Biology (Study Abroad)

BSc Hons

  • UCAS code C105
  • Entry year 2026 or 2025
  • A level requirements AAB
  • Duration Full time 4 years
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We welcome applications from the United States of America

We've put together information and resources to guide your application journey as a student from the United States of America.

Overview

Top reasons to study with us

  • 12

    12th for Student Experience (Biological Sciences)

    The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide (2025)

  • 15

    15th for Biological Sciences

    The Complete University Guide (2025)

  • Get a practical education in our outstanding lab facilities and on field trips.

Whether you're passionate about environmental conservation, medical advancements, or biotechnology, studying our Biology BSc (Study Abroad) will help you play a crucial role in shaping a better future.

Explore how a biology degree can empower you to make a difference in the world….

Play a role in tackling the world’s greatest challenges:

  • How do we feed a growing population?
  • How can we fight some of the world’s most deadly or chronic diseases?
  • How do we prevent greater environmental damage to our seas, air, animal and plant species?

These are the types of major global challenges that a degree in biology will prepare you to play your part in addressing.

By studying this Biology BSc (Study Abroad), you will gain an understanding of life in all its forms: from cells and molecules to whole organisms and ecosystems; from cell division to reproduction, development and death; from fruit flies to fungi.

There are few limits to where this knowledge and understanding can take you. Indeed, there are biologists working in almost every scientific field imaginable – whether that’s exploring how our genome can affect our risk of cancer or exploring ways to make global ecosystems more resilient.

Biology is an interdisciplinary subject. Our academics have carefully designed this programme to start by providing you with a broad grounding in the range of fundamental themes that lie at its heart.

With this foundation, you can go on to explore the aspects of biology that interest you most in greater depth. It’s this ability to shape your studies to suit your passions that makes biology the most flexible of our biosciences degrees.

Taught by internationally renowned academics, you will get a truly hands-on degree. As well as lectures and tutorials, you will learn in our excellent lab facilities and, depending on your choice of modules, through exciting field trips.

This research-led biology degree is an ideal basis for a host of careers across the life sciences, ecology or conservation sectors, offering you the scientific knowledge, practical lab skills and career-ready mindset to succeed.

By studying abroad in your third year, you will have an opportunity to explore new and different perspectives on your course, while gaining experience of what it is like to live and study in a different country. During your year abroad you are only required to pay 15 per cent of the standard tuition fees.

And, because you will build your skills and competence in experimental design, data recording, analysis and presentation, effective project management, teamwork and communication, you will have highly-transferable skills valued by employers both within the sciences and in broader fields such as marketing, finance and management.

Why study biology at Lancaster University?

  • Shape your degree to suit your interests as they develop through your course
  • Gain practical skills in our outstanding teaching labs
  • Pay just 15% of the standard tuition fee during your year abroad
  • Become a part of our thriving and supportive community of biosciences students
  • Learn from our renowned, research-active academics
  • Benefit from placements or part-time work through our connections with public and private sector employers
  • Our location, close to Morecambe Bay, the Lake District, Bowland Fells and the Yorkshire Dales is ideal for exploring some of the UK’s finest natural landscapes

Your journey through biology

Your degree will offer you a firm foundation in a breadth of subjects in biology, before allowing you to specialize, if you wish , as your course progresses.

  • In Year 1, you will get a well-rounded introduction to the fundamentals of biology. From genetics and cell biology to ecology, conservation biology and zoology, you will lay the foundations for the future of your degree: getting to grips with key skills and discovering where your greatest interests lie. You will also see how these issues relate to the bigger picture, gaining an understanding of how they link to global challenges, such as the maintenance of biodiversity and human health.
  • In Year 2 you will explore themes such as genetics and evolution in more depth. You can also begin to tailor your degree to your emerging interests.
  • You will spend Year 3 studying at one of our trusted overseas partner universities, immersing yourself in a different culture, meeting new people with diverse perspectives and developing a confident and well-rounded outlook for your final year back in Lancaster. By studying abroad you will be able to experience living in another country and exploring different and diverse sides of your degree subject.
  • In Year 4, you can take that specialisation a step further with a greater choice of modules.
    You will also complete a research project – your opportunity to make a unique contribution to increasing scientific knowledge in an area of biology.

You might choose to carry out your research in our excellent life sciences labs, or you might gather data out in our ‘living laboratory’ – the coastal, rural and mountainous landscapes that are in easy reach of Lancaster University. Either way, you will be supported by our research-active academics.

A hands-on course

Our state-of-the-art life science teaching laboratories will be at the heart of your degree. They are where you will put the knowledge you have acquired from lectures and tutorials into practice and get to know your course-mates and academics.

You will gain hands-on experience (depending upon your specialisation) of using equipment and facilities such as:

  • Our new Wolfson plant phenotyping centre
  • Fluorescent imaging
  • Controlled environment plant growth facilities
  • VR total immersion lab
  • Confocal microscopes
  • Flow cytometers
  • Spectrophotometric technologies
  • Plate readers
  • Thermocyclers
  • Microscopes

In addition to laboratory practical classes and workshops, you will learn through lectures, workshops, laboratory reports, essays and case studies, presentations, tests and exams. You will also benefit from digital resources through our online learning environment which will support your independent learning.

Altogether, your classroom learning and practical experience means you will graduate with a scientific understanding of biology, as well as the mindset, confidence and workplace experience to stand out in the competitive world of employment.

Welcome to Biology at Lancaster University

Tailor your degree to match your specific interests by choosing from a wide variety of modules with the option to specialise, for example, in the biomedical, biochemical or environmental aspects of biology. You can develop your knowledge of a range of skills required to tackle some of the biggest challenges facing our planet, whether it's researching underlying scientific principles, the development of new treatments for disease or helping to protect endangered species.

Expand your horizons with a year abroad

Our four-year study abroad degree is an amazing opportunity to broaden your academic horizons, whilst experiencing a different culture and society.

You’ll spend your third year studying at one of our trusted international partner universities.

Living in another country and studying your subjects from a different perspective offers considerable benefit both in terms of your understanding of the subject and your preparation for life after university.

If you apply for a study abroad programme, we will also consider you for the standard degree programme.

If, during your first or second year, you decide you no longer wish to study abroad, you can simply switch to the standard degree programme. Destinations are given as a guide only as the availability of places at overseas partners may vary from year to year.

Lancaster University will make reasonable endeavours to place students at an approved overseas partner university that offers appropriate modules which contribute credits to your Lancaster degree. Occasionally places overseas may not be available for all students who want to study abroad or the place at the partner university may be withdrawn if suitable modules are unavailable. If you are not offered a place to study overseas, you will be able to transfer to the equivalent standard degree scheme and would complete your studies at Lancaster.

Lancaster University cannot accept responsibility for any financial aspects of the year or term abroad.

Find out more about spending a year abroad
A study abroad student stands amongst the Canadian mountains and wilderness.

Careers

From jungles to oceans, hospitals to classrooms, a degree in biology opens up a world of career opportunities.
Perhaps you’ll choose modules related to biomedicine and go for a career in the biosciences such as:

• Biotechnologist
• Microbiologist
• Research Scientist (life sciences)
• Forensic Scientist

Or, you might choose a career focussing more on ecology and conservation, such as:
• Marine Biologist
• Nature Conservation Officer
• Soil Scientist
• Wildlife Conservationist
• Water Quality Scientist

And, if you don’t know where your interests lie right now, you will have time and space to explore these throughout your degree.

Your transferable skills and analytical training will open up potential careers in other fields such as management, teaching, marketing and finance.

Altogether, your classroom learning, practical experience and year abroad will mean you have the knowledge, global outlook, mindset and confidence to stand out in the competitive world of employment.

Our graduate destinations
Our biology graduates have gone on to successful careers including:
• Microbiologists
• Food Technologists
• Environmental Consultants
• Research Ecologists
• Laboratory Technicians
• Teachers and Scientists within the biotechnology industry

You can also apply for a paid summer internship in our department, helping you to gain additional research experience. Past interns have worked on research topics including Alzheimer’s disease, cancer biology, immunology, microbiology and tropical infectious diseases.

Employability at Lancaster: preparing you for the world of work
Lancaster University is dedicated to ensuring that you gain a highly reputable degree. We are also committed to ensuring that you graduate with relevant life and work-based skills.

Because professional skills are embedded throughout our curriculum, you will develop wider expertise valued by employers including communication, teamworking and negotiation skills, project management and problem-solving skills, ethical and environmental awareness.

We are unique in that every student is eligible to participate in The Lancaster Award, which offers you the opportunity to complete activities such as work experience, employability/career development, campus community and social development.

Visit our employability section for full details.

Careers and employability

  • Employers

    In addition to going onto postgraduate study, our recent graduates have gone to work for a diverse range of organisations spanning business, industry and the public sector including the NHS, Boots, GlaxoSmithKline, Environment Agency, RSPB, Syngenta, Blackwell Scientific Publishing, United Biscuits, and Scientific Pictures.

  • Networking opportunities

    From question and answer panel events to careers fairs, we provide you with many opportunities to network with alumni and employers. These events include our annual STEM careers fair, attended by over 60 employers ranging from small and medium enterprises to national organisations.

  • Work experience

    Relevant work experience while you are at university is crucial to achieving a good graduate job. An internship will allow you to apply your academic knowledge in real-world situations while helping you to develop your transferable skills such as team working, time management, leadership, networking and commercial awareness – and get paid for it! This opportunity will provide you with valuable work experience, and employers frequently offer graduate roles to interns.

  • Personal development

    We place a great deal of emphasis on developing your career aspirations and preparing you for life after Lancaster. We offer tutorials and workshops on career planning and preparation of integral parts of each degree, a range of degree-specific careers events, opportunities to plan and develop your career and practical advice from Lancaster graduates and industry experts.

Entry requirements

These are the typical grades that you will need to study this course. You may need to have qualifications in relevant subjects. In some cases we may also ask you to attend an interview or submit a portfolio. You must also meet our English language requirements.

Find more about these qualifications and others not shown here

Learn about how we will assess your application

Qualifications and typical requirements accordion

Contact Admissions

If you are thinking of applying to Lancaster and you would like to ask us a question, please complete our enquiry form and one of our team will get back to you.

International foundation programmes

Delivered in partnership with INTO Lancaster University, our one-year tailored foundation pathways are designed to improve your subject knowledge and English language skills to the level required by a range of Lancaster University degrees. Visit the INTO Lancaster University website for more details and a list of eligible degrees you can progress onto.

Contextual admissions

Contextual admissions could help you gain a place at university if you have faced additional challenges during your education which might have impacted your results. Visit our contextual admissions page to find out about how this works and whether you could be eligible.

Course structure

Enhancing our curriculum

We continually review and enhance our curriculum to ensure we are delivering the best possible learning experience, and to make sure that the subject knowledge and transferable skills you develop will prepare you for your future.

We will publish more detailed information about the structure of this degree course for 2026-entry in June 2025, ahead of our summer undergraduate open days. This will include overviews of the core modules you will take and examples of optional modules which may be available to you.

Fees and funding

We set our fees on an annual basis and the 2026/27 entry fees have not yet been set.

As a guide, our fees in 2025/26 were:

Home International
£9,535 £29,820

Fees and funding information

Additional fees and funding information accordion

Scholarships and bursaries

Details of our scholarships and bursaries for students starting in 2026 are not yet available.

You can use our scholarships for 2025-entry applicants as guidance.

Practical study

We place great emphasis on practical learning, whether that is in our new teaching labs or out in the field. Practical learning enables you to put theory into practice and understand the principles underpinning the topics you are studying, while also developing skills which will be of use throughout your degree and future career. On average, half of your contact time will include workshops, laboratory-based work, computer-based modelling and field trips.

Important information

The information on this site relates primarily to 2026/2027 entry to the University and every effort has been taken to ensure the information is correct at the time of publication.

The University will use all reasonable effort to deliver the courses as described, but the University reserves the right to make changes to advertised courses. In exceptional circumstances that are beyond the University’s reasonable control (Force Majeure Events), we may need to amend the programmes and provision advertised. In this event, the University will take reasonable steps to minimise the disruption to your studies. If a course is withdrawn or if there are any fundamental changes to your course, we will give you reasonable notice and you will be entitled to request that you are considered for an alternative course or withdraw your application. You are advised to revisit our website for up-to-date course information before you submit your application.

More information on limits to the University’s liability can be found in our legal information.

Our Students’ Charter

We believe in the importance of a strong and productive partnership between our students and staff. In order to ensure your time at Lancaster is a positive experience we have worked with the Students’ Union to articulate this relationship and the standards to which the University and its students aspire. View our Charter and other policies.

Undergraduate open days 2025

Our summer and autumn open days will give you Lancaster University in a day. Visit campus and put yourself in the picture.

Undergraduate Open Days
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  • Virtual tour

    Take five minutes and let us show you what Lancaster has to offer, from our beautiful green campus to our colleges, teaching and sports facilities.

  • Accommodation guide

    Most first-year undergraduate students choose to live on campus, where you’ll find accommodation to suit different preferences and budgets.

  • The city and beyond

    Our historic city is student-friendly and home to a diverse and welcoming community. Beyond the city you'll find a stunning coastline and the picturesque Lake District.