School of Pharmacy and Life Sciences

BSc (Hons) Forensic Science with Sandwich Placement

BSc (Hons) Sandwich 4 years

Spend a full year working in forensic science before you graduate. Our sandwich placement route builds a dedicated, credit-bearing year of professional experience into your CSFS-accredited degree — so you leave with a year's worth of evidence, not a few weeks'.

Spend a full year working in forensic science before you graduate. Our sandwich placement route builds a dedicated, credit-bearing year of professional experience into your CSFS-accredited degree — so you leave with a year's worth of evidence, not a few weeks'.

Award
BSc (Hons)
Start date(s)
14 September 2026
UCAS Code
F412
Course specifications
Course length
Sandwich (4 years)
Campus location
University: City Campus
UCAS points calculator

Why choose this course?

Every Forensic Science student at Wolverhampton gets a guaranteed professional placement. This route goes further: instead of a short, structured placement slotted around your studies, you get an entire academic year — a dedicated, 60-credit core module — working in a real forensic, scientific or related professional environment before you return to finish your degree.

  • A full year, not a few weeks. Your placement here isn't an add-on activity — it's Sandwich Placement (Life Sciences), a 60-credit core module that takes up an entire year of your four-year course, giving you significantly more workplace time than the standard route's shorter, term-time placements.
  • Placed exactly where it matters most. The sandwich year sits after your second year of study, once you've already built your core forensic science knowledge — so you go into the workplace able to actually apply DNA analysis, crime scene management, drugs and toxicology knowledge, not just observe from the sidelines.
  • Built for people who learn by doing. If you already know you want deep, sustained workplace exposure rather than a short taster, this route is designed around exactly that preference — full immersion in a professional environment for a full year.
  • The same accredited degree, the same academic rigour. You study identical Year 1, 2 and 4 content to the standard route, taught by the same forensic practitioners and researchers, working toward the same CSFS-accredited BSc (Hons) Forensic Science.
  • Evidence that employers weight heavily. A full year's work experience gives you independent-working skills, professional networks and a concrete track record that a short placement simply can't match at interview.

Accredited by The Chartered Society of Forensic Sciences

University of Wolverhampton and West Midlands Police Forensic Science Partnership

Teaching Innovation Award winners 2022

Chartered Society of Forensic Science Logo    Logo of the West Midlands Police   Teaching Innovation Award Winner icon

At the University of Wolverhampton, we are proud to produce graduates who go on to use forensic science techniques acquired on the course to assist the police and legal professions. 

 

What's unique about this course?

This isn't the standard degree with a placement bolted onto the end — the sandwich year is written into the course structure as a credit-bearing part of your degree, with its own learning outcomes and assessment weight.

  • A genuinely substantial placement, not a token one. At 60 credits — a third of a full academic year's credit load — the sandwich placement carries real academic weight in your course structure, not just a pass/fail add-on.
  • Timed for maximum impact. Because the placement sits in Year 3, after Crime Scene Investigation, Forensic Biology and Identification, and Drugs, Toxicology and Noxious Materials, you arrive in the workplace with genuine forensic science competence already built, not just general science literacy.
  • Built around independent, real-world working. The placement module is explicitly designed to develop your ability to work effectively as part of a team and apply academic learning in practice — the exact combination employers say they weight more heavily than degree classification alone.
  • A direct route back into stronger final-year work. You return for your Honours Project and final-year modules with a full year of real forensic or scientific casework experience behind you, which routinely sharpens the quality and direction of independent research projects.
  • Still the same guaranteed short placement too. The sandwich year sits on top of, not instead of, the placement guarantee that applies to every Wolverhampton forensic science student — this route simply adds a substantial, dedicated year beyond it.

What happens on the course?

This course follows the same academic backbone as the standard degree for three of its four years — the difference is the dedicated placement year sitting in the middle of it.

Year 1 — Building your scientific foundation

Identical to the standard route: you build the biology, chemistry and legal grounding every forensic scientist needs, in a forensic context from day one.

  • Learn core biological and chemical principles — cell biology, genetics, atomic structure and chemical reactions — alongside the analytical and laboratory skills that turn theory into usable evidence.
  • Get introduced to the legal and regulatory framework forensic scientists work within, including the role of the Forensic Science Regulator and ISO laboratory accreditation.
  • Build academic and digital skills, including scientific literature searching and the responsible use of AI in academic work, through a dedicated induction module.

Year 2 — Specialising in major evidence types

Again identical to the standard route — but this time, everything you learn here is what you'll be applying in the workplace the following year.

  • Work with DNA profiling, fingerprint and biometric evidence, and forensic odontology.
  • Study drugs, toxicology and noxious substances, including chromatographic analysis techniques (GC-FID/MS and LC/MS).
  • Manage complex and major crime scenes to the standards of ISO 17020.

Year 3 — Your sandwich placement

This is where this course diverges from every other forensic science route at Wolverhampton. You spend the entire year on placement, in a professional environment relevant to your degree, developing the technical and independent-working skills that only sustained real-world exposure can build. This isn't a pause in your studies — it's a core, assessed 60-credit module that counts toward your final degree.

Year 4 — Returning to finish as a sharper scientist

You rejoin the standard course structure for your final year, now with a full year of professional experience behind you.

  • Examine physical evidence types — toolmarks, footwear impressions, ballistics, glass, fibres and soils.
  • Study forensic anthropology, identifying and analysing skeletal remains for medico-legal and humanitarian investigations.
  • Prepare and defend an evidential statement as an expert witness in a mock court exercise.
  • Complete your Honours Project — many students find their placement year sharpens exactly what they want to investigate.

Placements on the course

Placements work differently on this route than on the standard degree — you get both.

Your dedicated sandwich placement year is the standout feature of this course:

  • A full academic year. Not a short, structured placement slotted around study, but an entire year dedicated to workplace experience.
  • Credit-bearing and assessed. Sandwich Placement (Life Sciences) is a 60-credit core module — it's formally part of your degree, not an optional extra.
  • Built around real responsibility. You'll work as part of a team, apply your academic learning directly, and build the kind of independent-working evidence that a short placement can't provide.
  • Positioned to maximise your final year. Because it comes after your core forensic science teaching and before your Honours Project, you return to your final year with real casework experience shaping your academic work.

The standard course-wide placement guarantee still applies to you too — every Wolverhampton forensic science student, on every route, is guaranteed a professional placement as part of their degree. On this course, that guarantee sits alongside, not instead of, your dedicated sandwich year.

If you'd rather complete your degree in three years with the standard, shorter guaranteed placement, see the BSc (Hons) Forensic Science standard route instead.

Employability on the course

Every Wolverhampton forensic science student graduates employability-ready. This route adds a full year of direct, sustained evidence to back that up.

  • A year of evidence, not a placement paragraph on your CV. Where a short placement gives you one or two projects to talk about at interview, a full sandwich year gives you an entire year of ongoing responsibility, workplace relationships and demonstrable output.
  • Professional networks that have time to develop. A full year in one organisation gives you time to build genuine working relationships — the kind that turn into references, introductions, and sometimes graduate job offers.
  • The same professional-portfolio building runs alongside it. CV writing, poster presentations and professional-style reports remain built into your degree years, so your sandwich year adds to, rather than replaces, the standard course's employability activities.
  • Support before, during and after your placement. You get the same one-to-one tutorials, academic advising and Careers and Workplace team support as every forensic science student — with additional relevance to placement-seeking and workplace transition specific to a sandwich year.

Where graduates go. Your career options are the same as any Wolverhampton forensic science graduate — trainee forensic scientist, crime scene investigator, laboratory-based scientific roles, quality assurance and quality control — but you go into those roles with a full year of directly relevant workplace experience already completed, which can be a meaningful differentiator against graduates applying with placement-free degrees.

Course Modules

Potential Career Paths

Forensic Science graduates have excellent job prospects. According to unistats.com, 85% of our graduates are in employment within 6 months of leaving, placing us in the top 10 universities for employability.

Employment opportunities exist for you with the Forensic Science Sector both with independent providers of forensic analysis and police scientific work, insurance companies, legal firms and independent forensic laboratories.

Examples of possible future careers include scene of crime work, quality assurance in food and pharmaceutical manufacturing, trading standards, public and industrial health and safety, and accident investigation.

You could also train to become a science teacher or continue your studies as a postgraduate either on a Masters course or PhD.

Some of our graduates are working for various Forensic science providers. Others are working for the West Midlands Police, West Mercia Police, Staffordshire Police and the Leicestershire Constabulary as crime scene investigators, fingerprint and footwear analysts, criminal intelligence analysts and police officers.

 

Additional Information

Everything you need to know about this course!

  • Learn from people who do the job. Your lecturers include forensic practitioners and active research scientists solving real problems, not just teaching from a syllabus.
  • Train in purpose-built facilities. You'll work in the state-of-the-art Rosalind Franklin Science Building, with access to Locard House and dedicated crime scene investigation facilities.
  • First in the West Midlands. Wolverhampton was the first university in the region to achieve full CSFS accreditation for BSc Forensic Science — re-confirmed at a recent surveillance visit that specifically praised the quality of the award.
  • A genuine police partnership. The University of Wolverhampton and West Midlands Police Forensic Science Partnership gives you guest lectures from policing and forensic professionals, professional-practice research project options, and networking access to West Midlands Police's Forensic Services department — on top of your own dedicated sandwich placement.

By graduation, you'll be able to:

  • Apply core scientific and technical knowledge — a thorough, integrated understanding of the biology, chemistry, mathematics and statistics (including Bayesian reasoning) that underpins forensic science, using appropriate digital tools and advanced laboratory techniques.
  • Work competently at scenes and in laboratories — identifying, documenting, collecting, preserving and analysing evidence safely and accurately.
  • Think investigatively and strategically — designing forensic strategies for complex cases using frameworks like Case Assessment and Interpretation (CAI).
  • Interpret evidence critically and form expert opinion — articulating conclusions with appropriate expression of uncertainty and demonstrable impartiality.
  • Communicate and report to a professional standard — producing clear, professional written and oral findings, including expert testimony suitable for court.
  • Work with professional, ethical and legal awareness — understanding your responsibilities around sensitive materials and staying reflective as the discipline evolves.

On top of these, your sandwich year builds a distinct set of workplace-specific outcomes: sustained independent working, professional self-management over a full year rather than a short placement, and the ability to translate academic theory into ongoing, real-world professional practice — skills that are harder to develop and evidence within a standard three-year structure.

Location Mode Sep intake Fee Year
Home Sandwich £9790 per year 2026-27
International Sandwich £18700 per year 2026-27

The University is committed to a transparent fee structure, with no hidden costs, to help you make an informed decision. This includes information on what is included in the fee and how fees are calculated and reviewed.


If a tuition fee is not showing, we may not offer this intake for this course. Please check the start date information on the course finder for start dates.

  • 96 UCAS points
  • A Levels - grades CCC / BCD, to include Biology or Chemistry.
  • BTEC L3 Extended Diploma or OCR Cambridge L3 Technical Extended Diploma in Applied Science - grades MMM
  • Access to HE Diploma (60 credits) of which a minimum of 45 must be at Level 3 (96 UCAS point equivalence, minimum 45 credits at merit, to include 36 credits in Science)
  • T Level - P - Core grade needs to be C or above

 

Use the UCAS Tariff calculator to check your qualifications and points

Students must usually have studied for a minimum of two years post GCSE level. However, we will consider applications from mature students who do not have two years of post-16 study, where they have relevant work experience. Please see http://wlv.ac.uk/mature for further information.

If you've got other qualifications or relevant experience, please contact The Gateway for further advice before applying.

International entry requirements and application guidance can be found at http://www.wlv.ac.uk/international/apply

English language requirements also apply

"During my degree I had the opportunity to study a Forensic Anthropology module, which ignited an unquenchable interest in ‘bones and bodies.’ Because of this, I went on to study for a Masters in Forensic and Biological Anthropology. I am now back at the University completing my Ph.D. research on post mortem decomposition."

"During the course I found that all of the lecturers were very knowledgeable, approachable and caring.  I was quite ill during my last year but allowances were made which helped me cope.  I always felt there was someone to turn to when I needed help."

"Last year, I landed a dream job! As a Criminal Intelligence Analyst with the West Midlands Police I help to reduce crime, disorder and antisocial behaviour. To get the job, I had to show that I had both the ability to work analytically and a logical way of thinking. The Forensic Science degree at Wolverhampton was the perfect preparation for this! The final year project was especially useful, because it helped me to develop the analytical skills I need for the job and gave me the confidence to present my work, which are both important aspects of my new job." 
 

Find out more on our Why Forensic Science? page

Chartered Society of Forensic Sciences

The Chartered Society of Forensic Sciences provides an accreditation system for both undergraduate and postgraduate courses in forensic science and related topics. Accreditation is given provided the course content meets with the Society's component standards which provide a quality endorsement of the course.

Tuition Fees Loan (Home Fee Status):

Most students will be able to apply for a loans to pay for these subject to eligibility. To find out more information please refer to the government Student Finance website.

Changes for EU students:

The UK government has confirmed that EU students starting courses from 1 August 2021 will normally be classified as having Overseas Fee status. More information about the change is available at UKCISA:

EU citizens living in the UK with 'settled' status, and Irish nationals living in the UK or Ireland, will still be classified as Home students, providing they meet the usual residency requirements, for more information about EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS)


Self-funding:

If you don’t want to take out a loan to pay your fees or if you aren’t eligible to receive a loan, you might want to take advantage of the University’s scheme to pay by instalments: See How to pay.

For more information please contact the Gateway.


Your employer, embassy or organisation can pay for your Tuition fees:

If your employer, embassy or organisation agrees to pay all or part of your tuition fees; the University will refer to them as your sponsor and will invoice them for the appropriate amount.

We must receive notification of sponsorship in writing as soon as possible, and before enrolment, confirming that the sponsor will pay your tuition fees.


Financial Hardship:

Students can apply to the Dennis Turner Opportunity Fund.

for help with course related costs however this cannot be used for fees or to cover general living costs.


Bursaries and Scholarships:

In addition the University also offers a range of Bursaries and Scholarships packages

You can find more information on the University’s Funding, cost, fee and support pages.

Telephone

01902 32 22 22

Email

enquiries@wlv.ac.uk

Online

Order a prospectus

How we compare

Find out how our course is rated on Discover Uni, the official website for comparing UK higher education courses.

Find out how our course is rated on Discover Uni, the official website for comparing UK higher education courses.

Sandwich Course