Microbiology

Microbiology is the scientific study of the smallest forms of life: bacteria, viruses, fungi, protozoa, and other microorganisms that are invisible to the naked eye but of immense importance to human health, agriculture, industry, and the environment. Microorganisms drive fundamental processes in ecosystems, from nitrogen fixation and decomposition to the production of oxygen in the oceans. They are also the agents of infectious diseases, the source of many antibiotics and other medicines, and increasingly the tools of biotechnology and synthetic biology.

Understanding microbiology is essential to medicine, public health, food science, and environmental management.

At the University of Aberdeen, this four-year programme is designed to develop both your research and practical skills, taking you through a wide-ranging curriculum that includes the latest advances in the field. You will study microbiology, applied statistics, bioinformatics, the regulation of microbial adaptation, and host-pathogen interactions in infection and disease, developing the theoretical understanding and laboratory competence that the discipline demands. The programme includes a year abroad, giving you the experience of studying microbiology in an international research environment and broadening your scientific horizons beyond the UK.

Microbiology graduates are in demand in pharmaceutical companies, research institutions, public health agencies, clinical microbiology laboratories, the food and beverage industry, environmental science, and biotechnology. The rigorous scientific training the degree provides is applicable wherever microbiological understanding is needed to address real problems. Many graduates go on to postgraduate study in microbiology, infectious disease, biotechnology, or a related biomedical field, and doctoral research is a common route for those interested in academic or research careers.