Physics Life Sciences University of Glasgow

Overview

Key facts

·MSc: 12 months full-time;

·Contact:Dr Nicolas Labrosse:physics-pgtadmissions@glasgow.ac.uk

Why Glasgow

·The University of Glasgow’s School of Physics and Astronomy is ranked 2nd in Scotland (Complete University Guide 2015).

·The School of Physics & Astronomy hosts the Kelvin Nanocharacterisation Centre, which houses state-of-the-art instrumentation for studying materials at the nanoscale or below.

·With a 93% overall student satisfaction in the National Student Survey 2014, the School of Physics and Astronomy combines both teaching excellence and a supportive learning environment.

·You will gain the theoretical, experimental and computational skills necessary to analyse and solve a range of advanced physics problems relevant to the theme of this global challenge, providing an excellent foundation for a career of scientific leadership in academia or industry.

·You will develop transferable skills that will improve your career prospects, such as project management, team-working, advanced data analysis, problem-solving, critical evaluation of scientific literature, advanced laboratory and computing skills, and how to effectively communicate with different audiences.

·You will benefit from direct contact with our group of international experts who will teach you cutting-edge physics and supervise your projects.

·This programme has a September and January intake.

Programme Structure

Modes of delivery of the MSc Physics: Life Sciences include lectures, seminars and tutorials and allow students the opportunity to take part in lab, project and team work.

The programme draws upon a wide range of advanced Masters-level courses. You will have the flexibility to tailor your choice of optional lecture courses and project work to a wide variety of specific research topics and their applications in the area of life sciences.

·Advanced data analysis

·Detection and analysis of ionising radiation

·Medical imaging

·Problem-solving workshop

·Research skills

·Extended project.

·Advanced electromagnetic theory

·Advanced physics laboratory

·Applied optics

·Detectors and imaging

·Environmental radioactivity

·Nuclear power reactors

·Statistical mechanics.

Projects

·To complete the MSc degree you must undertake a project worth 60 credits, which will integrate subject knowledge and skills that you acquire during the MSc programme.

·The MSc project provides students with an opportunity to carry out an extended, in-depth research project embedded within one of the School of Physics and Astronomy’s internationally-leading research groups. In undertaking this project students will gain, within a first class training environment, subject-specific and generic skills that will form an excellent foundation for a career of scientific leadership in academia and industry.

The aims of the MSc project are:

·To provide advanced training and experience in the principles and practice of experimental, computational and/or theoretical physics, using advanced instrumentation, methodology and software as appropriate, and in the critical analysis of experimental data.

·To develop problem solving abilities, critical assessment and communication skills, to a level appropriate for a career of leadership in academia or industry.

·To employ these skills in preparing and writing a dissertation on an extended and demanding project.

·To encourage students to work effectively, to develop a professional attitude to what they do and to take full responsibility for their own learning.

At the end of the project, students should be able to:

·Recover, evaluate and summarise the professional literature and material from other sources concerned with a chosen area of physics or astronomy.

·Prepare a written analysis of the current position in the chosen area, which should include a critical comparison of material from the sources he/she has identified and a summary of likely future developments.

·Define, with the help of colleagues and taking into account the time available, a suitable area of work for a project and hence make a preliminary definition of goals to be achieved during the project.

·Make an appropriate safety assessment for the work proposed; with the help of colleagues, analyse what experimental/theoretical/computational methods might be necessary to achieve the goals of the project and hence decide how the project tasks should be organised.

·Perform the practical part of the investigation, taking due account of experimental errors of measurement and possible assumptions and approximations in analytical and computational work as appropriate.

·Revise the goals and strategies for completion of the project in the light of results achieved and difficulties encountered.

Example projects

Here are some typical project titles from recent years:

·Simulation and Verification of dose delivery by high energy electrons in a variety of tissues

·Retinal imaging with a mobile phone camera

·Optically synchronized imaging in the beating heart

·Optimal delivery for radio-oncology