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Engineering, Mathematics and Science
152
Study abroad
The School participates in an Erasmus scheme which offers the
opportunity for students to spend their third year studying in a
university in the United Kingdom, France or Germany.
Career opportunities
On completion of this course you will be qualified to work in all
areas of biochemistry and/or immunology. Given the exciting
developments in immunology currently, graduates of this course
will be ideally suited to continue studying at postgraduate level
and subsequently take up a career in industrial, medical or
academic research. Some graduates will work in hospital and
commercial laboratories. However, previous graduates have also
gone on to study medicine or pharmacy, and even crossed into
areas such as teaching, information systems, accountancy, and
management.
Further information
Tel: +353 1 896 1608
Microbiology
Students who wish to study Microbiology should apply to
the Science degree (TR071) and may select Microbiology
as their specialist area for the 3rd and 4th years.
Junior Freshman (first year) prerequisites: Chemistry
CH1101, Chemistry CH1102, plus Mathematics or
Mathematical methods, and Biology 1101.
Senior Freshman (second year) prerequisites: Biology
BY2201, BY2203, BY2205 and BY2208.
For full details of the first two years of the Science course,
including entry requirements, see page 140.
Microbes and microbiology
Although microbes have been studied for 300 years, mainly in
the context of disease, only recently has it been fully realised
that microbes are essential for the maintenance of many
aspects of life on Earth. This includes recycling all nutrients
and minerals, providing oxygen to our atmosphere, fuelling
our digestive system and generating essential vitamins and
nutrients for our survival. On the other hand, microbes cause a
multitude of infectious diseases in humans, animals and plants.
Diseases such as AIDS, malaria, cholera, avian influenza,
bovine spongiform encephalopathy (‘mad cow disease’) and
antibiotic-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infection
are all caused by microbes. Despite this, we still know very little
about microbes and some estimates suggest that over 95% of
the microbial world is yet to be discovered!
Microbiology, as a science, investigates the structures and life
processes of micro-organisms (such as bacteria, protozoa, fungi
and viruses) together with their activities and effects, beneficial
and detrimental, on plants, animals, man and the environment.
It also studies the control of these effects and the harnessing
of microbial processes for applications in biotechnology. A
microbiologist is a versatile scientist and studies microbes
at both cellular and molecular levels, using a wide range of
techniques, and will also be proficient in microbial biochemistry
and genetics.
What will you study during
the course?
During the first two years, you will be exposed to a broad range
of sciences, facilitating an understanding of how they interrelate,
consolidating your fundamental scientific knowledge and
allowing you to develop your study skills. Part of this will include
microbiological modules within the subject of biology.
In the third year and final year, you will mainly be based
in the microbiology section of the School of Genetics and
Microbiology in the Moyne Institute of Preventive Medicine,
which houses some world-class researchers in medical and
molecular microbiology.
