Microbiology
Focus your study on all types of microorganisms, acquiring the theoretical and practical skills needed for a career in microbiology.
Obtain the skills needed for a career in modern microbiology and advance your understanding of microorganisms
Benefit from teaching enriched by an internationally leading research programme
Undertake laboratory, data or field-based research on an individual project of your choice
Course key facts
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Qualification
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BSc
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Duration
3 years
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Start date
October 2025
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UCAS course code
C500
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Study mode
Full-time
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Fees
£9,535 per year Home
£43,300 per year Overseas
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Delivered by
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Location
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South Kensington
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Applications: places
8 : 1 (2023)
Minimum entry standard
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AAA (A-level)
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38 points (International Baccalaureate)
Course overview
Focus your study on all types of microorganisms and acquire theoretical and practical skills for a career in microbiology on this three-year course.
Microbiology at Imperial aims to understand the behaviour of living systems from the level of cells up to whole organisms and ecosystems.
This course focuses on all types of microorganisms, including bacteria, fungi and viruses.
You'll learn the fundamental science of different types of microorganisms, as well as the important biotechnological, industrial, medical, food and agricultural applications.
After developing your understanding of the fundamentals of microbiology, you'll move on to advanced study. Here, you can tailor the course to your interests and complete a research project that's laboratory, data or field-based.
Your teaching will be enriched by an internationally leading research programme, with teaching delivered through laboratory work, lectures, tutorials, seminars and site visits.
Structure
This page is updated regularly to reflect the latest version of the curriculum. However, this information is subject to change.
Find out more about potential course changes.
Please note: it may not always be possible to take specific combinations of modules due to timetabling conflicts. For confirmation, please check with the relevant department.
You’ll study the following modules.
Core modules
Build your understanding of living systems in terms of their underlying physics and chemistry.
Make sense of the diversity of the living world and the ways in which it has changed over the past 4.6 billion years.
Explore the behaviour of living cells and how they are influenced by both genetics and their environment.
Discover how the planet's biological diversity is organised by ecological processes, and develop skills in statistics, experimental design, and practical field-work.
You’ll study the following modules.
You’ll also choose one optional module.
Core modules
Understand modern molecular and cell biology techniques and appreciate how such techniques are used in biological disciplines. You’ll also explore bioinformatics and its role in genomics and molecular biology.
Further your knowledge of key aspects of genetics study and learn about the increasingly important applied use of genetics in the 21st Century. Acquire in-depth knowledge of standard genetics/molecular biology techniques.
Understand the rapid developments in computational, statistical and bioinformatic life sciences. Utilise statistical modelling and bioinformatic tools to understand complex biological datasets and make evidenced inferences.
Complete a tutored dissertation in an area of microbiology.
Through I-Explore, you'll have the chance to deepen your knowledge in a brand new subject area, chosen from a huge range of for-credit modules.
All of our undergraduate courses include one module from I-Explore's wide selection.
The module you choose will be fully integrated into your course's curriculum and count as credit towards your degree.
Gain a fundamental understanding of molecular bacteriology. You’ll also study the nature of viruses and how they progress.
Enhance your knowledge of the organisation, development, and regulation of the immune system in health and disease.
Optional modules
Develop the skills required to perform a range of molecular and cell biology investigations of prokaryotic and eukaryotic systems.
Acquire the skills to perform computational analysis of genomic and protein sequences, with training in Linux, Python and running sequence analysis programs on the command line.
You’ll choose three optional modules, one from each of Groups A, B and C.
You’ll also choose a research project option from Group D.
Optional modules – Group A
Discover the theory and methodology that is used to engineer biology for an applied objective and build your awareness of the design, engineering and evaluation of biocatalytic systems.
Gain an appreciation of the fine balance that exists between infectious agents and their human hosts and understand the nature of the immune response to selected infectious agents.
Optional modules – Group B
Further your understanding of the molecular features of a number of representative plant-microbe interactions.
Gain an insight into state-of-the-art infection and immunity research used to to address the specific problems of infections by a whole host of pathogens.
Gain a grounding in the basic biology of diseases. Find out how we measure and model disease processes and learn about the ecological and evolutionary drivers of disease.
Optional modules – Group C
Explore key microbial groups and broaden your knowledge on how ecological and evolutionary theories underpin our understanding of microbial communities.
Develop an understanding of some of the fundamental principles of infectious diseases and expand your knowledge of biochemical, molecular and cellular technologies.
Expand your knowledge on the principles of genetic engineering, synthetic biology and the design of biological machines.
Develop a deeper appreciation of immunology and explore the mechanisms of cellular immunoregulation. You’ll also examine the role of the immune system in cancer development and immunotherapies in treating cancer.
Optional modules – Group D
Gain an overview of different methods of communication and understand how these are used to disseminate scientific content.
Carry out a 10 week, full time research project, and build confidence in applying scientific methods to real-world life science problems.
Teaching and assessment
Balance of teaching and learning
Key
- Lectures, laboratory work and seminars
- Independent study
Years 1 and 2
- 30% Lectures, laboratory work and seminars
- 70% Independent study
Teaching and learning methods
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Laboratory
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Lectures
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Tutorials
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Seminars
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Site visits
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Group project
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Research project
Balance of assessment
Key
- Examination
- Coursework
Year 1
- 60% Examination
- 40% Coursework
Year 2
- 48% Examination
- 52% Coursework
Year 3
- 56% Examination
- 44% Coursework
Assessment methods
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Coursework
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Essays
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Individual research
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Laboratory write-ups
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Presentations
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Reports
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Written examinations
Entry requirements
We consider all applicants on an individual basis, welcoming students from all over the world.
How to apply
Apply via UCAS
You can now submit your application via UCAS Hub. There you can add this course as one of your choices and track your application.
UCAS institution code: I50
Application deadlines – 29 January 2025 at 18.00 (UK time)
This department does not use a test as part of its selection process.
Predicted grades and scores in your application are important, but it’s not the only thing that drives the decision.
Our selectors will also consider things like your personal statement and your references to understand whether there is a good match between you and your chosen subject and department at Imperial.
You can read more about our selection process, including tips on writing a personal statement, in our How to apply section.
Assessing your application
Admissions Tutors consider all the evidence available during our rigorous selection process and the College flags key information providing assessors with a more complete picture of the educational and social circumstances relevant to the applicant. Some applicants may be set lower offers and some more challenging ones.
Generally, the department does not hold interviews.
Applications from school leavers who wish to take a gap year are welcome. Applicants must state in their UCAS personal statement how they propose to spend their time.
For Biological Sciences, Biochemistry and Biotechnology, we sometimes accept transfers from other institutions into the second year. Students should provide us with a transcript of their first year grades and details of their Pre-University Qualifications and the grades attained in them.
Offers are based on the number of places available (if any), the relevance of the modules covered in the first year elsewhere and the grades achieved. If we feel direct entry to the second year wouldn't be possible we may offer you first year entry instead.
We do not accept any transfers into the third year of any of our courses.
Applicants who are unsuccessful cannot be reconsidered for entry within the same cycle but may reapply the following year without prejudice with a new application. We consider resit students in open competition with all other applicants.
We do not accept Access courses, Foundation years or OU courses.
General studies will not be accepted at any level. Other qualifications, such as Key Skills or Critical Thinking, while useful, will not count towards an offer.
An ATAS certificate is not required for students applying for this course.
The structure of the Department's courses means that transfer between different Biotechnology and Biochemistry degrees is usually possible up until the end of the second year.
- Transfer onto Language for Science courses must be completed at the very start of the first year.
- Transfer onto Year in Industry/Research courses should be completed at the start of the second year to allow time to arrange a suitable placement.
- It is not possible to transfer onto one of the Biological Sciences degrees from a Biochemistry or Biotechnology degree.
- Transfer onto the Management Year is subject to approval from the Imperial College Business School; and academic performance in the first two years of the degree (students should be working to a 2:1 standard by the end of their second year).
If you are an international student, transferring to a different course could have an impact on your student visa.
Please visit our International Student Support webpage for further information.
Language requirement
Teaching is in the language of your host country, so you will need to reach an acceptable proficiency in the relevant language before you go. Free language classes are available at the College to help you prepare.
Availability
There are limited places available on the Year Abroad programme, which means that competition for selection is strong and a placement cannot be guaranteed.
Normally, only students with marks of 60% or above will be eligible for placements in France and Germany. Only students with marks of 70% or above will be eligible for placements in the USA.
Please note the list of universities located abroad that the Department currently has partnerships with is illustrative.
Partnerships with universities are subject to continuous review and individual partnerships may or may not be renewed.
Read more about how our language for science degrees are taught on the Centre for Languages, Culture and Communication website.
Tuition fees
Home fee
2025 entry
£9,535 per year
Important update for 2025 entry
The UK government has announced that, starting in April 2025, maximum tuition fees for Home undergraduate students in England will increase from £9,250 per year to £9,535. Find out more.
Your fee is based on the year you enter the university, not your year of study. This means that if you repeat a year or resume your studies after an interruption, your fees will only increase by the amount linked to inflation.
Find out more about our tuition fees payment terms, including how inflationary increases are applied to your tuition fees in subsequent years of study.
Whether you pay the Home or Overseas fee depends on your fee status. This is assessed based on UK Government legislation and includes things like where you live and your nationality or residency status. Find out how we assess your fee status.
If you're a Home student, you can apply for a Tuition Fee Loan from the UK government to cover the entire cost of tuition for every year of your course.
The loan is paid directly to the university.
You will start repaying it only after you leave your course, have a job, and are earning above a certain amount.
Once the repayments start, the amount you pay each month depends on how much you earn, not on how much you owe in total.
Home students can apply for a means-tested Maintenance Loan to help with their living costs.
In November 2024, the UK government announced a 3.1% increase in English Maintenance Loans for 2025-26.
How you apply for student finance depends on whether you have studied before and where you’re from or normally live. Find out more on the UK government's website.
The Imperial Bursary is available to all Home undergraduate students with a household income below £70,000 per year.
The amount awarded is based on your household income, with up to £5,000/year available for students from the lowest income households.
It's money which you don't need to pay back, and it's paid on top of any government funding you may also receive.
It is available for each year of your course, as long as your annual household income remains below £70,000.
You might need to budget for additional costs related to your course that aren't covered by your tuition fees – like field trips, books and protective clothing.
Our extra costs page outlines the additional costs related to courses in each of our departments. It's not an exhaustive list and any additional costs you could incur will be determined by the course and modules you choose.
Overseas fee
2025 entry
£43,300 per year
Your fee is based on the year you enter the university, not your year of study. This means that if you repeat a year or resume your studies after an interruption, your fees will only increase by the amount linked to inflation.
Find out more about our tuition fees payment terms, including how inflationary increases are applied to your tuition fees in subsequent years of study.
Whether you pay the Home or Overseas fee depends on your fee status. This is assessed based on UK Government legislation and includes things like where you live and your nationality or residency status. Find out how we assess your fee status.
You might need to budget for additional costs related to your course that aren't covered by your tuition fees – like field trips, books and protective clothing.
Our extra costs page outlines the additional costs related to courses in each of our departments. It's not an exhaustive list and any additional costs you could incur will be determined by the course and modules you choose.
How will studying at Imperial help my career?
94% Of Imperial Life Sciences graduates in work or further study*
- 94% Of Imperial Life Sciences graduates in work or further study*
- 6%
83% Of Imperial Life Sciences graduates in highly skilled work or further study*
- 83% Of Imperial Life Sciences graduates in highly skilled work or further study*
- 17%
*2021-22 graduate outcomes data, published by HESA in 2024
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Gain transferable skills relevant to a career in pharmaceuticals, biotechnology and biomedical science.
With specialised knowledge, you'll be highly sought after in a range of sectors.
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Many Life Sciences graduates study at the Master's or PhD level before entering academia or industry.
Education, the medical industry, and the media are also potential avenues open to you.
Other potential career paths include software engineers, research associates, genomics and genetics research, and scientific officers in government.
Further links
Contact the department
- Telephone: +44 (0)20 7594 5398
- Email: lifesciences.admissions@imperial.ac.uk
Visit the Department of Life Sciences website
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Request info
Learn more about studying at Imperial. Receive useful information about our life in our undergraduate community and download our latest Study Guide.
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Events, tasters and talks
Meet us and find out more about studying at Imperial.
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Course data
Terms and conditions
There are some important pieces of information you should be aware of when applying to Imperial. These include key information about your tuition fees, funding, visas, accommodation and more.
You can find further information about your course, including degree classifications, regulations, progression and awards in the programme specification for your course.
Programme specifications