Natural Sciences

MSci Hons

  • UCAS code FCF3
  • Entry year 2026 or 2025
  • A level requirements A*AA
  • Duration Full time 4 years

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

  • Lancaster is ranked amongst the top 10 UK universities

  • Study up to three different subjects for the whole of your degree

  • Create your own modular degree from over 100 possible degree combinations.

There are many complex challenges in the world today which require scientists who can work at the interface of many disciplines, so if you love science, and want to study more than one subject, you can build your own modular degree with us. We offer one of the longest running and most flexible Natural Sciences degree schemes in the country. Choose pathways from ten subject areas across the physical and life sciences and connect with staff and students at the cutting-edge of these disciplines. It’s a challenging degree, and the reward is that you are uniquely positioned when you graduate, which opens a wealth of career options.

How do pathways work

Each pathway has a selection of core modules for building the scientific foundations of the discipline. Optional modules are tailored towards your interests and provide extra skills and knowledge. We offer pathways in:

  • Biological Sciences
  • Chemistry
  • Computing
  • Engineering
  • Environmental and Earth Sciences
  • Geography
  • Mathematics
  • Sports and Exercise Science
  • Physics
  • Psychology

What to expect

Our four-year MSci Hons Natural Sciences degree starts with your choice of three pathways in Year 1. This allows you to discover and develop your passion for the scientific discipline and build those core fundamentals to take into subsequent years.

In Year 2, your study becomes more focused continuing with two pathways and the introduction of optional modules as you start to specialise.

Year 3 is about delving deeper into topics you have been studying and applying your skills and experience to a major research project or dissertation.

Master’s-level training

You can advance your degree in Year 4 by studying Master’s modules and conducting a significant, individually supervised research project. This is a great opportunity to build your CV and is a gateway to future research opportunities too.

Personal development

Working across different scientific disciplines gives you a unique perspective of how they overlap, and as a result, you will develop a broad skills set including abilities in maths and statistics, critical analysis, reasoning, logic, solving complex problems, data handling, and project management, to name just a few. The confidence gained from working across multiple teams to understand their nuances and complexities is directly replicable in the workplace.

3 things our Natural Sciences students want you to know

  • You’ll be immersed in science and technology communities which are designed to challenge the most highly motivated students and world-leading researchers, all working together to shape current thinking across multiple scientific disciplines. You’ll have access to a large pool of student communities and support networks
  • You’re also uniquely placed to boost your employability by making the most of opportunities within each department you are linked to, including state-of-the-art facilities, internships, placements, guest lectures, industry-led projects, practical lab sessions, or fieldwork
  • Natural Sciences degrees make you highly employable by showing you can think and work across the conventional boundaries of science

Course accreditation

Society of Natural Sciences logo

The Society of Natural Sciences was formed in 2019 to promote interdisciplinary education within the sciences, particularly at undergraduate level. All of our BSc and MSci courses are accredited by the Society of Natural Sciences.

Learn more about the Society of Natural Sciences accreditation

Careers

A Natural Sciences degree ensures that you graduate with a broad and multidisciplinary set of skills which means that you benefit from the widest range of career opportunities. The flexibility of the degree and the breadth of subjects that you can study allows you to transition into a career from any scientific discipline, whether it is in biology, chemistry, computing, engineering, mathematics, physics, environmental sciences, and many more. You are also in demand for non-science roles due to your mathematic and statistical abilities, as well as skills in critical analysis and reasoning, logic, solving complex problems, data handling, and project management, to name just a few transferable skills. As a result, you can chart a course to a career in almost any industry. Graduating from this programme, you can honestly say the opportunities are endless. The median starting salary of graduates from our Natural Sciences degrees is £23,900 (HESA Graduate Outcomes Survey 2023).

Here are just some of the roles that our BSc and MSci Natural Sciences students have progressed into upon graduating:

  • Graduate Researcher – Centre for Global Eco-Innovation
  • Nuclear Technical Advisor – Department for Business, Energy, and Industrial Strategy
  • Net Zero, Climate, and Environment Advisor – Government Office for Science
  • Financial Modelling Analyst – KPMG
  • Graduate Air Quality Consultant – AECOM
  • Audit Associate – EY
  • Trainee Healthcare Scientist – NHS
  • Environmental Engineer – ARUP
  • Senior Scientist Researcher – AstraZeneca
  • Cloud Solution Architect – Vmware
  • Research Assistant/PhD – University of Cambridge
  • Hydrologist – Environment Agency

Every year, approximately 20% of our graduating cohort pursue postgraduate study (MSc or PhD).


Lancaster University is dedicated to ensuring you not only gain a highly reputable degree, you also graduate with the relevant life and work based skills. We are unique in that every student is eligible to participate in The Lancaster Award which offers you the opportunity to complete key activities such as work experience, employability/career development, campus community and social development. Visit our Employability section for full details.

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

Important information

There are a number of study pathways available in this degree programme, some of which have specific subject prerequisites. See Natural Sciences webpages for details of subjects and grades that may be required.

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

Natural Sciences students create their own individual degree programme by combining modules taken from single honours programmes.

This would lead on to a wide choice of second, third and fourth year modules in each discipline. For details of individual modules please go to the module list for each degree scheme. This example is just one of a large number of possible combinations of pathways. For more detailed information about pathways please visit the Natural Sciences web page.

Information contained on the website with respect to modules is correct at the time of publication, and the University will make every reasonable effort to offer modules as advertised. In some cases changes may be necessary and may result in some combinations being unavailable, for example as a result of student feedback, timetabling, Professional Statutory and Regulatory Bodies' (PSRB) requirements, staff changes and new research. Not all optional modules are available every year.

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.

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.

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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.

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