Hi everyone!
It’s me, Stella, and I’m here to talk to you a bit about the process of getting into Neuroscience. As a subject that has only really picked up a traction in the past few years, there are still not many institutions that offer this course. This is partially due to Neuroscience being something that people used to focus on after their Undergraduate degree and because we have only recently become able to explore the brain in depth. Because of this, you may be a bit limited in the universities that you can apply to.
Firstly, neither Oxford nor Cambridge offers a degree in Neuroscience. So, if you want to aim REALLY high, then you might want to rethink your course. However, there are many top tier unis that offer the subject. If you are really set on Oxbridge then they both offer Psychology; a subject that allows you to specialise into cognitive neuroscience after your first year.
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I really don’t want to push King’s onto you as it seems very manufactured. However, I can honestly say that it is a fantastic place to apply for Neuroscience. King’s ranked 2nd in the world for Psychology and Psychiatry- which is pretty cool! In addition, the Institute of Psychology, Psychiatry and Neuroscience is full of fantastic undergraduate and postgraduate courses that are run by world leading researchers, just check out our BiogVlogs to see for yourself! If you can’t wait to get away from London then you’ll find other great universities such as Manchester, Bristol, Birmingham and Edinburgh all offering Neuroscience.
Entry Requirements
As Neuroscience isn’t in as much demand as Psychology (which is the 2nd most popular undergrad course in the Uk, according to the complete university guide), then you’ll find that entry requirements are slightly lower. This is also partially due to the fact that you will need at least one of chemistry or biology, which are deemed harder to do well in. On the rare occasion that you can apply with one core science subject, you may have to get higher grades. For example, the entry requirements for Neuroscience at Manchester University are AAB-ABB, but if you only have one science subject you will typically be offered AAA. Don’t worry if you are in that situation though, I didn’t do chemistry at A-level which made me ineligible for Neuroscience at King’s so I just applied for the Neuroscience & Psychology course (which is what I’m doing now!).
I don’t want a degree in Neuroscience, but it still interests me, what do I do?
It’s okay if you don’t want to do a full degree in Neuroscience. Many people who have doctorates in Neuroscience-related areas did something different for their Undergraduate studies. Take our very own DNA coordinator, Dr. Leigh Wilson, for example, who studied Biological sciences at the University of Edinburgh.
Neuroscience is a really rewarding subject and I couldn’t speak better about it. I know that if your heart is set in this field, you really won’t regret it. However, if this isn’t something you want to do then that’s okay too! If you have any more questions about this process, then feel free to talk to me during the DNA week.
So that’s all today guys, watch out for Hang’s blog tomorrow where she’ll be talking dreams and sleep! Have a great weekend and see you next week!
Stella