Physiology

A physiology degree can lead to many careers in science and healthcare, with employers such as the NHS, pharmaceutical companies and research institutions

Job options

Jobs directly related to your degree include:

• Biomedical scientist
• Clinical research associate
• Clinical scientist, audiology
• Clinical scientist, cardiac science
• Clinical scientist, physiological sciences
• Exercise physiologist
• Pharmacologist
• Research scientist (medical)
• Scientific laboratory technician

Jobs where your degree would be useful include:

• Dietitian
• Epidemiologist
• Medical sales representative
• Medical science liaison
• Physician associate
• Physiotherapist
• Science writer
• Secondary school teacher
• Therapeutic radiographer
• Toxicologist

Remember that many employers accept applications from graduates with any degree subject, so don't restrict your thinking to the jobs listed here.

Work experience

Look for work experience related to the career you're interested in as this will strengthen your CV and help when applying for jobs when you graduate. If you want to apply to clinical physiology posts, for example, consider doing a placement in a hospital department. Some degrees offer this type of experience as part of the course but if not, you can reach out yourself to local hospitals and clinics.

If you can't get a work placement, work shadowing or a day visit to a relevant department to find out more about your preferred role is also useful and will help you build up a network of professional contacts.

Laboratory experience and knowledge of the range of techniques used can also be helpful, particularly for research posts.

Any part-time, vacation or volunteering work that demonstrates your interest in your chosen field will enhance your CV.

The NHS Health Careers website has useful information on planning your career and getting started.

Search for placements and find out more about work experience and internships.

Typical employers

The major scientific employers of physiology graduates are:

• research centres and academic institutions
• pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies
• the NHS - specialist areas include cardiac sciences, audiology, neurophysiology, critical care science, respiratory physiology, sleep physiology and gastrointestinal (GI) physiology
• private sector hospitals, medical centres and other healthcare organisations
• the health and fitness industry.

Further employment opportunities can be found with scientific and medical publishers, educational settings such as secondary schools or colleges - as a science teacher, and with scientific sales and marketing companies or medical device manufacturers.

Non-scientific employers include:

• management consultancies
• local government
• law and accountancy firms
• banks and other financial institutions
• retail companies.

Find information on employers in healthcare, science and pharmaceuticals, teaching training and education, and other job sectors.

Skills for your CV

A physiology degree teaches you how the human body works and provides a strong foundation if you want to work in medicine and other scientific fields. Throughout your degree you develop skills in planning, conducting and evaluating experiments, and researching and interpreting scientific literature. You also develop the ability to communicate science to both peers and non-scientists.

In addition, you also gain a range of skills sought by both scientific and non-scientific employers, including:

• familiarisation with medical terminology, clinical assessment and rehabilitation techniques
• analytical and problem-solving skills with attention to detail
• using judgement, decision-making and questioning
• the ability to identify, select, organise and communicate relevant information and data
• computing, statistics and numeracy
• planning, organisation and time management
• teamworking and collaborative decision-making between groups
• persistence and resilience to retry experiments
• social skills used in patient advocacy - empathy, active listening.

Further study

Many physiology graduates enter employment straight after finishing their degree, while others choose further study to build on their medical knowledge or to specialise in a particular area or sector.

There are many opportunities to continue your study after your physiology degree, including:

• Completing a second undergraduate degree such as medicine or dentistry. There may be fast-track options available, due to your previous study.
• Applying to the NHS Scientist Training Programme (STP) to train to become a clinical scientist in areas such as audiology, cardiology or physical sciences.
• Completing a physiology postgraduate qualification such as an MSc, MRes or PhD in physiology. In academia, a PhD is usually required to obtain a lectureship. In industry, some large employers, such as major pharmaceutical companies, may sponsor relevant part-time Masters or PhD programmes.
• Completing a vocational postgraduate qualification in a medical-related subject, such as physiotherapy or dietetics, or in a related subject like forensic science or toxicology, or in a completing different field such as law.

For more information on further study and to find a course that interests you, see Masters degrees and search postgraduate courses in physiology.

What do physiology graduates do?

The top five jobs reported by physiology graduates include medical and dental technicians (8%), other health professionals (7%), nursing auxiliaries and assistants (7%), pharmacists (6%) and laboratory technicians (4%).

For a detailed breakdown of what physics graduates are doing after graduation, see What do graduates do?

Graduate Outcomes survey data from HESA.