Master of Science in Physics

at University of Bristol - Clifton Campus United Kingdom

This four-year course is ideal for those considering scientific careers that will make direct use of their subject-specific knowledge and skills.

Our degrees incorporate units in chemistry, physics and mathematics. The first year gives you a comprehensive grounding in these subjects, while later years focus on atomic and molecular science and its interdisciplinary applications.

You will focus on areas at the interface between chemistry and physics, with limited treatment of organic chemistry and more physical and non-synthetic inorganic chemistry. Similarly, there is very little nuclear and particle physics after your first year but an emphasis on materials science and nanoscience.

As well as lectures and practical classes, small-group tutorials and workshops help develop your understanding of challenging and exciting concepts. Practical labs in both chemistry and physics help develop experimental techniques, computational modelling and programming skills needed in the final year for conducting a research project with a research team.

The importance of addressing the climate emergency has never been clearer. Climate change experts are needed in government, business, research, and non-governmental organisations, to help drive sustainable transformation in changing environments.

The University of Bristol's MSc in Climate Change Science and Policy trains highly skilled graduates with a solid grounding in climate change science, alongside a critical understanding of the context for action on climate change. The programme is designed for students with a background in science (through their undergraduate or work experience) and includes hands-on quantitative training with climate models and climate data. Graduates of the programme have experience in the tools and methods of climate science, and an understanding of the role of scientific evidence in policy, as well as the strengths and weaknesses of different approaches to governing the environment.

You will learn about the fundamental building blocks and forces of nature and how quantum physics and relativity help us understand the world around us, from the infinitesimal scale of particle and nuclear physics to the cosmic scale of galaxies and the Universe.

Year one gives you a comprehensive grounding in physics and mathematics. In year two you will develop a fundamental understanding of the principles of physics, including practical work in the laboratory and computational physics. Flexibility and choice are key features of a Bristol physics degree and you are usually able to transfer between courses in the first two years.

In your final year you will undertake a major project, working in a research group with a staff member. Our students' final-year projects address questions at the frontiers of our research fields and the most successful have been published in scientific journals.

You will join a friendly department with a very active, award-winning student society. We encourage you to develop a broad range of skills, including the experimental, theoretical and analytical skills needed for a career in research and industry. Our physics graduates have an excellent record of employment, a testament to the value that employers place on these skills.

Develop an understanding of the evolution of life on this planet through the study of geology and biology.

Learn from experts, with interests ranging from dinosaurs to plants to the origin of life, and become fully immersed in hands-on palaeontology from the start.

One third of the first year is dedicated to biology and two thirds to earth science. After the first year you will take core units from both disciplines.

In the third year you will carry out a research project and take a range of specialist palaeontology units. Examples of current units include: Marine Micropalaeontology, where you will learn to use microfossils to reconstruct past climates and understand their impact on ecosystems; Macroevolution, where you will learn cutting-edge techniques for analysing the large-scale patterns in the evolution of life; and Vertebrate Palaeobiology and Biomechanics, where you will study the evolution of the vertebrates from fish-like creatures to humans. You will also select from a range of optional units to pursue your own interests.

The course involves fieldwork, including dedicated palaeontology field courses, the cost of which is included in your tuition fee.

Our MA draws on these strengths. It is intended both for students who have a first degree in philosophy who wish to specialise in philosophy of science at a higher level, and for individuals with a background in pure science who wish to make a transition to philosophy of science or to explore foundational issues within the sciences.

The emphasis of the programme is on philosophical issues arising from specific scientific disciplines, with particular focus on physics, biology and mathematics. The history of science is studied in terms of the philosophical debate about the nature of scientific method and knowledge.

Pharmacology is the study of the action of drugs in the widest possible sense; it encompasses many types of chemicals that affect the functioning of the body rather than just medicines.

For the first two years you will study a number of core units run by the School of Physiology, Pharmacology and Neuroscience and choose others from a wide selection, such as biochemistry, molecular genetics, infection and immunity, cellular and molecular medicine and mammalian physiology. Final-year units emphasise the molecular mechanisms of drug action and take you to the forefront of current research.

In your final year, formal lectures are replaced by seminars and tutorials and a fully integrated programme of activities develops your transferable personal and professional skills.

We use a wide variety of teaching approaches, which are both traditional (including lectures, practical work and tutorials) and innovative; for example our practical teaching is currently enhanced by self-directed learning using computer-assisted packages, such as eBiolabs.

This course provides an exciting intellectual challenge from the outset. In year one you will study physics, mathematics and philosophical topics such as metaphysics, the theory of knowledge and ethics.

Subsequent years allow you to study the overlap between physics and philosophy in depth. You will study the philosophy of science and the foundations and philosophy of physics.

The course gives you the opportunity to develop a physicist's broad range of skills, including problem-solving, numeracy and communication, and to supplement these with a philosopher's ability to rigorously analyse complex texts and form coherent arguments on complex subjects.

You will join a friendly department with a very active, award-winning student society. The course is accredited by the Institute of Physics.