Welcome to the School of Natural Sciences

A student looking down a microscope
Dr Krista McLennan

An introduction to your School

Welcome to the School of Natural Sciences my name is Krista McLennan. I oversee the academic programmes in the School of Natural Sciences to ensure high-quality education and research.

During Welcome Week, you will have the opportunity to meet your peers, faculty members, and support staff. This week is also designed to introduce you to the resources and support available to you throughout your studies. In the meantime, if you have any questions about your programme of study, please feel free to contact SBEWelcomeConnect@chester.ac.uk

After enrolling on your modules, you should receive a timetable centrally (available via the university app), but please don't hesitate to contact us if you have questions or the timetable is not clear. 

Get to know the academic staff in the department by viewing their profiles on the main University webpage 

We very much look forward to seeing you soon.

Welcome Week Specifics

Welcome Week is an important time when we will introduce you to your programme. We will also have a range of activities to enable you to meet other students on your course and form across the University. There will be a department introduction w.c. 23rd September, where you can get to know each other and the campus. You will also get to meet your Personal Academic Tutor. Dates on when these sessions will take place will be populated on your timetable.

An Introduction to Your PAT

Every student is assigned a Personal Academic Tutor (PAT). They will be your first point of contact for issues that arise during your degree. We work alongside Student Services – and make referrals to Student Services where necessary – to help you navigate your degree and manage any surprises that life can throw up from time to time.

You'll meet with your PAT when you arrive at university and at least three times a year, but your PAT is always at the end of an email and you may see them more, or less, depending on your circumstances. Your PAT will provide their contact information when you meet them in Welcome Week.

We are really looking forward to meeting you all in September as you start your new journey in Higher Education. If you have any questions about the start of your academic year please do take a look through all the information you have been provided.

Programmes Handbooks

Programme Leaders + Contact Details

Reading Lists

There is no required key reading prior to commencing your BSc or MSc programme at the University of Chester; however, should you wish to prepare for your studies, the following can be used as a guide for all our programmes.

Do not feel you have to purchase any of these books, unless you would like to do this – all are available via our university library (mostly as eBooks) once you enrol. If you do not have access to this right now, why not use Google Scholar to find related publications? Many of these will be available as Open Access.

For the biological sciences themed programmes, you will be carrying out all statistical analyses using the R environment (R Studio and The R Project). We'll support you in gaining skills in using this platform during your studies, but you may want to get a head start by completing a beginners' course in R. This will boost your confidence in writing code and will help with later assignments. Coursera offers some free courses – look out for one on an introduction to statistical analyses using R. There are also lots of tutorials available via YouTube. You might also want to use the following as a guide:​

  • Reece, J.B.,Urry, L.A. Cain, M.L. Wasserman, S.A. Minorsky, P.V. Jackson, R.B. (2013) Campbell biology (10th ed). Boston, MA. USA: Benjamin Cummings
  • Zuur, A., Ieno, E. N., & Meesters, E. (2009). A Beginner's Guide to R. Springer Science & Business Media, or Ennos, R., and Johnson, M.L. (2018). Statistical and data handling skills in biology. (Fourth edition). Pearson

  • Alcock, J. (2019). Animal behaviour. (11th ed.). Sunderland, MA: Sinauer Associates.

  • Gunn, A. (2019). Essential forensic biology. (3rd ed.). London: Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  • Akers, R. M., & Denbow, D. M. (2013). Anatomy and physiology of domestic animals (2nd ed.). Wiley Blackwell.

  • Chapman, S. J. (2018). Safe handling and restraint of animals: A comprehensive guide (1st ed.). Wiley Blackwell.

  • https://www.vettimes.co.uk/

  • Castro, P. 2018. Marine Biology. McGraw-Hill, New York, NY, USA.

  • Frid, C.L.J. & Caswell, B.A. 2017. Marine pollution. Oxford University Press, Oxford, U.K.

  • Kardong, K. (2015). Vertebrates: Comparative Anatomy, Function, Evolution. (7th Ed). New York, USA: McGraw Hill International Edition. Biological Sciences.
  • Solen, K. (2016). Introduction To Chemical Engineering Tools For Today And Tomorrow. 5th Edition. JOHN WILEY
  • Perry, R.H., Green, D.W. and Southard, M.Z. (2018). Perry's Chemical Engineers' Handbook. 9th Edition, McGraw-Hill Education, New York.

This Handbook is also known as 'The Chemical Engineer's Bible', covering everything from physical properties to process economics.

 

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