

For September 2021 entry: 48 UCAS Tariff Points (normally to include Biology), e.g. 2Es or 1C at A Level or an AVCE Double Award at EE or BTEC / City and Guilds National Technical Diploma.

GCSEs: 5 GCSEs at grade C (4) or above which includes English, Maths and Science (or equivalent).

Experiential learning will be considered for mature students with appropriate work experience (at least 2 years), evidence (portfolio) and references.

Other useful information

AccessBU: AccessBU provides you with the opportunity to tell us about your circumstances that are not always evident in your UCAS application. This widening access initiative also considers relevant criteria such as being in care or if you live in an area with a low participation rate in Higher Education - if you are eligible, your offer could be up to 16 UCAS tariff points below the published tariff.

Apprenticeships: We recognise the transferable knowledge and skills gained through apprenticeships and welcome applications from students with a Level 3 Advanced Apprenticeship recognised by the Institute for Apprenticeships. Each application will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

Deferred entry: We are happy to consider eligible applicants for deferred entry. If you have already submitted your application, you can request a deferral by contacting our Admissions Team.

Direct entry: We welcome applications from students who have previously studied at degree level at other institutions and wish to transfer onto a BU course. Our Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) procedure enables credit awarded from one institution to contribute to a BU award, subject to an application process. Please contact our Future Students Enquiry Team for more information.

Mature applicants: We recognise that mature applicants may have a wealth of experience rather than formal qualifications, so we’ll consider your application on these merits if included in your application. You’ll need to apply to BU in the usual way through UCAS and you may be invited to an interview to discuss your suitability for the course based on the experience you tell us about in your application

Foundation year entry requirements

We use the UCAS Tariff in our entry requirements and will accept a combination of grades and qualifications to meet the overall tariff requirement. You can use the UCAS calculator to see how your qualifications equate to UCAS tariff points.

We have outlined our entry requirements below using the most common qualifications that we consider for this course. If your qualification is not on the UCAS tariff or listed below, please contact our Future Students Enquiry Team who can advise accordingly. You can also find out more about how we consider your application in our offer-making process section.

For September 2021 entry: 32 UCAS Tariff Points and 3 GCSEs in English, Science and Maths (grade C/4) or equivalent.

International entry requirements

English language requirements

If English is not your first language, you will need to provide evidence that you can understand English to a satisfactory level. English language requirements for this course are normally:

IELTS (Academic) 6.0 or equivalent.

View further information about our English language requirements.

If you do not meet the English language requirement for your degree then why not join our Pre-Sessional English course? Successful completion of our Pre-Sessional English course will meet your English language requirement.

Further study

Once you have completed your course, you can move on to a top-up degree or the final year of an undergraduate honours degree to achieve the next level of qualification.

Graduates may apply to progress onto the final year of an honours degree or top-up degree at Bournemouth University, at a BU partner college or another institution, subject to a suitable course being offered, places being available and applicants obtaining the University's required entry criteria.

For entry onto a Bournemouth University top-up degree, you will be assessed on your overall mark (there may be a minimum requirement), your performance on the foundation degree and where appropriate an interview with the programme coordinator.

View our top-up degrees webpage

Our staff

On this course you will be taught by staff with relevant expertise and knowledge appropriate to the content of the unit. Please note that teaching staff can change.

Claire Eggleton – Lecturer in Uniformed Public Services

Claire has been lecturing in the FE and HE sector for nearly nine years delivering units for Uniformed Public Services from level 1 to HNC/HND level working with both BTEC and NCFE. In addition to her teaching, Claire works as an examiner and standards verifier for Pearson.

Claire came into education from a public service background having worked for Wiltshire Police for 20 years. She held several positions during this time including Crime Prevention Officer, Control Room Operator, Enquiry Officer and finally Architectural Liaison Officer and served as a Special Constable for six years. Since leaving the police, Claire has completed an Honours degree in Social Policy and Criminology as well as teaching qualifications and more recently a Masters degree in Criminology and Criminal Justice.

Having a pragmatic criminology background coupled with her academic qualification in his field has allowed Claire to become an innovative teacher who has been recognised for her strong and varied skill set when supporting, enabling and encouraging learners.

Adam Harper – Lecturer in Animal Care

As a postgraduate of Animal Science and Management, Adam has spent a number of years working for international NGOs in the field of conservation and field biology. He is currently studying Ecology and Biodiversity at Edinburgh University. He was also a contributing author to the “Mammals of Wiltshire Atlas” published in April 2018 along with other online publications focusing on small mammals in the region.

Adam was previously the Monitoring Coordinator of the Sea Turtle Protection Society of Greece and has since monitored migratory whales and dolphins in the Atlantic, collaborated with the Marine Conservation Society supporting their Capturing our Coast project and most recently became a Guide/Lecturer for Wildlife Seminars, a large carnivore conservation group with a focus on Wolves, Bear and Lynx in the Western Carpathians.

Adam is currently an Ambassador for the Sea Turtle Protection Society, Youth Coordinator for the World Wildlife Fund and was granted Member status in 2017 to the Royal Society of Biologists (MRSB).

Lily Raynor – Lecturer in Public Services

Lily has delivered teaching in FE and HE for 4 years particularly in Psychology and Criminology at Wiltshire College and University Centre. She has designed and lead on a HE course whilst working with adult FE students who are aiming to enter HE within various pathways. Lily studied BA (Hons) Criminology at the University of the West of England and subsequently has studied a MSc Criminology and Criminal Psychology at Portsmouth University alongside her teaching.

Louise Woodward – Lecturer in Mathematics

Louise graduated from university with a Mathematics honours degree and then completed a Postgraduate Certificate of Education which enabled her to fulfil her ambition of becoming a Mathematics Teacher. Louise spent several years working in a secondary school in Bath where she taught a full range of ages and abilities including A Level before taking a career break to raise her children and help run her family business and small holding. During this time, she also took on roles as an Exam Marker and School Governor.

Since returning to education at Wiltshire College and University Centre, she has taught a Further Education Mathematics study programme and has implemented and taught two higher level courses.

Mary Gannon – Lecturer in Science

Mary has been delivering teaching and learning to FE and HE students for over 10 years. She has written and lead a range of academic and vocational modules for the University of South Wales with a particular specialism in Cellular and Molecular Biology and Biochemistry. Additionally, Mary has previously directed Higher National Apprenticeships in Life Sciences for FE learners at Bridgend College working collaboratively with Pearson, Cogent and QiW to deliver outstanding vocational qualifications.

With her industrial background in a range of Life Science industries including food processing and quality assurance, pharmaceuticals and microbiological testing, she has a wealth of relevant experience which she used to excellent effect in her role of Assessor of work based learning for Higher Apprenticeships in Life Sciences.

All statistics shown throughout this page are taken from Unistats, Destination of Leavers from Higher Education (DLHE), BU institutional data and Ipsos MORI (National Student Survey) unless otherwise stated.