Discover Biochemistry
The Biochemistry Program is a cross-college degree program. This means that faculty members from several departments across campus participate in teaching and advising biochemistry majors. This is a particularly rewarding aspect of the program: students draw on a variety of perspectives from many different disciplines. Biochemistry majors are required to take a core curriculum of chemistry, biology, and biochemistry coursework.
Specialized Small Classes for Majors
Biochemistry majors also have access to specialized introductory coursework that is designed specifically for majors, that has much smaller class sizes than the general introductory science coursework. For example, CHEM 1500/1550 (Organic Chemistry 1/2 for first year students) is restricted to chemistry and biochemistry majors, and has a maximum capacity of 60 students; most sections of BCOR 1400/1450 (Exploring Biology) have sections restricted to 45 students with majors in the life sciences. In addition, all first-year biochemistry majors are encouraged to enroll in one-credit seminar courses that serve as an introduction to the discipline: BIOC 1010/1011.
Plethora of Electives
Majors are required to take 9 credits of advanced electives in areas related to biochemistry. Examples of courses in this category are shown on the right. Many students choose electives that are related to a specific area of interest, such as medicinal chemistry, neuroscience, nutrition, or others. In addition, student can count up to 4 credits of undergraduate research toward their degree.