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Studies & Degrees in Life Science

Life science is the group of sciences that study living things: cells, microbes, plants, animals and people, and the ecosystems they form. A student can meet it as one broad degree or as a family of more specialised ones. The School of Life Sciences at the University of Sussex, for example, groups its courses under biochemistry, biology, biomedical science, chemistry, ecology, conservation and environment, genetics, neuroscience, and zoology and animal studies.

Students learn how organisms work at every scale, from molecules and genes to populations. They also learn how to do science: designing experiments, working safely in the laboratory or in the field, handling data and statistics, and writing up results. Chemistry, mathematics and physics support the biology, especially in the first year.

Qualifications and levels

  • Associate degree and vocational routes. Two-year colleges in the United States teach the foundations. American Samoa Community College offers an Associate of Science degree in Marine Science that gives students a platform in basic physical and life sciences, from which they can continue to higher education or enter the job market.
  • Bachelor's degree. In Europe a bachelor's degree has 180 or 240 ECTS credits, according to the European Commission. In England the usual length is three years: The University of Manchester lists three-year BSc courses in biochemistry, biology, biomedical sciences, biotechnology, genetics, life sciences, microbiology, neuroscience, pharmacology and zoology, among others. In the United States a bachelor's degree is planned as four years with a major in biology or a related field.
  • Integrated master's degree. Some UK universities add a fourth year to the bachelor's degree. At Manchester, an extra year leads to the integrated master's (MSci), and most courses can also include a language, a year of industrial or professional experience, or entrepreneurship.
  • Master's degree. A European master's degree usually has 90 or 120 ECTS credits and allows specialisation, for example in biotechnology, ecology or bioinformatics.
  • Doctorate. Independent research careers require a PhD. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) lists a doctoral or professional degree as the typical entry-level education for biochemists and biophysicists and for medical scientists.

Professional accreditation exists in some countries. The University of Warwick states that all the undergraduate courses of its School of Life Sciences are accredited by the Royal Society of Biology.

Where to study

SpainExchange lists 43 active schools for life science. Twenty-one are in the United States, seven in the United Kingdom and four in China; Canada and the Netherlands have two each, and Japan, American Samoa, Italy, Taiwan, Bermuda, France and Germany have one each. The list ranges from community colleges to large research universities. Some examples:

  • The University of Manchester, where a common first year in biosciences makes it easy to switch between most of its more than 60 undergraduate course options before the second year.
  • The University of Warwick and the University of Sussex, both with a School of Life Sciences.
  • The University of Wisconsin-Madison, which offers some 600 undergraduate and graduate majors, and McGill University in Montreal, with its Faculty of Science.
  • Fudan University in Shanghai, whose School of Life Sciences has departments including ecology and evolutionary biology, biochemistry and biophysics, and microbiology and immunology.
  • National Taiwan University, which has a College of Life Science.
  • HZ University of Applied Sciences in the Netherlands, with English-taught bachelor's and master's programmes and applied research on water, energy and food.
  • The ASU Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences, a marine research centre at the edge of the Sargasso Sea that offers internships and courses for university students.

The language of instruction follows the country. Programmes in the United States and the United Kingdom are taught in English. At The University of Tokyo most undergraduate programmes require fluent Japanese, so international applicants should check the language requirements of each course.

Careers

Life science graduates work in research laboratories, the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries, hospitals and public health, agriculture and food, environmental and conservation agencies, and education. Typical jobs are biological technician, microbiologist, zoologist or wildlife biologist, biochemist, medical scientist and science teacher. Many of these roles need further study after the bachelor's degree.

In the United States, the BLS projects that overall employment in life, physical and social science occupations will grow much faster than the average for all occupations from 2025 to 2035. Employment of biological technicians, who typically need a bachelor's degree in biology or a related field, is projected to grow 7 percent in that period, and employment of microbiologists 6 percent.

Frequently asked questions

Is life science the same as biology?

Biology is the core of the life sciences, but the term is wider. It also covers fields such as biochemistry, genetics, neuroscience, biomedical science, ecology and zoology, and universities often group all of them in one school of life sciences.

How long does a life science degree take?

A European bachelor's degree has 180 or 240 ECTS credits, at 60 credits per full year. In England most BSc courses take three years, and an integrated master's (MSci) adds one more year.

Which school subjects do I need?

Universities normally expect biology and chemistry, and often mathematics. Entry requirements differ by country and course, so check the admission page of each university.

Do I need a PhD to work in the life sciences?

Not for every job. According to the BLS, biological technicians and microbiologists typically need a bachelor's degree, while biochemists, biophysicists and medical scientists typically need a doctoral or professional degree.