Natural Sciences

Female scientist looking at a test tube with yellow steaks - AI generated Image by Alana Jordan from Pixabay

Many students choose to pursue a degree in natural sciences to explore their broad scientific interests while keeping future specialisations and career paths open. You will gain a diverse and dynamic scientific education, building technical expertise and professional skills that are highly valued across multiple industries.

As a natural science graduate, you will have strong skills in areas such as analytical thinking, problem-solving and research. Natural science graduates follow opportunities in a wide field of careers including healthcare, environmental conservation, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, data science and non-scientific fields such as finance, consulting, and science communication.

MyCareer

What skills will I gain during my degree?

The specific skills and knowledge gained during your degree will depend to a large extent on the pathway you choose. However, in general terms, you can expect to gain the following key skills:

Analytical skills
Problem-solving skills
Multidisciplinary scientific research skills
Practical scientific and laboratory skills

Numerical and data analysis skills
IT skills
Communication skills
Organisational and teamwork skills
An ‘interdisciplinary mindset’ – helping you see the bigger picture and links between different areas of knowledge and research, an important attribute in further study or graduate employment.

How can I develop my skills and gain experience during my degree?

Due to the wide range of potential career options and sectors open to you as a natural sciences student, it is important to start to consider your options early on in your course. Look for opportunities to gain relevant experience and skills within your areas of interest whether this is in a scientific or in a non-scientific sector.

Get a summer internship

Summer internships are also a great way to gain experience, whether in science or non-science based roles.

Find out more on the Natural Sciences' Placements webpage

The Nottingham Internships Scheme, for example, offers a range of local paid internships with companies in Nottingham, and other sources of vacancies are listed on our work experience pages.

Find out more about the Nottingham Internship Scheme

Try Students in Classrooms

There are three initiatives which will give you the opportunity to work in a local educational setting. These initiatives support the academic attainment and raise the aspirations of primary and secondary pupils, while developing the skills and employability of those involved.

These are excellent opportunities for students considering teaching, youth work or community engagement as a career.

Students in Classrooms

Consider an optional placement year

You can now undertake an optional placement year as part of your degree at the end of your penultimate year of study. The placement can be aligned to your degree discipline or related to your career aspirations. Speak to a career adviser or your school for more information.

Optional Placement Year

Get involved in Students' Union activities

Get involved in activities including volunteering and societies such as NatSciSoc.

Students' Union

Join the Nottingham Advantage Award

Through the completion of extracurricular modules, the Nottingham Advantage Award helps you develop key life and work-based skills and reflect on your experiences, allowing you to demonstrate your achievements and skills more effectively when applying for jobs

Nottingham Advantage Award

Apply for part-time jobs

The university advertises advertise part-time, casual and temporary jobs on campus and with local businesses. Created just for you, the advertised vacancies can fit around your studies and other commitments.

Part-time jobs

Work experiece and volunteering

Depending on what area of work or role you might be interested in, and where, there will be specific strategies, from speculative applications to formal processes you need to be familiar with.

Work experience - what, how and when

What are the range of careers I could enter?

A natural science degree opens doors to a wide range of careers across multiple industries. Here are some paths you might consider:

Scientific research. Work in laboratories or field research, studying everything from ecosystems to medical advancements
Environmental science and conservation. Help protect natural habitats, manage resources, or work in sustainability
Healthcare and biomedical science. Roles in pharmaceuticals, genetics, or medical diagnostics.
Data science and IT – Many natural science graduates transition into data analysis, programming, or AI development
Finance and consultancy. Analytical skills can be valuable in banking, risk assessment, or business strategy
Education occupations. Work within teaching, supporting, managing learning and educational processes.
Forensic science. Apply scientific methods to criminal investigations.
Manufacturing and engineering. Work in product development, materials science or quality control.

Around a third of our graduates choose to do further study either to enhance their undergraduate degree and specialise further through taught master's or research degrees or to change their focus and move into a different career area.

Some of the employers that recent graduates have gone on to work for include:

BAE Systems
Catalent Pharm Ltd
Civil Service
EY
DSTL
Experian
European Space Agency

GSK
HSBC
Intellectual Property Office
NHS
PwC
Ramboll
Wellcome Trust

What do graduates from my course go on to do?

Graduate Outcomes is a national survey capturing the activities and perspectives of graduates launched in 2018 and is the biggest annual social survey in the UK.

You can view the destinations of graduates, who completed the survey, from your course by booking an appointment with an adviser. This can help you to explore your options if you are unsure what you want to do.

Find out more about the Graduate Outcomes survey

What are my further study options? Watch our webinar on PhD study

Further study can be used to develop your understanding of a specialist area or to gain new skills which allow you to supplement your existing knowledge for a specific career.

This can include courses like the Postgraduate Certificate in Education graduate entry to medicine, law or veterinary medicine and master's courses.

PhDs have been undertaken in biology, physics, math, biochemistry and genetics.