Build your appreciation of the chemical sciences and the drug development process on this five-year course. Incorporating a year in industry, this course will prepare you for a career in the pharmaceutical and related industries, or in biomedical research. You'll develop an interconnected understanding of core chemistry topics, and deepen your knowledge of inorganic, organic, physical, analytical, synthetic and computational chemistry through interdisciplinary modules. You'll also focus on the identification, development and production of new drugs. Extensive laboratory-based work will help develop your practical skills. You'll learn to synthesise chemicals and study chemical systems and build expertise in experimental measurements and computational models. As the course develops, you'll study strategies for targeting diseases and work with complex portfolios of data. This includes opportunities to specialise across a series of advanced topics in your third and fourth year. Part of your studies will see you analyse emergent ‘industry 4.0’ approaches and technologies such as rapid prototyping, 3D printing, electronics and machine learning. Your fourth year is spent in industry. During this period, you'll place chemistry in an industrial context on an extended placement with a leading industrial partner. Previous placement partners have included GlaxoSmithKline, AstraZeneca, Pfizer, Vertex and BenevolentAI. Your study reaches Master's level in your final year, where your work will culminate with a substantial research project in a medicinal chemistry-related field. Teaching is primarily delivered at our South Kensington campus, as well as the state-of-the-art Molecular Sciences Research Hub in White City. **Professional accreditation** This degree leads to a Master’s level qualification and is professionally accredited by the Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC). This accreditation is internationally respected in an increasingly global industry and graduate market. It will allow you to demonstrate that you’ve completed a high-quality degree programme designed to meet the needs of both students and their future employers. This MSci degree fully satisfies the academic requirements for professional registration as a Chartered Chemist (CChem). Becoming a Chartered Chemist earns you an internationally recognised qualification which can enhance your career prospects and earning potential
A level: AAA | Our minimum entry standard is AAA overall, to include: A in Chemistry A in Mathematics A in a third subject (Biology, Economics and Physics are preferred) General Studies and Critical Thinking are not accepted. Students taking English exam board science A-levels will be required to pass the practical endorsement. | International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme: 38 UCAS points | Must include: 6 in Chemistry at higher level 6 in Mathematics* at higher level 6 in a third subject at higher level (Biology, Economics or Physics is preferred) *Mathematics Analysis and Approaches or the Applications and Interpretation syllabi will be accepted at higher level with no preference. | Cambridge International Pre-U Certificate - Principal: D3D3D3 | Must include: D3 Chemistry D3 Mathematics
Score above refers to overall score. Additionally, a score of 62 is required in all bands. Results must be within 2 years of course start date in order to be valid. Score above refers to overall score. Additionally, a score of 5.0 is required in all bands. Imperial will continue to accept old TOEFL iBT taken before 21 January 2026. Our requirement is 100 overall with 22 in all bands. Results must be within 2 years of course start date in order to be valid. For pre-2015 test, the College requires grade B overall. If your test result is 2016 onwards, the College requires 185 overall with 176 in all elements/bands Score above refers to overall score. Additionally, a score of 6.5 is required in all bands. Results must be within 2 years of course start date in order to be valid.
We recommend reviewing our course page for the latest information regarding the curriculum (including core and optional modules) and course structure, as this information may be subject to periodic change.
*Please note that home fees can be subject to government changes. Tuition fees at the overseas chargeable rate for 2027 entry are still to be confirmed. Tuition fee rates at overseas chargeable rate for 2026 entry are published at www.imperial.ac.uk on our course listings, which provide an indicative cost, noting that fees are likely to be subject to increases in line with inflation as per the Retail Price Index (RPIX) value. For further information on fees, funding, loans and grants, see: https://www.imperial.ac.uk/study/fees-and-funding/undergraduate/ For further information on fee status eligibility see: https://www.imperial.ac.uk/study/fees-and-funding/tuition-fees/fee-status/ — Fees update for 2027
Comparing courses? Match them against your grades.
Open the course explorer