An IBMS Accredited degree course will help you meet the Health and Care Profession's (HCPC) educational standards required to register as a biomedical scientist in a UK healthcare laboratory.

You will need A-levels in biology and/or chemistry, or equivalent, as well as GCSE maths, or equivalent. Universities have different requirements for their biomedical science degree courses, which can be found on their websites.

Some full-time courses have an integrated placement in a laboratory that enable you to apply academic theory from your programme and develop your professional skills. 

Part-time courses are also available, allowing you to combine your studies with other commitments. Such as, working as a trainee in a hospital laboratory four days a week with one day a week studying at university.

Undergraduate courses 

There are three types of IBMS Accredited undergraduate programmes: 

Degree

Students choosing an IBMS Accredited degree programme will need to arrange laboratory placement and undertake an IBMS Registration Training Portfolio once they have completed their degree.  

Sandwich degree

Students choosing an IBMS Accredited Sandwich degree programme will be able to undertake a laboratory placement during their degree.

Integrated degree

Students choosing an IBMS Accredited Integrated degree will be able to complete an IBMS Registration Training Portfolio during their laboratory placement as part of the programme.

On completing their degree, students will be awarded an IBMS Certificate of Competence to apply for HCPC registration as a biomedical scientist.  

Postgraduate courses

An IBMS Accredited postgraduate degree does not count towards the academic requirements for HCPC registration but it does meet the requirements for registration with the Science Council as a Chartered Scientist (CSci).

If your degree is not IBMS Accredited

Graduates with science degrees containing the principle core biomedical science subjects may have qualifications that are partially suitable for HCPC registration. However, they will need to supplement their degrees with additional modules that are an integral part of IBMS Accredited courses.

The IBMS assesses non-accredited qualifications against HCPC education standards and will determine whether you will need to undertake supplementary education/top-up modules to meet HCPC Standards of Proficiency for biomedical scientists.