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Aberystwyth University

UCAS Code: FC7F | Bachelor of Science (with Honours) - BSc (Hons)

Entry requirements

The University welcomes undergraduate applications from students studying the Access to Higher Education Diploma, provided that relevant subject content and learning outcomes are met. We are not able to accept Access to Higher Education Diplomas as a general qualification for every undergraduate degree course.

About this course

Course option

4years

Full-time including foundation year | 2026

Subjects

Biology

Climate change

This four-year course includes an integrated foundation year, after which the syllabus follows that of the standard three-year course, BSc Biology and Climate Change (FC71).

During the foundation year, you'll learn the academic skills required to follow an undergraduate degree and will go on to study the same subjects as students on the three-year BSc Biology and Climate Change (FC71) degree course from your second year onwards.

On this degree, you'll study the impacts of Climate Change on the living world, from organisms to entire ecosystems, and their implications for the conservation of biodiversity. During your course, you'll acquire a range of practical laboratory and field-based skills alongside the theoretical knowledge that underpins the subject. In some modules, you'll also work alongside students from other Departments (International Politics, Business, and English and Creative Writing) and will be encouraged to look at the subject from different perspectives.

You'll learn about the science underpinning climate processes, and how human activity has effected changes to these processes in recent times. You'll explore the impacts of climate change on biodiversity at the level of species, habitats, and ecosystems, and the scope of organisms and populations to evolve in the light of this threat. By working across disciplines, you'll learn the need for both scientific research and governance in tackling these important issues.

Aberystwyth and the surrounding area has a great variety of local habitats and ecosystems, both marine and terrestrial – an ideal location to study the impacts of climate change on biodiversity, and the scope for mitigation. You'll have the opportunity to carry out field research, both locally and abroad, and to work with established academic researchers who work on various aspects of the past, present and future effects of global climate change on natural ecosystems.

Tuition fees

Select where you currently live to see what you'll pay:

Channel Islands
£9,000
per year
England
£9,000
per year
EU
£17,525
per year
International
£17,525
per year
Northern Ireland
£9,000
per year
Republic of Ireland
£9,000
per year
Scotland
£9,000
per year
Wales
£9,000
per year

Extra funding

Aberystwyth University offers a valuable package of scholarships and bursaries to support students. Our long-established Entrance Examination competition means you could get up to £1,000 a year towards your living and study costs. You can combine that with any or all of our other awards, to make your financial package more valuable. Our awards include Sport and Music Scholarships, Bursaries for Care Leavers/Young Carers/Estranged Students and a range of department specific awards. Please visit our website for full details.

The Uni

Course location:

Main Site (Aberystwyth)

Department:

Department of Life Sciences

Read full university profile

What students say

We've crunched the numbers to see if the overall teaching satisfaction score here is high, medium or low compared to students studying this subject(s) at other universities.

72%
Biology
94%
Climate change

How do students rate their degree experience?

The stats below relate to the general subject area/s at this university, not this specific course. We show this where there isn’t enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

Biology (non-specific)

Teaching and learning

92%
Staff make the subject interesting
100%
Staff are good at explaining things
85%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
76%
Opportunities to apply what I've learned

Assessment and feedback

Feedback on work has been timely
Feedback on work has been helpful
Staff are contactable when needed
Good advice available when making study choices

Resources and organisation

92%
Library resources
85%
IT resources
85%
Course specific equipment and facilities
77%
Course is well organised and has run smoothly

Student voice

Staff value students' opinions
Feel part of a community on my course

Who studies this subject and how do they get on?

89%
UK students
11%
International students
37%
Male students
63%
Female students
78%
2:1 or above
10%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

B
C
C

Physical geographical sciences

Teaching and learning

95%
Staff make the subject interesting
100%
Staff are good at explaining things
88%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
86%
Opportunities to apply what I've learned

Assessment and feedback

Feedback on work has been timely
Feedback on work has been helpful
Staff are contactable when needed
Good advice available when making study choices

Resources and organisation

91%
Library resources
95%
IT resources
97%
Course specific equipment and facilities
88%
Course is well organised and has run smoothly

Student voice

Staff value students' opinions
Feel part of a community on my course

Who studies this subject and how do they get on?

97%
UK students
3%
International students
55%
Male students
45%
Female students
86%
2:1 or above
8%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

A
B
C

After graduation

The stats in this section relate to the general subject area/s at this university – not this specific course. We show this where there isn't enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

Biology (non-specific)

What are graduates doing after six months?

This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.

£25,000
med
Average annual salary
80%
low
Employed or in further education
62%
med
Employed in a role where degree was essential or beneficial

Top job areas of graduates

34%
Natural and social science professionals
9%
Business, finance and related associate professionals
9%
Sales, marketing and related associate professionals

The recession was tough on biology graduates, and although the jobs market has improved for them - a lot - it's still not back to where it was a few years ago. If you want a career in biology research — and a lot of biology students do - you'll need to take a doctorate, so give some thought as to where you might do it and how you might fund it (the government still funds doctorates for good students). A lot of graduates also take 1 year Masters courses to specialise in this wide and deep subject - most students take a standard biology course for their first degree and then specialise in subjects like ecology, conservation or marine biology later. Hospitals, universities, biotech firms, zoos and nature reserves and clinical and scientific testing are common industries of employment for biology graduates.

Physical geographical sciences

What are graduates doing after six months?

This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.

£23,000
low
Average annual salary
90%
med
Employed or in further education
70%
med
Employed in a role where degree was essential or beneficial

Top job areas of graduates

13%
Business, finance and related associate professionals
13%
Sales assistants and retail cashiers
8%
Science, engineering and production technicians

What about your long term prospects?

Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.

Biology (non-specific)

The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.

£19k

£19k

£22k

£22k

£26k

£26k

Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.

Physical geographical sciences

The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.

£19k

£19k

£23k

£23k

£28k

£28k

Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.

Explore these similar courses...

Higher entry requirements
place
University of Southampton | Southampton
Biology and Marine Biology
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UCAS Points: 128
Nearby University
place
University of Wales Trinity Saint David | Carmarthen
Sport, Health and Physical Education
BSc (Hons) 3 Years Full-time including foundation year 2026
UCAS Points: 120
Lower entry requirements
place
Aberystwyth University | Aberystwyth
Business and Climate Change
BSc (Hons) 3 Years Full-time including foundation year 2026
UCAS Points: 96-120
Same University
place
Aberystwyth University | Aberystwyth
Economics and Climate Change
BSc (Hons) 3 Years Full-time including foundation year 2026
UCAS Points: 96-120

This is what the university has told Ucas about the criteria they expect applicants to satisfy; some may be compulsory, others may be preferable.

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This is the percentage of applicants to this course who received an offer last year, through Ucas.

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This is what the university has told Ucas about the course. Use it to get a quick idea about what makes it unique compared to similar courses, elsewhere.

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Course location and department:

This is what the university has told Ucas about the course. Use it to get a quick idea about what makes it unique compared to similar courses, elsewhere.

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Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF):

We've received this information from the Department for Education, via Ucas. This is how the university as a whole has been rated for its quality of teaching: gold silver or bronze. Note, not all universities have taken part in the TEF.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

This information comes from the National Student Survey, an annual student survey of final-year students. You can use this to see how satisfied students studying this subject area at this university, are (not the individual course).

This is the percentage of final-year students at this university who were "definitely" or "mostly" satisfied with their course. We've analysed this figure against other universities so you can see whether this is high, medium or low.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

This information is from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), for undergraduate students only.

You can use this to get an idea of who you might share a lecture with and how they progressed in this subject, here. It's also worth comparing typical A-level subjects and grades students achieved with the current course entry requirements; similarities or differences here could indicate how flexible (or not) a university might be.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

Post-six month graduation stats:

This is from the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education Survey, based on responses from graduates who studied the same subject area here.

It offers a snapshot of what grads went on to do six months later, what they were earning on average, and whether they felt their degree helped them obtain a 'graduate role'. We calculate a mean rating to indicate if this is high, medium or low compared to other universities.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

Graduate field commentary:

The Higher Education Careers Services Unit have provided some further context for all graduates in this subject area, including details that numbers alone might not show

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

The Longitudinal Educational Outcomes dataset combines HRMC earnings data with student records from the Higher Education Statistics Agency.

While there are lots of factors at play when it comes to your future earnings, use this as a rough timeline of what graduates in this subject area were earning on average one, three and five years later. Can you see a steady increase in salary, or did grads need some experience under their belt before seeing a nice bump up in their pay packet?

Have a question about this info? Learn more here