Physics with Biophysics

Course detail Description

The first three years of the course will provide you with a strong foundation in Physics and Biophysics. In the fourth year you will have the opportunity to specialise further based upon your interests through optional modules and an MSci research project in an academic laboratory of your choice.

Problem solving and project work is an important part of this course. We also encourage you to work with a school, to experience teaching and develop the skill of presenting information to non-experts. You will be assigned a personal tutor to support your development and our Department encourages an atmosphere in which students feel able to easily approach academic staff. Our Student-Staff Liaison Committee provides a forum for the exchange of ideas and feedback on teaching.

Students who enrol on the MSci/BSc Physics with Biophysics can typically change to most of the other Physics courses at the end of their first year. Similarly, students who have initially enrolled on other Physics courses can change to Physics with Biophysics at the end of the first year, provided that they have taken the first year module ‘Introduction to Biophysics’. Students can switch between the BSc and MSci versions of the course until their third year of study, but progression into the final year of the MSci is contingent on performing at upper second class level or better in the first three years of study.

We will teach you through a combination of lectures, laboratory classes, tutorials and project work. You are expected to spend approximately 10 hours work per credit for each module you attend in your degree, e.g. 150 hours work for a 15 credit module. These hours cover every aspect of the module.

We will assess you primarily through written exams, and occasionally through practical laboratory examinations, laboratory reports, class tests, coursework and oral presentations.

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Structure

• Year 1
• Year 2
• Year 3
• Year 4

Year 1

Courses are divided into modules. Each year you will normally take modules totalling 120 credits.

King’s College London reviews the modules offered on a regular basis to provide up-to-date, innovative and relevant programmes of study. Therefore, modules on offer may change. We suggest you keep an eye on the course finder on our website for updates.

You are required to take:

• Physics Skills & Techniques (30 credits)

• Mathematics & Computation for Physics (30 credits)

• Classical Physics (30 credits)

• Introduction to Modern Physics (15 credits)

• Introduction to Biophysics (15 credits)

Year 2 Required Modules

You are required to take:

• Experimental Physics (15 credits)

• Mathematical Methods for Physics (15 credits)

• Thermal Physics & Properties of Matter (15 credits)

• Quantum Mechanics I (15 credits)

• Electromagnetism (15 credits)

• Relativity & Sub-atomic Physics (15 credits)

• Principles of Biophysics (15 credits)

In addition, you are required to take 15 credits from a range of optional modules, which may typically include:

• Introduction to Medical Physics (15 credits)

• Computational Laboratory (15 credits)

Year 3 Required Modules

You are required to take:

• Statistical Mechanics (15 credits)

• Optics (15 credits)

• Condensed Matter I (15 credits)

• Quantum Mechanics II (15 credits)

• Particle Physics (15 credits)

• Third year Project in Physics (Biophysics related) (15 credits)

• Advanced Biophysics (15 credits)

In addition, you are required to take 15 credits from a range of optional modules, which may typically include:

• University Ambassador Scheme (15 credits)

• Fundamentals of Nanotechnology (15 credits)

• Introduction to Medical Imaging (15 credits)

• Modelling Flow & Transport (15 credits)

Year 4 Required Modules

You are required to take:

• Literature Review (Biophysics related) (15 credits)

• Project (Biophysics related) (30 credits)

• Current Topics in Biophysics (15 credits)

In addition, you are required to take 60 credits from a range of optional modules, including the 40+ modules offered by the University of London colleges as part of the intercollegiate MSci.

Examples offered by King’s include, amongst many others:

• Bio & Nanomaterials in the Virtual Lab (15 credits)

• Scientific Communications (15 credits)