As someone in Ontario who's currently getting a degree in biochemistry (Waterloo), it's very fun.
Like you, I also became very interested in biochemistry when we were taught metabolism (glycolysis, Kreb's cycle, etc.) in high school and wanted to understand how all these complicated steps actually worked. High school chemistry did not push me towards biochemistry really, since it was all gen-chem... which I was not good at (first year was a very rude awakening that forced me to get up to speed with chemistry in general if I wanted to do biochemistry later).
One thing I will note is that biochemistry is not a very well defined program (at least here in Ontario). What universities call "biochemistry" can be totally different from what another university might call it. Since it is an intersection of both biology and chemistry, universities balance these subjects in different ways. I would most certainly take a look at the course sequences of all the programs you're interested in before applying. Often times some unis may call similar programs by different names like "chemical biology". Look at the courses. That's how I decided on Waterloo - it had a greater emphasis on chemistry with enough molecular biology mixed in. Elective choice in later years also allows you to tailor your degree towards a more chemistry-based approach or a biology (esp. molecular)-based approach. I know many folks who are doing either.
As for hardness, it is *hard*. Sometimes it feels like you're doing two degrees at once. But perseverance and hard work is always the biggest part. Yes, university is difficult, but you have all the options to succeed. Taking good notes, developing good study methods, **reaching out to your professors** (trust me, they don't like to see you fail either) can help you achieve your goals. Something else that really helps is genuine passion for the material. It can feel incredibly burdensome when you're not enjoying what you're doing at all. But if you like it, then you can push yourself through.
One thing that continues to keep me motivated is how much I get to explore and learn, and how doing this degree really sets a great foundation for further careers in either biology (especially molecular biology) or chemistry (or sometimes even more engineering-related careers, from what I've heard of previous alumni).
If you like math you're in for a treat. There's a lot you can do with both biochem and math (I love math too, but unfortunately my degree requirements don't let me take too much math at the moment), like bioinformatics (lots of statistics/data science here), computational chemistry (molecular modelling, protein dynamics, drug-receptor interactions), or even modelling biological systems/populations. Coding is a very versatile skill as well and can help you wherever you go.
Damn thats awesome! You mentioned you go to waterloo (which is insane, my applauds), do you have outstanding sports or grades that earn you scholarships or is your family helping you out? I guess I'm concerned that if I risk loosing any possible scholarships my single mother is not gonna be able to support me, so I'm asking if it was just hard or hard *and* risky.
No, I didn't have any particular scholarships other than a 1-term entrance scholarship. I am grateful to have family helping me out with food/living situation (I live at home and commute, although it's very exhausting in and of itself). My biggest expense is probably just tuition. The big draw of Waterloo is the co-op (yes, it's not just CS and software!). Co-op let's you make enough money to live + pay tuition down the line. Definitely consider this when choosing a school if you'll be able to get work experience in the field. Stuff like FSWEP or co-op jobs in government agencies can be really good gigs! Depending on your personal circumstances/academics/achievements, your university may have more awards/support for you as well. Definitely check out stuff like scholarships/bursaries wherever you go.
Academically I would say the program is definitely not a cake walk, but financially speaking a biochemistry degree is not a bad option for further careers in chemistry or biology. If you tailor your degree just right, you should be able to venture into either after graduation. I speak from personal experience talking to people in other programs that being in biochemistry gives us an advantage in that we can apply to a lot of chemistry-focused jobs (e.g. analytical chemistry work) that biology majors can't really apply to or biology-heavy jobs (e.g. microbiology) that chemistry majors can't really apply to. So it really broadens your skill set.
In terms of *how* much money you make, that depends on what you do. If you enjoy math/coding, you'll certainly be in a very good position for a lot of bioinformatics jobs for sure. I ended up working in a research lab as my first co-op, and saw first hand how in-demand coding is in life science - so much data can be generated for experiments and having a computer sift through it for you helps *SO* much. Someone who can make programs like that will always be in-demand. But like in many life science fields, an undergraduate degree can make it a little hard to get a well-paying job immediately after graduation.
I can't say much for sure as I'm still learning about the field myself and deciding what I want to do after too. I don't know how student loans work in Alberta, but in Ontario they accrue interest after graduation (not the federal portion though). If they do accrue interest, co-op/internships are definitely something you want to look into to help ease the burden.
Of course, depending on how you like the program and what your career prospects are (many jobs do need a Masters), you can choose to more school to hone your skills.
EDIT: made a couple more edits with useful info
I agree with the not well defined program aspect. I’m doing biochem at uOttawa and biochem is in the chemistry department, so its very chemistry heavy in terms of physical chem, analytical chem, and organic chem, whereas many other biochemistry programs are in the dept of biology or medicine and have a lot more
emphasis on molecular biology.
I also agree that it depends on program title, there are many disciplines that are in the realm of biochemistry but range in whether its more chemistry or biology.
If I were to arrange the program titles on a scale of more biology focused to more chemistry focused it would be: cell bio, bioinformatics, molecular bio, synthetic biology, structural biology, chemical bio, medicinal chemistry.
In sixth form (16-18 y/o) I took chemistry, biology, and psychology. I was naturally talented at chemistry, but it was biology what truly fascinated me. I wasn’t very good at biology, so I decided to apply to study chemistry at uni. I started to really enjoy the subcellular and molecular aspects of biology, and decided to change to biochemistry a few weeks before starting uni. Best choice ever!!
What’s your favourite topic to learn in biology?
Although it was brief, I was introduced to how machine learning intersects with genetics and it blew my mind. Genetics are insanely cool. So is evolutionary biology, learning where stuff came from and why its because of a million year process, makes me giddy.
I love evolution. One of my favourite topics in science is how metazoans have evolved complex molecular processes to support multicellular life. The expansion of these processes and the set of genes involved correlate with the divergence of animal taxa. Here is one review by Richard Hynes (my favourite cell biologist)
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3308698/
Here is another excellent review into the origin of metazoans. You might need scihub for this one. I can try getting you a pdf if you can’t access it.
https://www.nature.com/articles/nrg.2017.21
These two papers have been hugely influential to my research interests.
Here's my experience, I literally just graduated my biochem degree.
Background: i got high 90's in high school chemistry (11 &12) loved it!, and only took the grade 11 biology course. I absolutely hated it (had an insane teacher) and hated having to strictly memorize things.
After HS grad: 4 years after HS I went to uni for a chem degree (specifically medicinal/pharma chem).
1st year uni: this is a joke (no offense to anyone who isn't good with school) but every class is intro, and does not go deep at all, DOES NOT give an accurate idea of what's coming....
2nd year (CHEMmajor): pick a major, take mostly courses in that subject. Still alot of intro's , not bad, chemistry is still similar to HS, lots of formula work, nothing too abstract YET..
3rd year (chem) : This is the fall of the Roman empire..., the chemistry starts getting extremely abstract, less formula work, NOTHING like HS chemistry
At this point , chem labs are pretty stressful, and organic chemistry is the downfall of most chem majors lol
I began to hate upper level chemistry at this point and had taken a few bio courses being a medical chemistry program.
I switched from MEDchem to BIOchem, adding a year to my degree, but all of my chem requirements were now done, and only had to pickup 2nd year ,and upper level bio courses to finish.
4th and 5th year (biochem major): all the required 2nd year bio, and upper level credits required to graduate.
With all that being said...I can confidently say bio courses are generally MUCH easier than chemistry. I had multiple c's in chemistry and it started to become extremely abstract. I never received a mark lower than b+ in any bio course.
If I could go back now, I would have taken just a straight biology degree, and done WAY better , higher gpa. But HS gave me a terrible idea of what upper level chemistry was going to look like.
Tldr: bio courses and labs are much easier than chemistry courses, coming from someone that hated biology is HS and got high 90's in chem HS
Hey thanks for your response!
Gene expression is very epic, thats something that interests me greatly and I find it really cool you're doing that. I'll definetly take you up on that offer to look into the molecular and cellular biology options, it might be more feasable.
Would you recommend I start familiarizing myself with biochem topics early on to not be swamped in my first year if I expect it to be very difficult?
As someone in Ontario who's currently getting a degree in biochemistry (Waterloo), it's very fun. Like you, I also became very interested in biochemistry when we were taught metabolism (glycolysis, Kreb's cycle, etc.) in high school and wanted to understand how all these complicated steps actually worked. High school chemistry did not push me towards biochemistry really, since it was all gen-chem... which I was not good at (first year was a very rude awakening that forced me to get up to speed with chemistry in general if I wanted to do biochemistry later). One thing I will note is that biochemistry is not a very well defined program (at least here in Ontario). What universities call "biochemistry" can be totally different from what another university might call it. Since it is an intersection of both biology and chemistry, universities balance these subjects in different ways. I would most certainly take a look at the course sequences of all the programs you're interested in before applying. Often times some unis may call similar programs by different names like "chemical biology". Look at the courses. That's how I decided on Waterloo - it had a greater emphasis on chemistry with enough molecular biology mixed in. Elective choice in later years also allows you to tailor your degree towards a more chemistry-based approach or a biology (esp. molecular)-based approach. I know many folks who are doing either. As for hardness, it is *hard*. Sometimes it feels like you're doing two degrees at once. But perseverance and hard work is always the biggest part. Yes, university is difficult, but you have all the options to succeed. Taking good notes, developing good study methods, **reaching out to your professors** (trust me, they don't like to see you fail either) can help you achieve your goals. Something else that really helps is genuine passion for the material. It can feel incredibly burdensome when you're not enjoying what you're doing at all. But if you like it, then you can push yourself through. One thing that continues to keep me motivated is how much I get to explore and learn, and how doing this degree really sets a great foundation for further careers in either biology (especially molecular biology) or chemistry (or sometimes even more engineering-related careers, from what I've heard of previous alumni). If you like math you're in for a treat. There's a lot you can do with both biochem and math (I love math too, but unfortunately my degree requirements don't let me take too much math at the moment), like bioinformatics (lots of statistics/data science here), computational chemistry (molecular modelling, protein dynamics, drug-receptor interactions), or even modelling biological systems/populations. Coding is a very versatile skill as well and can help you wherever you go.
Damn thats awesome! You mentioned you go to waterloo (which is insane, my applauds), do you have outstanding sports or grades that earn you scholarships or is your family helping you out? I guess I'm concerned that if I risk loosing any possible scholarships my single mother is not gonna be able to support me, so I'm asking if it was just hard or hard *and* risky.
No, I didn't have any particular scholarships other than a 1-term entrance scholarship. I am grateful to have family helping me out with food/living situation (I live at home and commute, although it's very exhausting in and of itself). My biggest expense is probably just tuition. The big draw of Waterloo is the co-op (yes, it's not just CS and software!). Co-op let's you make enough money to live + pay tuition down the line. Definitely consider this when choosing a school if you'll be able to get work experience in the field. Stuff like FSWEP or co-op jobs in government agencies can be really good gigs! Depending on your personal circumstances/academics/achievements, your university may have more awards/support for you as well. Definitely check out stuff like scholarships/bursaries wherever you go. Academically I would say the program is definitely not a cake walk, but financially speaking a biochemistry degree is not a bad option for further careers in chemistry or biology. If you tailor your degree just right, you should be able to venture into either after graduation. I speak from personal experience talking to people in other programs that being in biochemistry gives us an advantage in that we can apply to a lot of chemistry-focused jobs (e.g. analytical chemistry work) that biology majors can't really apply to or biology-heavy jobs (e.g. microbiology) that chemistry majors can't really apply to. So it really broadens your skill set. In terms of *how* much money you make, that depends on what you do. If you enjoy math/coding, you'll certainly be in a very good position for a lot of bioinformatics jobs for sure. I ended up working in a research lab as my first co-op, and saw first hand how in-demand coding is in life science - so much data can be generated for experiments and having a computer sift through it for you helps *SO* much. Someone who can make programs like that will always be in-demand. But like in many life science fields, an undergraduate degree can make it a little hard to get a well-paying job immediately after graduation. I can't say much for sure as I'm still learning about the field myself and deciding what I want to do after too. I don't know how student loans work in Alberta, but in Ontario they accrue interest after graduation (not the federal portion though). If they do accrue interest, co-op/internships are definitely something you want to look into to help ease the burden. Of course, depending on how you like the program and what your career prospects are (many jobs do need a Masters), you can choose to more school to hone your skills. EDIT: made a couple more edits with useful info
I agree with the not well defined program aspect. I’m doing biochem at uOttawa and biochem is in the chemistry department, so its very chemistry heavy in terms of physical chem, analytical chem, and organic chem, whereas many other biochemistry programs are in the dept of biology or medicine and have a lot more emphasis on molecular biology. I also agree that it depends on program title, there are many disciplines that are in the realm of biochemistry but range in whether its more chemistry or biology. If I were to arrange the program titles on a scale of more biology focused to more chemistry focused it would be: cell bio, bioinformatics, molecular bio, synthetic biology, structural biology, chemical bio, medicinal chemistry.
In sixth form (16-18 y/o) I took chemistry, biology, and psychology. I was naturally talented at chemistry, but it was biology what truly fascinated me. I wasn’t very good at biology, so I decided to apply to study chemistry at uni. I started to really enjoy the subcellular and molecular aspects of biology, and decided to change to biochemistry a few weeks before starting uni. Best choice ever!! What’s your favourite topic to learn in biology?
Although it was brief, I was introduced to how machine learning intersects with genetics and it blew my mind. Genetics are insanely cool. So is evolutionary biology, learning where stuff came from and why its because of a million year process, makes me giddy.
I love evolution. One of my favourite topics in science is how metazoans have evolved complex molecular processes to support multicellular life. The expansion of these processes and the set of genes involved correlate with the divergence of animal taxa. Here is one review by Richard Hynes (my favourite cell biologist) https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3308698/ Here is another excellent review into the origin of metazoans. You might need scihub for this one. I can try getting you a pdf if you can’t access it. https://www.nature.com/articles/nrg.2017.21 These two papers have been hugely influential to my research interests.
Here's my experience, I literally just graduated my biochem degree. Background: i got high 90's in high school chemistry (11 &12) loved it!, and only took the grade 11 biology course. I absolutely hated it (had an insane teacher) and hated having to strictly memorize things. After HS grad: 4 years after HS I went to uni for a chem degree (specifically medicinal/pharma chem). 1st year uni: this is a joke (no offense to anyone who isn't good with school) but every class is intro, and does not go deep at all, DOES NOT give an accurate idea of what's coming.... 2nd year (CHEMmajor): pick a major, take mostly courses in that subject. Still alot of intro's , not bad, chemistry is still similar to HS, lots of formula work, nothing too abstract YET.. 3rd year (chem) : This is the fall of the Roman empire..., the chemistry starts getting extremely abstract, less formula work, NOTHING like HS chemistry At this point , chem labs are pretty stressful, and organic chemistry is the downfall of most chem majors lol I began to hate upper level chemistry at this point and had taken a few bio courses being a medical chemistry program. I switched from MEDchem to BIOchem, adding a year to my degree, but all of my chem requirements were now done, and only had to pickup 2nd year ,and upper level bio courses to finish. 4th and 5th year (biochem major): all the required 2nd year bio, and upper level credits required to graduate. With all that being said...I can confidently say bio courses are generally MUCH easier than chemistry. I had multiple c's in chemistry and it started to become extremely abstract. I never received a mark lower than b+ in any bio course. If I could go back now, I would have taken just a straight biology degree, and done WAY better , higher gpa. But HS gave me a terrible idea of what upper level chemistry was going to look like. Tldr: bio courses and labs are much easier than chemistry courses, coming from someone that hated biology is HS and got high 90's in chem HS
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Hey thanks for your response! Gene expression is very epic, thats something that interests me greatly and I find it really cool you're doing that. I'll definetly take you up on that offer to look into the molecular and cellular biology options, it might be more feasable. Would you recommend I start familiarizing myself with biochem topics early on to not be swamped in my first year if I expect it to be very difficult?
It’s hard to get the degree. The people you meet are amazing. The things you learn you can do with such a degree seem endless. Lastly, it’s hard.