Physiological Sciences

Description

Why study Physiological Sciences at Dundee?

The School of Life Sciences consistently achieves high rankings for both its teaching and research, and our Physiological Sciences course was ranked No. 1 in Scotland by the Times Good University Guide 2012.

We are committed to delivering excellent physiology teaching and have been active in developing teaching software to help deliver both lecture and practical material.

What exactly is Physiology?

Physiology is about the functions of living organisms, such as the circulation and function of the heart, food and digestion and the energetics of muscle contraction. Its scope ranges from understanding events at the molecular level (e.g. how cells sense nutrients) to the integrative physiology of organs and systems and how they are regulated and adjust to change (e.g. in response to exercise and to environmental extremes such as the microgravity of space flight).

On a molecular level, understanding ion channel properties and what controls where and when they are placed in the body brings us closer to developing novel therapeutic strategies for pain control and the treatment of life threatening conditions such as cystic fibrosis.

Nutrient (glucose, amino acids and lactate) transport across membranes of tissues plays a key role in whole body fuel metabolism. Integrative physiology shows how whole body metabolism is regulated and how the body adapts to altered fuel intake and use, and how muscle can adapt to changes throughout life e.g. growth, ageing and functional alterations such as exercise.

Physiologists haved helped in the development of treatments such as cardiac pacemakers and artificial joints, which are of benefit to animals as well as humans.

What's so good about Physiological Sciences at Dundee?

Flexible course pathways

Physiological Sciences is available as a single Honours degree programme and can also be combined with several other disciplines, in the Anatomical & Physiological Sciences degree, or combined with another subject e.g. pharmacology, in a Biomedical Sciences degree.

Employability

As a graduate in physiological sciences you will have an excellent grounding for a career in, or further training for, biomedicine and related fields including biochemistry, pharmacology and physiotherapy.

Many of you will contribute to a better understanding of the basis of human performance, taking higher degrees and then going on to careers in biomedical research.

You will also be welcomed into applied research and development in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries. Some of you will go on to teach in schools and universities. We also have a good record of postgraduate entry to medicine.

A broad spectrum of employment is available to graduates in any discipline and your training in communication and transferable skills will be recognised and valued by a wide range of employers.

UCAS Code: B100

Detailed Course Facts

Application deadline January 15 Tuition fee

The fees you pay will, in most cases, depend on your current country of residence.

The fee shown is annual, and may be subject to an increase each year.

Fee category

Fees for students starting September 2015

Scottish students

£1,820 per year of study (for Sept 2014 entry). Fees for September 2015 will be confirmed by the Scottish Government in early 2015.

Rest of UK students

£9,000 per year, for a maximum of 3 years, even if you are studying a four year degree. See our scholarships for rest of UK applicants.

EU students

£1,820 per year of study (for Sept 2014 entry). Fees for September 2015 will be confirmed by the Scottish Government in early 2015.

Overseas students (non-EU)

£15,950 per year of study. See our scholarships for international applicants.

Not specified Start date September 2015 This Course starts in September Duration full-time 48 months Languages Take an IELTS test

• English

Delivery mode On Campus Educational variant Full-time

Course Content

What you will study

Typical Degree Programme

Levels 1 and 2

All Life Sciences degree programmes share common core modules at Level 1 that provide a general introduction to the life sciences through an integrated programme of lectures, tutorials, practical work and field excursions.

Please refer to the Biological/Biomedical Sciences degree structure and overview webpage for details of the common curriculum in Levels 1 and 2.

Level 3

At Level 3 you specialise much more in physiology, and you choose additional subjects that interest you to study alongside your main subject. You will study aspects of cellular and molecular physiology that currently cover:

• Membrane physiology
• Ion and nutrient transport
• Cell-cell communication
• Cell excitability and neurophysiology

The knowledge you gain from these topics will then be carried forward to demonstrate how function at the cell and molecular level is integrated into control of physiological systems (e.g. respiratory, cardiovascular, etc.) and the whole body.

Summer work placements

Many students take advantage of opportunities for summer work placements, normally between Levels 3 and 4, which are available as externally-funded competitive placements, or as voluntary laboratory work.

Level 4

Your studies at Level 4 will be at the level of current research in your chosen subject area.

Advanced study of topics in physiological sciences currently include:

• Membrane transport
• Lung development and function in health and disease
• Regulation of cardiac function
• Human reproduction
• Pain
• Modern techniques of human metabolic investigation
• Regulation of nutrient exchange
• Nutrient induced responses
• Regulation of fuel and oxygen utilisation
• Comparative animal physiology

Your studies will involve extensive use of scientific literature and the opportunity to attend a regular programme of seminars given by invited speakers from Britain and abroad.

Research project - several formats are available including laboratory-based research under the supervision of a leading scientist, computer modelling, multimedia teaching packages, literature and electronic database review.

How you will be assessed

All modules are assessed by a combination of in-course and end-of-course procedures. Regular in-course assessments (e.g. practical reports, computer-based exercises, essays and data processing exercises) provide feedback on your progress and help you prepare for end-of-module examinations.

On-line assignments are used extensively at Levels 1 and 2, with access via a PC on or off campus. Peer assessment operates in many team projects.

Requirements

See the Course Homepage for Full details

Work Experience

No work experience is required.

Related Scholarships*

• Academic Excellence Scholarship

  "The Academic Excellence Scholarship can provide up to a 50 % reduction in tuition per semester. These scholarships will be renewed if the student maintains superior academic performance during each semester of their 3-year Bachelor programme. The scholarship will be directly applied to the student’s tuition fees."

• Access Bursary

  Bursary for UK students all subjects where the variable tuition fee rate is payable.

• Alumni Bursary

  Alumni Bursary for UK Undergraduate students

* The scholarships shown on this page are suggestions first and foremost. They could be offered by other organisations than University of Dundee.