Enchance your degree

Life at university is about more than just lectures and seminars.

We give you the opportunity to make the most of your degree and tailor it to your particular area of interest.

This experience can add value to your time at university, while allowing you gain skills that will set you apart once you graduate.

Industrial/professional experience

You can choose to spend the third year of your degree on placement with one of our partner organisations in the UK or overseas. After this year away you will come back to study for one further year.

Placements provide valuable work experience that will help you clarify your career objectives and give you an advantage in today’s competitive employment market.

We have a very successful programme of laboratory and field research placements with over 100 partner organisations all over the world including pharmaceutical companies, research institutes, hospitals and nature reserves.

We have recently expanded our range of placements to reflect the growing range of science careers outside of the laboratory in science enterprise, education and communication.

Eligible courses

Almost all of our biosciences courses can be studied with industrial/professional experience. See a full list here.

In addition, psychology students also have the option of doing a 30-hour work placement or a full year’s placement.

Modern languages

Joint language degrees involve a programme in which about two thirds of your time is spent studying your main degree and the remainder of your time is spent studying a language (French, German, Spanish, Italian, Japanese or Mandarin).

These four-year degree courses with a modern language include a year spent conducting research in a research institute or university in a country where the language you are studying is spoken.

Your placement year, subject to satisfactory academic performance and placement availability, will take place between your second year and final year.

Studying a degree with a modern language can:

  • improve your language skills;
  • give you an advantage in today's competitive jobs market;
  • see how your subject is applied in the world of work;
  • clarify your own career objectives.

Eligible courses

Almost all of our biosciences courses can be studied with a modern language. See a full list here, and note that some courses do require you to have studied the language at A-level.

In addition, medicine students have the option of doing European Studies which allows them to learn Spanish, French or German and study at a partner university in Europe.

Entry requirements

You must meet our standard entry requirements for the degree programme you are interested in studying, as well as the additional requirements for your language:

  • French, German, Italian or Spanish: Grade B at A-level in your chosen language or equivalent is required.
  • Japanese or Mandarin: No prior knowledge is assumed, but evidence of linguistic proficiency is required (e.g. GCSE A* in a foreign language). Chemistry AS-level (grade B) is essential.

Study abroad

Study abroad for either semester of your second year. This is an excellent opportunity to travel and to gain a fresh perspective on your course through the experience of a different academic system.

Participating in the programme will broaden your horizons, enhance your personal development and can dramatically improve your career prospects.

The Erasmus Impact Study has shown that unemployment rates for graduates who participated in Erasmus exchange programmes as part of their degree are 23% lower than for other graduates five years after leaving university.

Foreign language skills are not essential for study in Europe as many of our partners lecture in English. There are also opportunities to study in English speaking countries outside Europe.

We have partnerships with universities in Europe, Asia, Australia, New Zealand and the Americas. See a full list of partner universities.

Eligible courses

For a full list of eligible courses, visit the study abroad website.

You need a good attendance record and a minimum average of 60% from your first year university results.

Entrepreneurship

Our degrees with entrepreneurship will enable you to combine science with business skills.

Graduates with skills in business and innovation are extremely desirable to employers who require their staff to be able to apply their specialist subject knowledge in a commercial context. It allows you to understand how to respond to challenges and succeed in the face of uncertainty.

The entrepreneurship units are taught by the Alliance Manchester Business School, exposing you to the latest learning in business innovation.

The course also includes a year in industry on a research or business placement.

Eligible courses

Almost all of our biosciences courses can be studied with entrepreneurship. See a full list here.

Stellify

‘Stellify’ means 'to change, or be changed, into a star'. At Manchester, we want you to Stellify through our range of transformational academic and extracurricular activities, helping you to stand out and make a difference to the world.

We are the only university in the UK to have social responsibility as our core goal. That's why we provide every student with opportunities to make a difference to the world, and allow them to choose their own way of doing so.

You will have the chance to graduate ready for the world of work, with skills honed through your own unique Stellify programme. Everyone's Stellify journey will be different - Stellify gives you a unique and personalised set of experiences beyond your studies. As a graduate, you will not only have a Manchester degree, but you will be adaptable, creative and globally minded.

There's also the chance for you to complete the Stellify Award - a mark of Manchester excellence.