Undergraduate study in Chemistry

Come and join a friendly and close-knit School, consistently ranked as one of the top Chemistry departments in the UK.

Chemistry is an exciting central science interfacing with biology, physics, medicine, geology and engineering. At St Andrews, you will receive comprehensive training from world-leading academics.

The School offers a wide range of undergraduate degrees in Chemistry:

Chemistry BSc (Hons)
Chemistry MChem (Hons)
Chemical Sciences BSc (Hons)
Chemistry with Medicinal Chemistry BSc (Hons)
Chemistry with Medicinal Chemistry MChem (Hons)
Materials Chemistry BSc (Hons)
Materials Chemistry MChem (Hons)
Sustainable Development BSc (Hons)
Sustainable Development MA (Hons)

All degrees feature a final year project in academic research labs. The MChem qualification provides additional opportunity for an industrial placement in your second to last year of study.

The School offers:

a diverse range of contemporary chemistry options spanning medicinal chemistry, nanotechnology, materials, catalysis, molecular biology and surface science
a flexible degree structure with the opportunity to specialise in materials chemistry or medicinal chemistry
an excellent staff-to-student ratio, providing high levels of contact time with academic staff
practical training in award-winning, state-of-the-art teaching laboratories.

First and second year

In the first year, you will typically study three compulsory chemistry modules and three other optional modules (with three modules in each semester), which could be another chemistry module or chosen from any other available first-level science subject module, even those which might be completely new to you.

In second year, you will typically study three chemistry modules and one module from another department (with two modules in each semester). If you enter directly into second year, you may also complete a short ‘booster’ module in chemistry.

Honours years

After completing the modules in your first two years, you must decide on your final degree choice (MChem or BSc) and enter the Honours level.

In the Honours years you will have the choice of a number of options, depending on the degree you finally choose to take. These include opportunities to go on industrial placement and to take part in a research project.
The MChem degree allows you to combine undergraduate and postgraduate study into a single five-year programme, graduating with a Masters degree. The MChem degree gives you the best possible training for entering the job market or for higher degrees like a PhD. The course lasts five years, or four years if you enter directly into second year.

The course also includes the excellent opportunity to work on placement outside of St Andrews for a whole year. This is a great chance to gain experience in industry and add value to your CV at the same time. Alternatively, you have the choice to complete the MChem without doing the external placement.

Undergraduate study in Chemistry

Studying modules in Chemistry

MChem