'In year 4 I spent some time in Brighton’s infectious diseases and genito-urinary medicine departments, renowned as regional referral centres. To spend time in these departments was a privilege and, as a result, I have developed an interest in a career in infectious diseases.'
Iain Milligan

The intercalated degree

University of Sussex

University of Brighton

Emerton Education Centre

Why do an intercalated degree?

The intercalated degree is an optional addition to a medical degree.

It can be in any subject, though in practice it has to be in a subject for which the candidate’s background means that they can get to the degree level in a year. In recent years, increasing numbers of students in the UK have chosen to do an intercalated degree for a variety of reasons. For some students this may contribute to a planned career path, while for others the main motivation may be to broaden their scientific horizons, or to experience different intellectual challenges from those of clinical training. Most students who do an intercalated degree say they have benefited from the experience – and this sense of having something “extra” to offer often increases with time.

BSMS offers, through its parent universities, a range of intercalated degrees which are summarised in this handbook. At this medical school, the intercalated degree is taken between years 3 and 4, slightly later than at many other schools.

Reasons to do an Intercalated Degree

To get in depth scientific training in an area already of interest to you.
To get an additional qualification of relevance to your future career.
To broaden your medical interests into an area outside the undergraduate curriculum.
To study with students from outside a clinical medicine background
As an intellectual challenge that will help you in later medical studies.
To improve writing and reporting skills by doing a subject where these are developed more than in undergraduate clinical medicine.

Please click here for our intercalated degree handbook which gives details of the degrees we have on offer here at the University of Brighton and University of Sussex.