This course is not accepting applications for deferred entry.
Royal Holloway, University of London has participated in the Teaching Excellence Framework. These ratings were awarded in 2023, for four years.
Course summary
Our Integrated Foundation Year will take you through a carefully-designed course to help you to progress confidently onto your undergraduate degree. The Biology Foundation Year provides progressive structures in which you are able to gain knowledge and understanding of approaches to scientific study and your chosen degree subject. Once you have completed your Foundation year, you will normally progress onto the full degree course, BSc Biology. There may also be flexibility to move onto a degree in another department (see end of section, below). Biology helps us to understand the world around us – the way that plants and animals interact, the way that different living things evolve and adapt and our own role in the wider natural world. Biology at Royal Holloway, University of London gives you a sound understanding of the structure, function, evolution and diversity of living organisms and the interactions between them. On BSc Biology you will study a diverse range of biology modules, from molecular biology to learning the science to help overcome the challenges of climate change. You can choose a pathway to tailor your degree to your own biological interests from a huge range of options taught by experts in their fields, across the spectrum of ecology or molecular sciences. You will learn on a biodiverse campus in reach of sites of special scientific interest and put your learning into practice through fieldwork opportunities. You will develop an understanding of how to design and analyse experiments and gain invaluable laboratory experience and data handling skills. On successful completion, you’ll be equipped with:
- a broad understanding of the fundamental knowledge base and the terminology of Biological Sciences
- an awareness of current areas of debate and discovery in Biological Sciences and how scientific knowledge and methods can be applied to investigate them.
- the skills needed to work in a wide range of sectors.
Modules
Please refer to our website for information: https://royalholloway.ac.uk/studying-here/2022/undergraduate/biological-sciences/bsc-biology-with-integrated-foundation-year/
Assessment method
In your Foundation Year, teaching methods include a mixture of lectures, practical classes and workshops, laboratory classes, individual tutorials, and supervisory sessions. Outside of the classroom you’ll undertake guided and independent practice. You will be assigned a Personal Tutor in the Department of Biological Sciences and will have regular scheduled sessions. In the Foundation Year, you’ll also be assigned a Personal Tutor in the Centre for the Development of Academic Skills (CeDAS). Assessments are varied; practical exercises, weekly problem sheets, set exercises, written examinations, laboratory reports. In addition the Foundation Year offers a full range of skills-based training. For your degree course, teaching methods will include a mixture of lectures, seminars, individual tutorials, and practical field and laboratory work. Outside the classroom, students will be expected to undertake study to understand the taught material, and to carry out the assessed coursework. Assessment will be through a combination of examinations, project(s) and practical work.
Professional bodies
Professionally accredited courses provide industry-wide recognition of the quality of your qualification.
- Royal Society of Biology
How to apply
31Jan
This is the deadline for applications to be completed and sent for this course. If the university or college still has places available you can apply after this date, but your application is not guaranteed to be considered.
Application codes
- Course code:
- C10F
- Institution code:
- R72
- Campus name:
- Main Site
- Campus code:
- -
Points of entry
The following entry points are available for this course:
- Foundation
Entry requirements
Qualification requirements
UCAS Tariff - Not accepted
A level - CCC
Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016) - DMM
Access to HE Diploma - Not accepted
Scottish Higher - CCCCC
Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Diploma (first teaching from September 2016) - DM
Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Certificate (first teaching from September 2016) - D
Scottish Advanced Higher - CCC
International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme - 25 points
Welsh Baccalaureate - Advanced Skills Challenge Certificate (last awarded Summer 2024) - Not accepted
Leaving Certificate - Higher Level (Ireland) (first awarded in 2017) - H3, H4, H4, H4, H4
Cambridge International Pre-U Certificate - Principal - Not accepted
GCSE/National 4/National 5 - Not accepted
Combinations of qualifications will be considered on an individual basis, please contact us on [email protected] to discuss your situation
Student Outcomes
Operated by the Office for Students
Employment after 15 months (Most common jobs)
Go onto work and study
The number of student respondents and response rates can be important in interpreting the data – it is important to note your experience may be different from theirs. This data will be based on the subject area rather than the specific course. Read more about this data on the Discover Uni website.
Fees and funding
Tuition fees
| England | £9250* | Year 1 |
| Northern Ireland | £9250* | Year 1 |
| Scotland | £9250* | Year 1 |
| Wales | £9250* | Year 1 |
| Channel Islands | £9250* | Year 1 |
| Republic of Ireland | £9250* | Year 1 |
| EU | £26500 | Year 1 |
*This is a provisional fee and subject to change.
Tuition fee status depends on a number of criteria and varies according to where in the UK you will study. For further guidance on the criteria for home or overseas tuition fees, please refer to the UKCISA website .
Additional fee information
The tuition fee for UK undergraduates is controlled by Government regulations. Fees for the first year of an Integrated Foundation Degree (i.e. the Foundation year) will be charged at the same amount as the accompanying UG degree course, unless otherwise indicated by the government. For students starting a degree in the academic year 2024/25, the fee is £9,250 for that year.
Royal Holloway reserves the right to increase tuition fees annually for overseas fee-paying students. Please be aware that tuition fees can rise during your degree. The upper limit of any such annual rise has not yet been set for courses starting in 2024 but will advertised here once confirmed.
These estimated costs relate to studying this particular degree at Royal Holloway during the 2024/25 academic year, and are included as a guide. Costs, such as accommodation, food, books and other learning materials and printing etc., have not been included.
Year 1 discount for Foundation Year students: Your Foundation Year counts as Year 0. In Year 1, Home (UK) students taking an Integrated Foundation Year degree benefit from a 10% discount off the standard Home (UK) tuition fee for that year. Find out more (https://royalholloway.ac.uk/studying-here/fees-and-funding/)
Provider information
Royal Holloway, University of London
Egham
TW20 0EX