Master of Science in Social and Cultural Theory

at University of Bristol - Clifton Campus United Kingdom

This course follows the structure of our MEng Engineering Mathematics degree but gives you the opportunity to spend your third year abroad at an English-speaking university. You can transfer onto this course up until your second year.

The first two years provide a background in mathematical analysis, modelling and scientific computation and their application to engineering. These core topics underpin the advanced material that follows.

You will spend your third year overseas at one of our partner universities. Visit Global Opportunities to find out more about where you can study abroad.

As well as gaining first-hand exposure to pioneering research, in your final year you will have a wide choice of options from across engineering and mathematics to fit your interests.

A major focus of the course and a key strand throughout the curriculum is real-world problem solving, spanning many different application areas from robotics and social media to medicine and environmental modelling. Problems come from our industrial collaborators or address challenges in current research. Working on these case studies, using theory and techniques from your other units, you will develop your mathematical modelling, collaboration and communication skills.

This programme is designed for anyone involved in conceptualising or administering policies related to the Global Development Challenges. It is especially suitable if you are already involved in planning development strategies, currently working for non-governmental or governmental organisations in the development field or planning for a career in development.

The programme combines an intellectual and academic approach with policy-oriented and empirical studies of development. It addresses three separate, but related, facets of the development process:

• Analysing what development means;
• Studying the processes of planning (external aid, regional disparities, environmental factors, poverty and industrialisation);
• Examining how development policies may be delivered and administered, analysing the importance of effective political and bureaucratic structures, and evaluating the contributions of NGOs and other external bodies.

This degree is designed for students with potential who do not have a science background. You can automatically progress from this course to our BSc or MSci Chemistry degrees.

Our chemistry courses offer a superb grounding in the subject. In years one and two you will study fundamental concepts in inorganic, organic and physical chemistry, and applications in areas such as analytical, environmental, materials and theoretical chemistry.

You will also develop your ability to design experiments and interpret results and gain key skills through our chemistry-specific communications and mathematics units.

You will get the opportunity to specialise after the first two years. BSc final-year project options include work in a research laboratory or a local school, helping to develop science resources or carrying out chemistry education research. On the MSci course you will complete a 20-week research project with an academic member of staff in your final year.

We are one of the UK's biggest chemistry schools and we have a superb reputation for teaching and research; over a third of our research was rated 'world-leading' in the Research Excellence Framework 2014.

The programme provides intensive training in the neurosciences as they relate to the physiologic function and behaviour of the organism. It builds on the broad research strengths of recognised scientists, particularly in basic and clinical neuroscience, molecular and cell biology, neuroendocrinology, behaviour, neurodegeneration and stress. Guest lecturers from other universities bring their specialist and advanced knowledge to the programme.

Throughout the programme, basic principles will be taught and illustrated in the context of various brain diseases, including psychiatric and neurodegenerative disorders. A practical and a research project will give you valuable experience in experimental neuroscience, while tutorials and presentations will also help to develop your communication skills.

The MSc will appeal to graduates looking to progress to PhD study as well as those with medical training who want to diversify into research. You could also move on to a career in industry, the health service, science communication or clinical trials coordination.

This course will equip you to combine the critical, theoretical and practical skills central to psychology with a cellular, synaptic and systems-level understanding of brain function from neuroscience. The course emphasises the experimental study of the mind and nervous system and we want our students to share a sense of fun and adventure in exploring and combining these different perspectives.

MSci Psychology and Neuroscience is taught by experts who are enthusiastic about teaching students the latest developments in the field based on the research that they are conducting. It is specifically designed to meet the requirements for accreditation by the British Psychological Society (BPS) and gives you eligibility for Graduate Basis for Chartered Membership (GBC). It provides you with a pathway to becoming a psychologist along with knowledge and skills from both disciplines, which you can apply in a wide range of careers.

In the first year you will be introduced to what psychology can reveal about how the mind works and the neuroanatomical pathways and cellular and synaptic mechanisms underlying brain function.

In the second year you will continue to develop your understanding of biological, cognitive, social and developmental aspects of psychology alongside the different techniques used to study nervous systems.

The third year will combine training in psychological experimental design and statistical analysis with the opportunity to focus on specific research areas, such as neurological and psychiatric disorders or interdisciplinary areas, such as behavioural and cognitive neuroscience.

In your fourth year you will apply what you have learned to investigate a specific psychological research question. You will also develop valuable skills in communicating science and developing ideas, as well as deepening your understanding of specialist and interdisciplinary areas of psychology and neuroscience.

This joint honours course is offered by the Department of Computer Science and Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering and is designed to meet the needs of the computing and electronics industries.

You will understand how to design and build hardware and software for all types of computer systems in order to implement applications ranging from medical equipment and autonomous vehicles to finance systems.

Your first two years cover the foundations of computing and electronics, equipping you to work confidently in software and hardware. You can tailor your third year to suit your interests by choosing an individual project and some optional units.

The BEng course provides partial accreditation for the qualification of Chartered Engineer. The first two years are common with the MEng Computer Science and Electronics and transfer on to the MEng is possible until the end of year two, subject to satisfactory performance.

The Bristol area is home to a range of thriving and world-leading semiconductor design companies who contribute to our curriculum design as well as hosting industry-based projects.

The program is well balanced, covering a wide range of topics in engineering science and engineering practice.

Our curriculum embeds a diverse set of professional engineering and management skills spanning four core thematic areas:

• Design and manufacture
• Dynamics and control
• Materials
• Thermofluids.

Years one and two are common to all mechanical engineering students and cover the fundamental principles of mechanical engineering. Teaching is via lectures, laboratories, design classes and short projects in modelling and manufacturing.

In your third year, you will apply the principles learned to real, complex engineering applications. A major element is the open-ended individual research project, which requires independent and creative thinking.

Do you enjoy both physics and computing? Our three-year BSc Physics with Scientific Computing combines study of the building blocks and forces of nature with training in the computational and data-science skills that are currently revolutionising science and society.

Computing skills are vital across many physics-related careers. Computers control advanced instrumentation and simulations predicting the properties of the universe, from subatomic particles to the formation of galaxies. This course offers a unique combination of units and projects blending programming, machine learning, data science and high-performance computing with fundamental concepts in physics to produce a new kind of scientist – one with a firm foundation in physics, a sound appreciation of scientific computing and an understanding of what can be achieved by combining them.

Year one gives you a comprehensive grounding in physics, mathematics and programming, while year two focuses on the principles of physics with further emphasis on scientific coding. In your final year you will undertake a research project or dissertation supervised by staff with expertise in physics and computing.

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 computational 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.

If you have a fascination for physics and an appetite for scientific computing, you will enjoy this program.