BSc (Hons) Forensic Anthropology with Foundation Year

Entry year:
2025/26
Start date:
September
Study mode:
Full-time
Course duration:
5 years Placement year, 4 years FullTime
Campus:
City
UCAS Code:
3D49
Grades/points required:
DDD-CDD (72-80)

Why study this course with LJMU?

  • Accredited by the Chartered Society of Forensic Sciences
  • Extensive hands-on fieldwork and laboratory work
  • Opportunity to study abroad or to undertake a year-long work placement
  • Access to excellent collections of human skeletal remains
  • Taught by experts in forensic anthropology, forensic archaeology, human osteology, genetics, crime scene analysis, disaster victim identification and mass graves investigation
  • Specialist facilities including osteology labs with digital X-ray, 3D laser scanning and printing equipment, geophysics equipment for detecting grave sites, plus scene-of-crime houses and laboratories
  • 100% of students surveyed said this course was intellectually stimulating (NSS 2024)
  • International Foundation Year course available offering direct progression onto this degree programme

About your course

Through studying the BSc (Hons) Forensic Anthropology with Foundation Year degree at Liverpool John Moores University, you will acquire a solid grounding in human biology and skeletal anatomy, human variation, environmental sciences and forensic techniques to prepare you for a career as a forensic anthropologist.

About the Foundation Year

The Foundation Year is ideal if you have the ability to study for a degree but don't have the qualifications to enter directly onto the Forensic Anthropology honours degree programme Once you pass the Foundation Year you will progress directly onto the first year of the honours degree. If you are a full-time UK student, you will qualify for student financial support for the full duration of your course (subject to eligibility criteria).

About BSc (Hons) Forensic Anthropology

You will have access to our excellent collections of human skeletal remains, as well as dedicated laboratories for analysing and documenting skeletal material. We also have geophysics equipment for exploring burial contexts, specialist forensic analysis facilities and a scene-of-crime lab. You will also be actively involved in excavating medieval human burial sites in Cheshire.

This is an extremely practical, hands-on programme. It focuses on the recovery of information from locations where bodies are found, as well as the human remains themselves. Fieldwork and practical experience in the osteology labs form a large component of your studies, and you will have the chance to develop your archaeological and anthropological skills working on the Poulton Project in Cheshire.

 

Course modules

What you will study on this degree

On this BSc degree course you will acquire a solid grounding in human biology and skeletal anatomy, human variation, environmental sciences and forensic techniques to prepare you for a career as a forensic anthropologist.

You will have access to our excellent collections of human skeletal remains, as well as dedicated laboratories for analysing and documenting skeletal material. We also have geophysics equipment for exploring burial contexts, specialist forensic analysis facilities and a scene-of-crime lab.

This is an extremely practical, hands-on programme. It focuses on the recovery of information from locations where bodies are found, as well as the human remains themselves. Fieldwork and practical experience in the osteology labs form a large component of your studies, and you will have the chance to develop your archaeological and anthropological skills working on the Poulton Project in Cheshire.

Further guidance on modules

Modules are designated core or optional in accordance with professional body requirements, as applicable, and LJMU’s Academic Framework Regulations. Whilst you are required to study core modules, optional modules provide you with an element of choice. Their availability may vary and will be subject to meeting minimum student numbers.

Where changes to modules are necessary these will be communicated as appropriate.

Core modules

Core modules

Core modules

Optional Modules

Core modules

Optional Modules

Professional accreditation/links

The degree is accredited by the Chartered Society of Forensic Sciences. A number of our students are student members and representatives for the British Association for Forensic Anthropology (BAFA), members of the British Association for Human Identification (BAHID) and the British Association of Biological Anthropology and Osteoarchaeology (BABAO).

Your Learning Experience

Excellent facilities and learning resources

We adopt an active blended learning approach, meaning you will experience a combination of face-to-face and online learning during your time at LJMU. This enables you to experience a rich and diverse learning experience and engage fully with your studies. Our approach ensures that you can easily access support from your personal tutor, either by meeting them on-campus or via a video call to suit your needs.

You will attend lectures, interactive workshops, laboratory sessions, online activities and small-group tutorials. Teaching accounts for approximately 12-15 hours of your week. The rest of your time should be spent in private study with the aid of resources available from our virtual learning environment, Canvas and LJMU Library, so you can learn in your own time, at your own pace. Independent study becomes increasingly important as you work on your research project in your final year.

Work-related learning

Work experience is a vital part of your studies and we strongly recommend that you undertake a 12-month sandwich placement after Level 5, either in the UK or abroad. You will also have the chance to do a short 4-6 week long work-based learning placement before your final year.

Placements not only give you a chance to put what you have learnt into practice, but they also develop your personal and subject-related skills and help you acquire new skills to enhance your CV.

Dedicated personal tutor, plus study skills support

There will be times during your course when you need guidance and advice related to your academic studies or more personal matters. For this reason, you will be allocated a personal tutor, so that you can discuss course material informally as part of a small tutorial group or have one-to-one progress review meetings. You will also be allocated a supervisor for your project or work-related learning, and your year-long placement if you choose the sandwich option.

The school is fully committed to promoting a learning environment that supports a culture of equality, diversity and inclusivity (EDI) and has a Disability Support Coordinator, an EDI Coordinator and a School EDI Working Group. Personal Tutors also play a vital role in promoting awareness of support services for students.

Assessment varies depending on the modules you choose, but will usually include a combination of exams and coursework.

We understand that all students perform differently according to how they are assessed, which is why we use a combination of assessment methods. These include:

  • exams in the form of multiple choice, short answer, interpretative, problem-based learning and essay questions
  • coursework, including phase tests, fieldwork/practical reports, data handling, oral presentations, poster presentations, podcasts, online or real-time group discussions, essays or the evaluation of practical skills

As some of the modules are highly practical, they are assessed by coursework only. For the final year research project you will be expected to write a literature review and short scientific write-up. Work-based learning placements are assessed through a reflective diary, portfolio and student presentation.

Constructive feedback is vital in helping you to identify your strengths as well as the areas where you may need to put in more work. This is normally provided within three weeks of submission and may be via Canvas (our virtual learning environment), face-to-face or in writing.

90%of students say teaching staff have supported their learning well.

Data for Forensic Anthropology (Full time) at Liverpool John Moores University, over two years

For more official course information visit Discover Uni

See course data

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Where you will study

What you can expect from your School

You will study at the Byrom Street site in the universitys City Campus in the heart of Liverpool. You will have access to first class teaching facilities, laboratories and study areas. The Avril Robarts library is within easy walking distance and here you'll find all the information you need to support your studies.

Course tutors

Doing Forensic Anthropology has opened my mind to new career options and broadened my horizons. It is a great course and all the tutors are friendly and helpful.

Career paths

During criminal investigations and following mass fatality incidents such as natural disasters and human conflicts, government and non-government organisations recruit forensic anthropologists to assist in the recovery and identification of human remains for repatriation and legal purposes.

Commercial forensic science providers, police departments, universities, museums, industry and government laboratories all recruit graduates. Secondary science teaching is also a popular route. Some graduates have taken their studies further with a masters degree or PhD. The techniques used in forensic anthropology are derived from those used in traditional archaeological excavations and post excavation analysis of human remains. Archaeological units in the UK and abroad are therefore good places to seek employment and many of our graduates go on to become osteoarchaeologists.

If you decide not to pursue a career in forensic anthropology, your transferable skills will enable you to compete in the wider job market, for instance in the allied health sciences, where training in human anatomy and biology is highly valued.

Student Futures - Careers, Employability and Enterprise Service

A wide range of opportunities and support is available to you, within and beyond your course, to ensure our students experience a transformation in their career trajectory. Every undergraduate curriculum includes Future Focus during Level 4, an e-learning resource and workshop designed to help you to develop your talents, passion and purpose.

Every student has access to Careers Zone 24/7, LJMU's suite of online Apps, resources and jobs board via the LJMU Student Futures website.

Tuition fees and funding

The University reserves the right to increase tuition fees in accordance with any changes to the maximum allowable fees set by the UK Parliament. In the event of such a change, any fee increase will be subject to a maximum cap of 10% of the total course cost as originally stated at the time of your offer.

The fees quoted above cover registration, tuition, supervision, assessment and examinations as well as:

  • library membership with access to printed, multimedia and digital resources
  • access to programme-appropriate software
  • library and student IT support
  • free on-campus wifi via eduroam

Additional costs

Although not all of the following are compulsory/relevant, you should keep in mind the costs of:

  • accommodation and living expenditure
  • books (should you wish to have your own copies)
  • printing, photocopying and stationery
  • PC/laptop (should you prefer to purchase your own for independent study and online learning activities)
  • mobile phone/tablet (to access online services)
  • field trips (travel and activity costs)
  • placements (travel expenses and living costs)
  • student visas (international students only)
  • study abroad opportunities (travel costs, accommodation, visas and immunisations)
  • academic conferences (travel costs)
  • professional-body membership
  • graduation (gown hire etc)

Funding

There are many ways to fund study for home and international students. From loans to International Scholarships and subject-specific funding, you'll find all of the information you need on our specialist funding pages.

Practical and field activities underpin all programmes in the School. PPE is provided for all necessary practical work. There are no costs for day field trips for core and optional modules. Residential field trips associated with core modules are subsidised and include travel and half-board accommodation costs. Any residential field trips for optional modules will have costs involved. Locations may be subject to change and also subject to national and international travel restrictions.

A DBS check is not required for your application, however a DBS may be required for modules where there is a work based learning placement option. Work based learning placements that do not require a DBS check are available.

Entry requirements

Please choose your qualifications below to view requirements

Grades/points required from qualifications: DDD-CDD (72-80)

Work out how many UCAS points your qualifications are worth by visiting the UCAS Tariff Calculator.

Qualification requirements

How to apply

Securing your place at LJMU

UCAS is the official application route for our full-time undergraduate courses. Further information on the UCAS application process can be found here https://www.ljmu.ac.uk/study/undergraduate-students/how-to-apply.

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