Career options with
a biochemistry degree
A degree in biochemistry can lead to a diverse range of
employment and postgraduate study opportunities.
A good number of students commit to scientific careers in
areas as varied as agriculture, animal health, biotechnology
consumer goods, drug discovery, diagnostics, pharmaceuticals,
medical and biomedical science, epidemiology, food,
informatics, technical supplies, scientific publishing, medical
and pharmaceutical sales and much more.
Many others decide to look at jobs outside of science and enter a
diverse range of roles ranging from law, finance, public relations,
teaching, and charity work. Biochemists are found to be working in
a variety of industries and sectors.
In order to pursue some careers you may have to undertake further
study and develop specialist skills and knowledge.
Recent graduate destinations
Cambridge Bioscience: medical research – technical sales
EY: financial services – audit trainee
Essex and Suffolk Water: utilities – water quality scientist
Inpharmation: pharmaceuticals – business development consultant
Kraft Foods: food industry – product innovation scientist
NHS: healthcare – biomedical scientist
Retroscreen Virology Ltd: medical research – project administrator
Succinct: media and communications – assistant editor
Vectura: pharmaceuticals – scientist
Vickers Oil: oil industry – research chemist
Postgraduate study
A wide range of postgraduate degree programmes have been
undertaken by recent students such as PhDs in:
• biochemistry
• genetics
• childhood brain tumours
• microbiology
• chemistry
• cardiovascular medical research
• biomedical sciences
• biochemistry/molecular cell biology
www.nottingham.ac.uk/careers
• pharmacy
• sustainable chemistry
• biocatalyst
• cancer trpv1 signalling
A number of students went on to study masters degree’s in
biomedical research, biochemistry, molecular microbiology,
oncology, health and epidemiology, drug design, radiation biology,
integrated immunology, environmental science. Other students went
on to study for a PGCE in science teaching, medicine and dentistry
among others.
The universities attended ranged from Nottingham, Loughborough,
Leicester, Cambridge, Oxford, Reading, Warwick and Imperial
College of Science and Technology, among others.
Working as a biomedical scientist in the NHS
The most direct route is to consider applying for the NHS Scientist
Training Programme (STP). The STP is usually advertised in January
of the year you wish to start.
Your current degree will not be accredited by the Health Care
Professionals Council (HCPC) and in order to access biomedical
work in the NHS as a biomedical scientist or in some cases as a
Laboratory Technician you will need to acquire this accreditation.
To gain accreditation you will need to undertake top-up modules
required by the Institute of Biomedical Science (IBMS). These can
be taken at IBMS accredited universities.
www.ibms.org/go/registration/become-hcpc-registered/qualsand-degree-assessment
The pharmaceutical sector
The pharmaceutical sector is not all about large pharmaceutical
companies, the industry has a large and growing number of small
and medium sized companies involved in life science research, drug
development and biotechnology.
Careers and Employability Service
Career options with a biochemistry degree
These organisations are less visible to graduates as they often do
not advertise graduate programmes and often employ people with
PhD-level qualifications.
A list (not exhaustive) of small, medium and large companies can be
found at
http://biopharmguy.com/links/country-unitedkingdom.php
LinkedIn
Graduate destinations such as those noted above do not
necessarily provide a complete picture of what students go on to
do with their lives and careers.
LinkedIn can be very useful to track how careers have developed
over time. You can also find out where former students work, what
they do and how they got there. This information can be useful to
you when making decisions about your career planning, networking
and taking the important next step on graduation.
If you’re new to LinkedIn then there is a useful video on YouTube on
how to get started. Search for “University of Nottingham Careers –
getting started with LinkedIn”
What skills have I got?
In addition to your subject knowledge, your biochemistry degree
and extracurricular activity equips you with key skills sought by
employers in all sectors and industries.
Here are just a few of the skills developed on your course: written
and verbal skills, research, analysis and interpretation of data,
problem solving, time and personal management, presentation
skills, data handling, statistics and project management.
How we can help
Our experts are here to help you at every stage of your University
life. We offer a range of appointments, from CV reviews to more indepth careers advice. Appointments can be booked online through
My Career and are available throughout the year.
Visit www.nottingham.ac.uk/careers/login and use your
University username and password to sign in.
General advice
There are many places to look for information and listed below are
some that we think you might find useful. It is not exhaustive and no
doubt your own research will lead you to other web sites.
General science jobs
Biochemical Society: www.biochemistry.org
British Pharmacological Society: www.bps.ac.uk
The Physiological Society: www.physoc.org
New Scientist: www.newscientistjobs.com
Nature: www.naturejobs.com
Jobs in Science: www.jobsinscience.com
Biomedical jobs
NHS careers: www.nhscareers.nhs.uk
Careerscene: www.careerscene.com
Academy of Medical Sciences: www.acmedsci.ac.uk
Institute of Biomedical Science: www.ibms.org
Association of Clinical Biochemistry: www.acb.org.uk
Food science jobs
Institute of Food Science & Technology: recruit.fstjournal.org
Bioscience industry
Biotech companies: www.bioindustry.org
GlaxoSmithKline: www.gsk.com/careers
AstraZeneca: www.astrazeneca.com/Careers
Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry:
careers.abpi.org.uk
Master’s, diploma and PhD studentships
General information from Prospects:
www.prospects.ac.uk/postgraduate_study.html
FindAMasters: www.findamasters.com
Hotcourses: www.hotcourses.com
JustCourses: www.justcourses.com
TARGETcourses: targetpostgrad.com
Study in the USA: www.fulbright.org.uk
FindaPhD: www.findaphd.com
PhDs in Europe: ec.europa.eu/euraxess
Time Higher Education Supplement:
jobs.timeshighereducation.co.uk
We’re here to help, get in touch:
Careers and Employability Service
The University of Nottingham
Portland Building, Level D West
University Park
Nottingham NG7 2RD
United Kingdom
t: 0115 951 3680
e: [email protected]
www.nottingham.ac.uk/careers
CareersUoN
@UoNCareers
blogs.nottingham.ac.uk/careers
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© The University of Nottingham 2015. All rights reserved.
Printed September 2015. Information correct at time of print.
www.nottingham.ac.uk/careers
Careers and Employability Service