Natural Sciences

You will be taught by world-class scientists and will benefit from the wealth of research going on around you.

Explore familiar subjects, experience new ones

The Natural Sciences Tripos (NST) is the framework within which most science ‘subjects’ are taught at Cambridge. If you want to study any of the biological and physical sciences listed below, this is the course for you.

The Natural Sciences Tripos offers both physical and biological scientists a unique and demanding course that combines a broad first year with increasing specialisation in the second year and total specialisation in the third and, in some disciplines, fourth years.

The breadth of the Natural Sciences Tripos reflects the blurring of boundaries between the different sciences: biological problems are increasingly being solved using techniques which require an understanding of physics and chemistry, whilst many of the most pressing problems being addressed by chemists and materials scientists require a knowledge of biology.

When you enter Cambridge as a Natural Scientist you may think of yourself as broadly a ‘biological’ or ‘physical’ scientist, but you will not be labelled as a zoologist or a physicist (say), before you have studied a variety of subjects, some of which may be completely new to you. This is a huge advantage because it makes it possible for you to change your mind about which subject you want to specialise in. Even if you are quite sure about the field you wish to work in, the broad range of the first two years is extremely valuable in alerting you to the important issues in other branches of science. You will meet teachers and researchers in different science departments, before committing yourself to one department for your third (and maybe fourth) year.

The range of options within the Biological Sciences

Flexibility and diversity
In the first year all Natural Scientists study three courses from a choice of eight experimental sciences, which include three biological courses: Biology of Cells, Evolution and Behaviour, and Physiology of Organisms. If you are interested in the biological sciences you could take a wide variety of combinations, for example:

• purely biological – all three biology courses
• biochemical/pharmacological – combining biology courses and Chemistry
• ecological/evolutionary – combining biology courses and Geology
• physical – combining Chemistry, Physics and Biology of Cells

You also take a course in mathematics: biological scientists usually take Quantitative Biology or Elementary Mathematics for Biologists.

In the second year, ten of the Part IB subjects are biological. Many options develop topics covered in the first year options. (For example, Cell and Developmental Biology, and Biochemistry and Molecular Biology both build on Biology of Cells and provide an advanced foundation for specialist further study in biochemistry or other molecular biosciences.) Some options introduce different material, such as Pathology, the biology of disease, and Pharmacology, which considers the mechanisms of drug action. The other purely biological subjects in Part IB are Animal Biology, Ecology, Experimental Psychology, Neurobiology, Physiology, and Plant and Microbial Sciences. The flexibility of the Tripos also makes it possible to combine biological sciences with, for example, organic chemistry (Chemistry B) or History and Philosophy of Science.

In the third year, Part II of the NST, most students focus on a single subject offering advanced study, concentrating on specific areas of their subject and also undertaking a research project or a dissertation.

The biological subjects available are: Biochemistry; Genetics; Neuroscience; Pathology; Pharmacology; Physiology, Development and Neuroscience; Plant Science; Psychology; and Zoology. All the specialist Part II subjects offer opportunities for some sub-specialisation. Students can instead opt to take the broader Biological and Biomedical Sciences option.

Most third-year (Part II) options in the biological sciences have a limit on the number of places available owing to the restrictions of laboratory space, particularly for doing project work. It is therefore not possible to guarantee that you will be able to follow your choice of course and some options have a competitive entry system. However, in a typical year over 80 per cent of students are able to study their first choice of subject.

The fourth-year option
The only biological subject offering a fourth year leading to an MSci degree is Biochemistry.

After Biological Sciences?
Almost half the graduates from the biology departments continue with further study and research, often going on to academic positions in other universities, into the pharmaceutical industry, biotechnology, conservation organisations or environmental management; all of which are well represented around Cambridge. Other graduates go on to a range of careers, including accountancy, banking, investment, management consultancy and law.

The range of options within the Physical Sciences

A progressively deeper understanding and specialisation
If you are interested in the more physical sciences then in the first year you might choose:

• three from the following first year subjects: Physics, Chemistry, Materials and Mineral Sciences or Geology
• or two of these with a biological subject (Evolution and Behaviour, Physiology of Organisms or Biology of Cells)
• or two of these with Computer Science

A level Mathematics is essential for the physical sciences, and you must also take Mathematics for Natural Sciences in your first year.

If you think of yourself as a physicist, then you will probably choose Physics A and Physics B in the second year, with either another science subject or Mathematics, and specialise in the third and fourth years in Experimental and Theoretical Physics, or perhaps Astrophysics.

Potential chemists will probably take Chemistry A and B in the second year. These can be combined with either a more biological subject, such as Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, or with Physics, Mathematics, Geology, Materials Science and Metallurgy or even Experimental Psychology or History and Philosophy of Science.

Many physical scientists discover a real enthusiasm for the new subjects that they start in the first year, such as Geology or Materials and Mineral Sciences or even a biological subject such as Biology of Cells, and continue to develop these in their second and/or third year.

The fourth-year options
It is possible to take a fourth year in Astrophysics, Chemistry, Geological Sciences, History and Philosophy of Science, Materials Science or Physics leading to an MSci degree.

Other routes into Physics
In the first year a number of students take Mathematics with Physics or Computer Science and then continue with Physics in the second, third and fourth years.

Chemical Engineering
If you wish to study Chemical Engineering from your second year, you may decide to take Natural Sciences in your first year.

After Physical Sciences?
About half our graduates continue with research, mostly by taking a PhD either in Cambridge or elsewhere; you will find that studying Natural Sciences prepares you well for the challenges of research, especially in emerging interdisciplinary areas. Those who do not choose to stay in research take up a wide range of careers, from banking or accountancy to the law, and from consultancy to media-related work. Physical Natural Sciences graduates are both numerate and used to dealing with large amounts of information – skills which are highly valued by employers.