The Department of Science and Technology Studies, UCL is an interdisciplinary centre for the integrated study of science's history, philosophy, sociology, communication and policy, located in the heart of London. Founded in 1921. Award winning for teaching and research, plus for our public engagement programme. Rated as outstanding by students at every level.

At UCL, the academic mission is paramount. Our ambition is to achieve the highest standards in our teaching and research.

Staff books include:

Paskins - Geoffrey Hill and His Contexts
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latest news

Join us at the IBSc fair

Meet the tutors and find out more on 18th January 2012.

Official information

Medical School iBSc page

Student selected component

Want to sample STS before committing to the degree?

Year 2 medical students can enrol in our custom-made module:

  • SSC0187 Philosophy, Medicine, and Society (link)

Contact STS

Dr Brendan Clarke
0207 679 1356 2959
0207 679 1328 dept office
22 Gordon Square, room B14

e-mail: sts-ibsc [AT] ucl.ac.uk

Philosophy, Medicine and Society (intercalated BSc) 

IBSc - want time to think?


This page provides information about the Intercalated BSc (iBSc) in Philosophy, Medicine and Society. This degree programme is open only to UCL medical students. Applications should be made through the UCL Medical school - download a form from the main IBSc page.

The intercalated degree in Philosophy, Medicine, and Society is an interdisciplinary programme in the history, philosophy and sociology of science. This course offers intercalated students the chance to spend their intercalated year studying the sciences in context in a small and supportive department. Teaching is diverse, and highly interactive, with great scope for students to develop and follow their own interests in ways that prioritise the development of transferable skills. No previous experience of history, philosophy, or sociology is required.

The format of the iBSc is as follows: students must attempt two compulsory taught courses (HPSC2020 and HPSC3028), as well as the research project (HPSC3026). Students then select a total of four optional modules from the choice of approximately twenty second- and third-year courses outlined below. Further details about these modules, including sample syllabi, can be found on the STS website (www.ucl.ac.uk/sts/study).

For information about this degree, contact: Dr Brendan Clarke sts-ibsc [AT] ucl.ac.uk

Recent Success for STS iBSc students

One of our iBSc students recently completed his PhD in our department and is currently lecturing, another won the prestigious HAB Simmons Prize, and two others have been involved in the Oxford Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine's "Table of Evidence" Project.

Compulsory modules


HPSC2020: Philosophy of medicine

This course deals with the philosophical implications of clinical medical practice. It is structured along six conceptual strands drawn from recent philosophy of science. In brief, these deal with discovery (of diseases and treatments), with causation, with modelling, with the communication of medical knowledge, with the ways in which medical theories are tested, and the ways in which treatments are evaluated. These topics are illustrated with historical examples. This 0.5 unit course is assessed by one essay of 3,000 words (40%), and one three-hour exam (60%).

HPSC3028: Advanced topics in philosophy of medicine

This course investigates how discoveries are made in medicine. As an example, recent research has suggested that infection with xenotropic murine leukemia virus-related virus (XMRV) might be associated with a range of diseases, including chronic fatigue syndrome and several different cancers. However, these claims remain hotly disputed for a number of reasons. This module will consider the philosophical issues at stake. Class time will be predominantly spent conducting original, collaborative research on this theme. This collaborative work will form the basis for a publication at the end of the course. Focused, informal, teaching sessions during class time will be given in support of the core philosophical issues encountered.

This 0.5 unit course is assessed by two essays of 2500 words each.

HPSC 3026: Research Project

Students undertake an independent research project of their own design in the field of science and technology studies. An appropriate supervisor is selected in consultation with the module tutor. Discussion of research is undertaken during regular tutorials. Recent project titles include:

  • Compromising on evidence: when patients are too sick to wait for a clinical trial
  • The feminisation of British healthcare: an optimistic feminist history of the medical and nursing professions in late modern Britain
  • A media analysis of the reportage of the aetiology of depression in the English written press from 2008-2010
  • Did the scientific revolution have a significant influence on the decline of witch hunting in Europe by 1700?
  • The benefits of pluralism: a perspectival articulation (winner of the H.A.B. Simons prize 2009)
  • The history of yoga as a medical treatment in the UK

This 1.0 unit course is assessed by an oral presentation (15%) and a dissertation of 10,000-12,000 words (85%). All STS staff are available for supervision.

Optional modules

Students select four 0.5 course unit modules from the following selection offered by the department.

HPSC 2002 Science in the Mass Media

HPSC 2003 Topics in Philosophy of Science

HPSC 2005 Philosophy of Biology

HPSC 2011 Science, Communication and the Citizen

HPSC 2012 Science, Religion Revolution

HPSC 2016 Science, Communication, and the Global Community

HPSC 2018 History of Biological Sciences

HPSC 2021 History of Medicine

HPSC 2022 Philosophy of Social Science

HPSC 3003 Communication of Scientific Ideas

HPSC 3007 Topics in History of the Physical Sciences

HPSC 3010 Popularisation of the Physical Sciences

HPSC 3014 Magic to Science

HPSC 3018 Outsiders in Science

HPSC 3020 Philosophy of Physics

HPSC 3022 Special Topics A: Science and Art

HPSC 3027 Evolution in Science and Culture

HPSC 3029 (new!) Medicine, Disease, and History

HPSC 3030 (new!) Science and Global History

HPSC 3032 (new!) Investigating Contemporary Science

See our module catalogue for further details or visit the module directory where you can download sample syllabi.

Page last modified on 24 jan 12 17:29 by Brendan Clarke

Department of Science and Technology Studies, UCL
0207 679 1328 office | +44 207 679 1328 international
sts@ucl.ac.uk | www.ucl.ac.uk/sts
postal address:  Gower Street, London, WC1E 6BT | UK
street address: 22 Gordon Square, London, WC1E 6BT | maps