Careers in anatomy are diverse but can involve basic or clinical biomedical research. In addition, people use anatomy in a number of other professions such as medicine (particularly surgery) and in some of the allied health professions.

Many degree courses combine anatomy with units of study from other disciplines such as biochemistry, physiology, pathology or psychology and this helps to broaden career options.

A traditional route to a career in anatomy research would be to do a PhD directly after completing an undergraduate degree. After that, spending a couple of years doing post-doctoral research in labs either in the UK or elsewhere in the world is typical and provides the opportunity to develop a variety of research skills and build up a CV and publication profile. At this point you may get a position that allows you to set up your own laboratory in a university or a research institute or in an industrial setting. There are of course many other non-traditional routes for career development either within academic science or in many other areas.