Marine Biology BSc Hons | University of Chester

Accreditations

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Course Summary

Our Marine Biology BSc course offers a comprehensive study of marine ecosystems, exploring the diversity of life in the oceans and the complex interactions that sustain marine environments. Accredited by the Royal Society of Biology, our degree empowers you to develop crucial skills for addressing real-world challenges. Combine theoretical knowledge with practical fieldwork and laboratory research and gain a deep understanding of marine organisms, their behaviour, physiology, and ecological roles.

The University of Chester is located in close proximity to the Dee Estuary which comprises the marine areas of The Dee Estuary Special Protection Area (SPA) and Dee Estuary/Aber Dyfrdwy Special Area of Conservation (SAC) with internationally important wetland species.

Key topics include coastal ecology, oceanography, tropical marine ecology together with the impacts of climate change and human activity on marine ecosystems. The course also emphasises the importance of sustainable marine resource management, equipping students with the skills to play a key role in marine conservation.

You will gain valuable skills in modern research techniques, such as molecular biology, data analysis, and remote sensing, to effectively study marine life and monitor ocean health. Additionally, you will gain invaluable experience and insights through exciting work placements with our industry partners. On completion of the course, you will have practical expertise in marine biology, paving the way for diverse career opportunities and advanced postgraduate studies.

Why You'll Love It

Study Abroad

Study within an internationally significant Special Protection Area (SPA) and Special Area of Conservation (SAC)

Aerial shot of the dee estuary from the Wirral

Gain hands-on experience via coastal and marine habitat field trips

Marine biologist writing down data sitting on a boat

BSc (Hons) Marine Biology

What You'll Study

The Physical and Natural Sciences Foundation Year route is an ideal place to begin your journey in academic sciences.

The Foundation Year is designed to give you a strong knowledge and skills base aligned with your chosen four-year degree. Following a solid grounding in scientific principles or behavioural sciences in your first block of teaching, you will study bespoke modules aligned with your discipline. This could involve studying the human body in health and disease and how to encourage healthy and sustainable behaviours, or the biology of terrestrial and marine animals and the impacts of their interactions with humans, or you might focus on the physical sciences and how they can help change the world for the better. Whatever you aspire to, we can offer you a supportive and incremental introduction to your science degree.

The information listed in this section is an overview of the academic content of the course that will take the form of either core or option modules and should be used as a guide. We review the content of our courses regularly, making changes where necessary to improve your experience and graduate prospects. If during a review process, course content is significantly changed, we will contact you to notify you of these changes if you receive an offer from us.

The BSc Marine Biology course shares core modules across the school with Zoology and Animal Behaviour and offers specialised options at Levels 5 and 6.

In your first year (level 4), you will learn foundational biological concepts such as genetics, anatomy, ecology, and animal behaviour, while developing essential lab and field skills. A capstone project in the final term allows you to apply your first-year knowledge in a research project or field trip.

In your second year (level 5), you delve deeper into animal adaptations and behaviours across various ecological settings. You also build expertise in research, statistics, policy, and ethics, combined with our specialised marine module exploring marine ecosystems. You will also have the opportunity to gain invaluable hands-on experience through work placements or exciting overseas field trips.

In your final year (level 6), you will prepare for graduate careers through modules that apply your knowledge to real-world contexts. You will explore tropical marine conservation and consulting, gain insights into working independently and collaboratively, and choose from specialist modules tailored to future career paths. Additionally, you will undertake a year-long research project for your dissertation, focusing on project design, research ethics, and data analysis, with the flexibility to develop your research ideas under the guidance of a supervisor.

This course is delivered in three terms of ten weeks each at each Level. In each term, students study 40 credits comprised of either one or two modules. Some of these modules will be core that all students on the course will take, while in other terms, students will be able to choose between different modules depending on their preferences. At Level 6, the Dissertation module will cut across all terms.

Average scheduled contact hours for each module range between approximately 6 and 12 hours per week, depending upon the Level of study, the complexity of the material being taught and requirements for laboratory practicals or field trips. This course is delivered through a mixture of in-person and online learning, although in-person learning will make up the majority of the delivery. Students are expected to actively take part in lectures, workshops, seminars, support sessions and practical sessions.

Independent learning also forms an important part of this course. Students should expect to spend an average of 30 – 34 hours per week on independent study, which might include following asynchronous learning material on the University’s Virtual Learning Environment (VLE), tutorial time with staff, using the University’s library, working with peers and preparing work for assessment.

There will be a broad range of assessment methods used throughout and across the different modules and Levels, so that students are exposed to the different types of tasks they might encounter in the workplace. These will include coursework in the form of field journals, case studies, written pieces (both long and short form; such as communication pieces, literature reviews, dissertations or laboratory reports), data analysis and presentations. In some cases, various types of assessment may be combined into a portfolio that the students develop throughout the year as they learn and progress through different tasks. In some modules, students may encounter more time-sensitive assessment tasks like oral practical assessments and end-of-module assessments or they will need to work as part of a group towards the completion of assessment tasks. Where possible, both formative and summative assessment will be used. All assessments are designed from a competency viewpoint, where the competencies that students need to develop by the end of the assessment task are the focus and we work backwards from these to design the tasks. We thus continuously review the assessment methods used to ensure that they adequately prepare students for graduate-level employment when they complete their degrees.

All teaching is delivered by experienced academics and practitioners, with the fundamental principles of the Chester Future Skills Curriculum at its core - building your subject competence, confidence, and key transferable skills to shape you into a world-ready Chester graduate.

Entry Requirements

112UCAS points

UCAS Tariff	112 points
GCE A Level	Typical offer - BCC/BBC Must include A Level: Biology or Applied Science
BTEC	BTEC Extended Diploma (Marine Biology/Applied Science/Animal Management): DMM
International Baccalaureate	26 points including 5 in HL Biology
Irish / Scottish Highers	Irish Highers - H3, H3, H3, H3, H4 including Biology Scottish Highers - BBBB including Biology
T Level	T Level Science - Merit
OCR Cambridge Technicals	OCR Extended Diploma (Applied Science): DMM
Extra Information	Welsh Baccalaureate Advanced and A level General Studies will be recognised in our offer. We will also consider a combination of A Levels and BTECs/OCRs.

Students from countries outside the UK are expected to have entry qualifications roughly equivalent to UK A Level for undergraduate study and British Bachelor's degree (or equivalent) for postgraduate study. To help you to interpret these equivalents, please click on your country of residence to see the corresponding entry qualifications, along with information about your local representatives, events, information and contacts.

We accept a wide range of qualifications and consider all applications individually on merit. We may also consider appropriate work experience.

English Language Requirements

IELTS Academic: Undergraduate: 6.0 (minimum 5.5 in each band)
Postgraduate: 6.5 (minimum 5.5 in each band)

For more information on our entry requirements, please visit International Entry Requirements.

72UCAS points

UCAS	72 UCAS points
GCE A Level	72 points overall, including grade D in A level Biology or Applied Science
BTEC	BTEC Extended Diploma (Marine Biology/Applied Science/Animal Management): MMP
T Level	T Level (Science): Pass (D or E on the core)
Irish / Scottish Highers	Irish Highers - H4 H4 H4 H4 H4, including Biology Scottish Highers - CCDD including Biology
International Baccalaureate	24 points, including 4 in HL Biology
Access requirements	Access to HE Diploma (Science) – Pass overall
OCR	OCR Extended Diploma (Applied Science): MMP
Extra Information / General Entry Requirements	Welsh Baccalaureate Advanced and A level General Studies will be recognised in our offer. We will also consider a combination of A Levels and BTECs/OCRs. If you are a mature student (21 or over) and have been out of education for a while or do not have experience or qualifications at Level 3 (equivalent to A Levels), then our Foundation Year courses will help you to develop the skills and knowledge you will need to succeed in your chosen degree. A level Science (Biology, Applied Science) or BTEC Marine Biology, Applied Science, Animal Management.

Fees and Funding

£9,535per year for a full-time course (2025/26)

Our full-time undergraduate tuition fees for Home students entering University in 2025/26 are £9,535 a year, or £1,590 per 20-credit module for part-time study.

You can find more information about undergraduate fees on our Fees and Finance pages.

Students from the UK, Isle of Man, Guernsey, Jersey and the Republic of Ireland are treated as Home students for tuition fee purposes.

Students from countries in the European Economic Area and the EU will pay International Tuition Fees.

Students who have been granted Settled Status may be eligible for Home Fee Status and if eligible will be able to apply for Tuition Fee Loans and Maintenance Loans.

Students who have been granted Pre-settled Status may be eligible for Home Fee Status and if eligible will be able to apply for Tuition Fee Loans.

£14,450*per year for a full-time course (2025/26)

The tuition fees for international students studying Undergraduate programmes in 2025/26 are £14,450 per year for a full-time course. This fee is set for each year of study.

The University of Chester offers generous international and merit-based scholarships, providing a significant reduction to the published headline tuition fee. You will automatically be considered for these scholarships when your application is reviewed, and any award given will be stated on your offer letter.

For courses with a Foundation Year, the tuition fees for Year 1 are £10,750 and £14,200 for Years 2-4 in 2025/26.

For more information, go to our International Fees, Scholarship and Finance section.

Irish Nationals living in the UK or ROI are treated as Home students for Tuition Fee Purposes.

Your course will involve additional costs not covered by your tuition fees. This may include books, printing, photocopying, educational stationery and related materials, specialist clothing, travel to placements, optional field trips and software. Compulsory field trips are covered by your tuition fees.

If you are living away from home during your time at university, you will need to cover costs such as accommodation, food, travel and bills.

Who You'll Learn From

Dr Nick Fleming

Senior Lecturer in Zoology, Programme Leader BSc Marine Biology

Dr Jo Beukers-Stewart

Senior Lecturer in Zoology & Biology

Prof Andrew Lawrence

Professor

Dr Simon Oliver

Associate Professor & Programme Leader MSc Marine and Coastal Resource Management

Dr James Brown

Programme Leader for Zoology

Where You'll Study Exton Park, Chester

The location

Modern learning resources and library

Seaborne library, seating and reception area.

Student Services

Fitness facilities

A male student wearing goggles is swimming in the training pool between the red rope lane marker lines.

Chapel, chaplaincy and multi-faith spaces

Accommodation

Catering

Your Future Career

Job Prospects

Our graduates are well equipped with both transferable skills and the specific skills required for a career in marine biology (perhaps in wildlife conservation, fisheries or marine habitat restoration) or a broader career (policy making, NGO or scientific journalism).

Careers service

The University has an award-winning Careers and Employability service which provides a variety of employability-enhancing experiences; through the curriculum, through employer contact, tailored group sessions, individual information, advice and guidance.

Careers and Employability aims to deliver a service which is inclusive, impartial, welcoming, informed and tailored to your personal goals and aspirations, to enable you to develop as an individual and contribute to the business and community in which you will live and work.

We are here to help you plan your future, make the most of your time at University and to enhance your employability. We provide access to part-time jobs, extra-curricular employability-enhancing workshops and offer practical one-to-one help with career planning, including help with CVs, applications and mock interviews. We also deliver group sessions on career planning within each course and we have a wide range of extensive information covering graduate jobs and postgraduate study.

Marine Biology BSc (Hons)

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