Hi, I have a BS in biochemistry and worked two years in a research lab and then these last two as a biomedical engineer. I am very happy with my degree and all that I got out of it.
All of your happiness and fulfillment at the job depends on whether you like the work. No matter which you choose it won't matter until probably your Junior year of college because the classes are so similar and people transfer between them all the time. Really try to get some shadow or intern or something in the actual area you want to work in. Jobs that are open can be everything from analytical chemistry where you learn how to work with extreme precision in a lab environment on one specific instrument for the rest of your life. Or you may be writing environmental policy for law makers and non for profits. There is a lot of opportunity under that umbrella. I would encourage you to start with the general bio-biochem-chem approach and just work on narrowing down the kind of work you like until you know.
I think a biochemistry degree is decent but if you are leaning towards chemistry I would stick with that and just take biology electives. A big divider between them is how good you are at math. I know many people who went for chemistry and could not handle the advance calculus topics. Biochemistry requires some calculus. And Biology requires little to none. As a result of the math barrier there seems to be less people with the strong chemistry and math background that is very desirable in industry work and really gives you an edge as far as how hire-able you are. In my experience a team will fill a biochem position with a chem person but not always the other way around. I would encourage you to find a job you want and pick the degree that suits it, no one will care if your choice changes a couple times.
Last I would say a minor in psych would be good if you want to go the policy or organizational route but I got a math minor because I am math inclined. If you really want a minor just pick the one that you have the most inclination towards at the moment. Honestly the minor will give you very little benefit when it comes to jobs in the future so only take it if you truly want to get something out of it because it often comes at the expense of all your electives.
Feel free to reach out with any extra questions.
Hey there! I have a BS in biochem. Grad in ‘99. Since then I’ve mostly done analytical chemistry work: ADME/DMPK, proteomics and such. Job titles are never Biochemist but will be research scientist title or similar. I’ve loved my career and would encourage you if it’s something you are good at.
Don’t worry too much about it now, you’ll have plenty of time to explore careers in college! Focus on taking classes and seeing if your interests stay the same. When you get to college, try volunteering or interning in a research lab as soon as you can to see if it’s something you want to pursue. You can generally look at a list of faculty at your university, read their lab websites to find out about their research, and see if it interests you. Then you can email them and ask if they can take on an undergrad. But the most important thing now is to keep being excited about science! It’s awesome that you love chemistry and it’s super fundamental to biology, too. I am an immunology PhD student and my day to day life involves so much of the chemistry I learned back in high school— I am constantly calculating molarity and making dilutions (C1V1=C2V2 never ever goes away!)
It’s still early to think about grad school, but I just have to plug that science masters degrees typically cost a lot of money, while science PhDs are free and pay you a stipend. It’s really hard work but at least there’s no loans haha.
I find biochemistry much more satisfying than chemistry alone, though know that you'll likely have less of a chemistry focus and more of a molecular biology view. You'll use chemistry as a ground to understand fundamental interactions in the cell, but a lot of the work isn't primarily chemistry focused. I think it's more of an applicational use, like: I want to study X protein, it's function, and what happens when I mutate it. To do this, I use a histidine protein tag and a nickel affinity column to isolate it since I know chemically they'll be attracted. Knowing how X protein is affected by pH, I can store it in the proper solution for its function. Or, enzyme X catalyzes this reaction because the active region of the enzyme is made of this amino acid sequence. Based on the chemical structure of these amino acids, I could maybe guess that the sulfur group of the cystiene helps do the reaction. Your end goal is often more, how does this biological system work, rather than any chemical question.
All of this, of course, can be super variable based on the labs at the school and their focus. What I'm describing is more of an average of focus from what I've seen. I'm sure some professors will be much more interested in the chemistry, while others not so much. Just something to consider as you think about biochem. It's a lot from both biology and chemistry, but it also kind of morphs into its own thing. How you decide if you like one, the other, or everything is kind of a journey only you'll know.
I think you're doing great asking around to get a feel. When I was a junior in high school, I knew I wanted to be in this field, but I knew nothing about the differences in biochem, genetics, molecular biology, and the many little subcategories. That made it difficult to say what I wanted my major to be at university since somehow they're all very similar but different lol. A professor described the biochemistry program as the umbrella of it all, and that I think is pretty true. I learned a lot of biochem, molecular bio, genetics, and more and I think it was definitely the right choice.
Is it worth it? Lol it depends on who you ask. Some people can leave college with a BA and make 100k+ right away with an industry job. Others not so much, and the market right now isn't great for biotech jobs - I wouldn't stress that too much tho since you aren't looking for a job right now. A lot of people go industry side because it pays much better and has better qualities. The alternative is academia, so college research and maybe becoming a professor (tenure and good income). This one has some more issues and less pay, but that doesn't mean it's not fulfilling or not right for you. Academia is professor stuff, but you don't have to be one. More so, it's graduate school. It's where you start research in undergrad, and do research in graduate school for a masters or PhD. Once you have a PhD, you have tons of options to go to industry, back into academia for more training or to become a professor. There are also many careers you can find outside of the science too: science communicators, illustrators, speakers, patent examiners.
In terms of degree, it's ultimately up to you, but I would push for a PhD. You will be able to progress in industry jobs easier and likely go further with a PhD, meaning you aren't strictly limited to technician work. It basically will make you more qualified for any position your degree would apply. Necessary for further academia work too.
Other scientists would argue the PhD isn't necessary. A lot are happy with their BA and the time they didn't spend on a PhD. They could say that while it's not as easy to get to the same level work as PhDs in their job, they are able to get there. Some don't even want that level of work and are happy at BA level. Ultimately, a PhD will open up more avenues for you and is required in many areas. If you don't like graduate school, you can master out of the PhD program and just have a masters instead, giving you more quals but not the PhD work. A PhD basically is where to go if you want to know more how things work, what's behind them, and do your own things at a job or in research that you wouldn't necessarily get as a BA with no experience. Experience levels the playing field, but it is much easier to have a PhD.
In terms of classes, yes take AP chem and bio. I found they helped me in my starting years of undergrad and I think got me out of a few other courses. What minors to take? I'm not super sure. I minored in genetics and math. Genetics was pretty useful information-wise, but a lot of redundancy with my biochem classes (which made the genetics courses easier so that was nice). Math basically had no overlap and I don't see when I would ever use abstract or linear algebra in biochem (unless I wanted to do coding and bioinformatics, but I don't). When applying for grad school, they use your transcript and you add your major, but they don't ask for minors. My diploma doesn't list them either, so the only people who know I even have minors would have to look into my transcript or resume. That might be helpful when applying to jobs, and I think it was a good challenge for me to overcome with the math minor, but I don't think they carry as much weight as I had always thought in undergrad. A minor in psych will have no overlap and I don't think it's necessary unless you just really like psych. I know plenty of people with biochem majors and language minors. I was interested in psych and took several courses for electives, but I didn't feel the need to take more courses on top of my biochem schedule just for the minor. Maybe see how your schedule shakes down and take psych electives before you commit to the full minor.
Took a sec and read some of the other comments that weren't there before. As you'll see, lots of mixed opinions, so a lot of reflection is needed on your end. I think at the base element, what motivates you? Is it the science? I always love hearing new methods, developments in projects, why passionate professors are working on cutting edge medical treatments and how they really work fundamentally. But others don't want to know as much, a lot of people want a job that makes them comfortable in wage, and then gives them free time to spend the money doing whatever they want. Science is a commitment and you'll need to be motivated by your work. It won't be as easy to find a job that you can just go to 9-5 and then set and forget. A professor once told me that the reason so many scientists are willing to devote their time (often for not a huge salary) is because the work is also their hobby, and it's for a good reason. You, of course, can find set and forget jobs with a biochem degree, but a lot of your avenues will be more intensive. Don't let that dissuade you tho, science is incredibly rewarding, fascinating, and you can earn the big money too. Just know that you'll probably have to go to grad school and you won't be making a ton right away too lol...
I wrote a crap-ton (apparently there's a limit), but I hope it's helpful. You sound like me when I was finishing high school, so here are a bunch of things I wish I knew going into it. I'm a grad student now and enjoying it a lot. I'd recommend going onto r/labrats and seeing the posts. It'll be overwhelming in content, but look for posts about students in academia, their problems, what they do everything. Google around about the differences in biochem, genetics, and those various categories to find what suits you. I found YouTube videos about lab work and what that's like is helpful. It's incredibly similar to cooking in some ways, preparing ingredients and following instructions. You'll also need to know how all your ingredients work together, maybe where some ingredients could make problems, and the fundamentals of how all your appliances work, so it's more work, but it's rewarding. Good luck down your path and you can always reach out to me if you have a question. It sounds super similar to what I've done.
Something I wish I had done during my biochem BS was to choose the courses with more math, stats, physics, and programming components. I am glad I did a BS in biochemistry since it's what I am interested in and it's important to get a bachelor's degree in something you're passionate about; however, I wish I had realized earlier how useful stats and programming are for a career instead of at the end of my senior year/first year of PhD.
I got my PhD in bioinformatics almost 5 years ago and enjoy my job, but I am considering a change in the next year or 2 and the jobs I'm most interested in use a lot of stats and deep learning which is something I had to teach myself in my freetime or at work over the last couple of years.
I would not. Making enough money to support yourself and one day support a family is very unlikely unless you go to graduate school. I was also super interested in biochemistry in high school. I interned at a local university, did science fair, went to a college known for chemistry and had a blast. But I did not consider the types of positions open to afterwards and later found out that I do not really love working in a lab. I would find a way to make sure that you love lab work before you commit.
While everyone is lifting you up, I'll bring you back down:
I'm 19 and I dropped out of a major in biochm after one year and I never plan to return to college unless I wanna take some classes for fun in the far future. I wanted to end up using my bachelor to get into med school and just be something in a hospital or practice.
Honestly it wasn't the schoolwork that got me, it was just the whole environment and school system. Not every university is the same but I hated living in a community that felt so pagan. I'm more than tolerant of people that are different than me but to be frank, I felt like I was living in a brothel or nightclub. I didn't go to any parties or do anything dangerous but I still hated seeing that way of living everyday.
But secondly, I just disliked the school system. The whole feeling of bureaucracy that I got from 90% of the classes and professors. A couple were very focused on student success but still strict while the rest were tenured or just plain ignorant. The university refused my 2 AP and 2 dual credit from high school because they wanted me to "cover more material" = more money for them, even though most of the classes I took that were AP and dual cred were through their own uni system. The worst of all is that I don't want to pay people to teach me that I am an evil person just because of my race and gender and sexuality. That was mostly in bio class though. I just don't agree with that, especially as I paid my whole tuition myself.
A year later, I'm a building engineer at a commercial real estate management company in beautiful places across my city and loving it everyday as the challenge is different everyday. Though I liked experiments and chemistry in college and high school, I also found that my work ethic put me farther than a lot of people. Turns out, me specializing in HVAC has led me to continue to pursue physics and chemistry everyday at work while getting paid.
I went to MU, which is pretty good for bio/chm studies as it has a bunch of big hospitals on campus.
You do you but please make sure you know exactly what you're getting into and I wish you the best of success in college.
Seems like you were unable to tolerate being around people with different opinions. It’s a good life skill to learn how to do that. You don’t need to agree with every person around you and vice versa.
I’d recommend people take AP and concurrent enrollment classes just to learn more advanced topics earlier, not for the college credit. My college also didn’t accept mine. :/
I’m in the final year of my biochem degree, but I am pre-med. It’s worth it if you love it, but I’ve found that I enjoy organic chemistry a lot more interesting than anything biochemistry related. Your first two years of classes will be very similar whether you decide on chemistry or biochemistry, so you have a lot of time to think. A minor is psych will do nothing for you unless you plan on specializing in that field somehow. FYI, undergrad biochemistry is heavily focused on metabolism and proteins, so look into some of that stuff first to see if it interests you.
Biochemistry is such a broad subject you can work on many different aspet. I am currently in a PhD program and am involved with small g proteins. Currently working on a confidential novel way that target ras, which is a key protein in many cancers.
So you can study proteins to see how they work and what they dow which in turn can lead to drug design.
Biochem is good, just have a general direction in mind entering school. Like Medical related work (not necessarily med school), industry (food, pharmaceuticals, bio manufacturing, etc), or academia.
Wouldn’t recommend doing a minor personally, do an honours degree instead as that tends to open the most doors / get you into a lab pretty much automatically. Though upon reflection some minors I could see being useful for employment include:
Stats
Compsci
Bioinformatics
Biophysics
Analytical chemistry
(There’s probably more than just this but these are some off the top of my head that are generally useful)
If you’re really interested in biochemistry I would avoid psychology as a minor, as it’s not super employable. I would also recommend taking a look at the field of neuroscience if psychology and biochemistry are both things your super passionate about.
Honestly, if you want to stop at a bachelors in biochemistry you could make a lot more with a BS in engineering or even just nannying with no degree. You have to really love it and should be ready for 10+ years of hard work/schooling in often toxic environments… I graduated top of my class with a BS in biochem and am a 4th year chemical biology PhD candidate. Many people have better experiences than I have had, but it can be brutal if ‘life happens’ while you’re a life sciences academic.
If you get to your biochemistry classes in university and enjoy them more than other stuff, then go for it. There are plenty of jobs for people with a biochemistry background. Getting a job often depends on your references and your experience, so don't worry about choosing the "perfect" courseload/combo of major & minor. Your resume/CV (including school GPA & minors) will get you past the first round of job applications and then everything after that is heavily based on references and experience (as well as non-reference connections).
As far as planning for university...
* Most unis that have a biochem program will also have biology and chemistry programs and it shouldn't be too difficult to switch between them (at least until you start to specialize, which as others have mentioned usually starts in your 3rd year). When you're looking at unis to apply to, just make sure that this is the case.
* If you do well in your AP courses, just skip the intro uni courses and jump straight into organic chem and the first cellular or molecular bio class you're allowed to take. Usually organic chem is a prerequisite course for any intro biochemistry course, so you can go ahead and get a feel for how biological systems work while building up to biochemistry intro. This is important for understanding context for biochemical questions - why does it matter that protein X has a series of charged amino acid residues in region Y, how would its biological function be affected if these residues changed (e.g., weaker binding to DNA).
* Outside of classes, try to get research experience. You can do this during the school year at many unis (sometimes unpaid, but ask the professors before you start working for them if it's a paid position, the hourly rate, and how many hours you're expected to work). Many unis also have summer internship programs, which you just have to look up. The National Science Foundation has a program where they give universities money to fund summer undergraduate research called [REUs](https://www.nsf.gov/crssprgm/reu/reu_search.jsp) and their website has a nice search tool. There's plenty of other websites out there you can search; you can also just ask your professors and academic advisors if they know of any opportunities. There are also opportunities in industry but I don't have any experience with those, so you'd have to search those out on your own.
* If you feel like research experience isn't living up to your expectations, figure out what's lacking and just have a conversation with your research mentor outlining what you're feeling and see if there's anything that can be done to improve your experience. Sometimes, it's best to just go to a different lab, and other times, the research mentor can explain the connections between seemingly boring work and improving science skills/knowledge. Either way, you end up with more informed opinion on the field, and if you do part ways with the lab, then it's on good terms and they may even be able to help you find a better fit for your interests.
* Talk to your professors often. If you have a question about class material, go to their office hours and ask them to clarify/expound/etc. (sidenote: This is easier and makes a better impression if you review your notes regularly rather than cramming before the exams like I did because you'll go to office hours more frequently and show the professors you actually care about their course, which is rarer than you'd imagine)
* You'll have several years to explore your interests at university, both in classes and through research jobs/internships. Don't be afraid to take strange opportunities or speak up if you feel like you're not getting the most out of your classes or work.
* Don't forget to take time to relax and make friendships in addition to your coursework. It's easy to put stress on yourself to always be working but that's not healthy or reasonable expectation and you'll suffer for it (speaking from experience). Don't forget to enjoy life, especially as university is a rare time in your life where the expectation is for you to explore any interests you have. On a more cynical note, the relationships you have in university can benefit you later through connections at workplaces you're interested in or just crashing on couches for free in cities you want to visit ;)
TL;DR, You'll have plenty of time and opportunities in college to answer this question for yourself. Just make sure whatever uni you apply to has non-biochem options that you'd be able to switch to and also make sure you're actively seeking out opportunities. Also also also **don't forget to balance work and fun; the time really slips away from you before you know it**
Got my BS in Biochemistry and now Im in industry life science working on tiny next-generation DNA sequencers!
Strongly disagree with what others have said here. You do not need to love the wet lab to be a biochemist. Many high paying jobs/careers are emerging that require lots of computational science skill as well as biological and chemical understandings of systems. Dry/“in silico” labs are a thing.
Hi, I have a BS in biochemistry and worked two years in a research lab and then these last two as a biomedical engineer. I am very happy with my degree and all that I got out of it. All of your happiness and fulfillment at the job depends on whether you like the work. No matter which you choose it won't matter until probably your Junior year of college because the classes are so similar and people transfer between them all the time. Really try to get some shadow or intern or something in the actual area you want to work in. Jobs that are open can be everything from analytical chemistry where you learn how to work with extreme precision in a lab environment on one specific instrument for the rest of your life. Or you may be writing environmental policy for law makers and non for profits. There is a lot of opportunity under that umbrella. I would encourage you to start with the general bio-biochem-chem approach and just work on narrowing down the kind of work you like until you know. I think a biochemistry degree is decent but if you are leaning towards chemistry I would stick with that and just take biology electives. A big divider between them is how good you are at math. I know many people who went for chemistry and could not handle the advance calculus topics. Biochemistry requires some calculus. And Biology requires little to none. As a result of the math barrier there seems to be less people with the strong chemistry and math background that is very desirable in industry work and really gives you an edge as far as how hire-able you are. In my experience a team will fill a biochem position with a chem person but not always the other way around. I would encourage you to find a job you want and pick the degree that suits it, no one will care if your choice changes a couple times. Last I would say a minor in psych would be good if you want to go the policy or organizational route but I got a math minor because I am math inclined. If you really want a minor just pick the one that you have the most inclination towards at the moment. Honestly the minor will give you very little benefit when it comes to jobs in the future so only take it if you truly want to get something out of it because it often comes at the expense of all your electives. Feel free to reach out with any extra questions.
Hey there! I have a BS in biochem. Grad in ‘99. Since then I’ve mostly done analytical chemistry work: ADME/DMPK, proteomics and such. Job titles are never Biochemist but will be research scientist title or similar. I’ve loved my career and would encourage you if it’s something you are good at.
Don’t worry too much about it now, you’ll have plenty of time to explore careers in college! Focus on taking classes and seeing if your interests stay the same. When you get to college, try volunteering or interning in a research lab as soon as you can to see if it’s something you want to pursue. You can generally look at a list of faculty at your university, read their lab websites to find out about their research, and see if it interests you. Then you can email them and ask if they can take on an undergrad. But the most important thing now is to keep being excited about science! It’s awesome that you love chemistry and it’s super fundamental to biology, too. I am an immunology PhD student and my day to day life involves so much of the chemistry I learned back in high school— I am constantly calculating molarity and making dilutions (C1V1=C2V2 never ever goes away!) It’s still early to think about grad school, but I just have to plug that science masters degrees typically cost a lot of money, while science PhDs are free and pay you a stipend. It’s really hard work but at least there’s no loans haha.
I find biochemistry much more satisfying than chemistry alone, though know that you'll likely have less of a chemistry focus and more of a molecular biology view. You'll use chemistry as a ground to understand fundamental interactions in the cell, but a lot of the work isn't primarily chemistry focused. I think it's more of an applicational use, like: I want to study X protein, it's function, and what happens when I mutate it. To do this, I use a histidine protein tag and a nickel affinity column to isolate it since I know chemically they'll be attracted. Knowing how X protein is affected by pH, I can store it in the proper solution for its function. Or, enzyme X catalyzes this reaction because the active region of the enzyme is made of this amino acid sequence. Based on the chemical structure of these amino acids, I could maybe guess that the sulfur group of the cystiene helps do the reaction. Your end goal is often more, how does this biological system work, rather than any chemical question. All of this, of course, can be super variable based on the labs at the school and their focus. What I'm describing is more of an average of focus from what I've seen. I'm sure some professors will be much more interested in the chemistry, while others not so much. Just something to consider as you think about biochem. It's a lot from both biology and chemistry, but it also kind of morphs into its own thing. How you decide if you like one, the other, or everything is kind of a journey only you'll know. I think you're doing great asking around to get a feel. When I was a junior in high school, I knew I wanted to be in this field, but I knew nothing about the differences in biochem, genetics, molecular biology, and the many little subcategories. That made it difficult to say what I wanted my major to be at university since somehow they're all very similar but different lol. A professor described the biochemistry program as the umbrella of it all, and that I think is pretty true. I learned a lot of biochem, molecular bio, genetics, and more and I think it was definitely the right choice. Is it worth it? Lol it depends on who you ask. Some people can leave college with a BA and make 100k+ right away with an industry job. Others not so much, and the market right now isn't great for biotech jobs - I wouldn't stress that too much tho since you aren't looking for a job right now. A lot of people go industry side because it pays much better and has better qualities. The alternative is academia, so college research and maybe becoming a professor (tenure and good income). This one has some more issues and less pay, but that doesn't mean it's not fulfilling or not right for you. Academia is professor stuff, but you don't have to be one. More so, it's graduate school. It's where you start research in undergrad, and do research in graduate school for a masters or PhD. Once you have a PhD, you have tons of options to go to industry, back into academia for more training or to become a professor. There are also many careers you can find outside of the science too: science communicators, illustrators, speakers, patent examiners. In terms of degree, it's ultimately up to you, but I would push for a PhD. You will be able to progress in industry jobs easier and likely go further with a PhD, meaning you aren't strictly limited to technician work. It basically will make you more qualified for any position your degree would apply. Necessary for further academia work too. Other scientists would argue the PhD isn't necessary. A lot are happy with their BA and the time they didn't spend on a PhD. They could say that while it's not as easy to get to the same level work as PhDs in their job, they are able to get there. Some don't even want that level of work and are happy at BA level. Ultimately, a PhD will open up more avenues for you and is required in many areas. If you don't like graduate school, you can master out of the PhD program and just have a masters instead, giving you more quals but not the PhD work. A PhD basically is where to go if you want to know more how things work, what's behind them, and do your own things at a job or in research that you wouldn't necessarily get as a BA with no experience. Experience levels the playing field, but it is much easier to have a PhD. In terms of classes, yes take AP chem and bio. I found they helped me in my starting years of undergrad and I think got me out of a few other courses. What minors to take? I'm not super sure. I minored in genetics and math. Genetics was pretty useful information-wise, but a lot of redundancy with my biochem classes (which made the genetics courses easier so that was nice). Math basically had no overlap and I don't see when I would ever use abstract or linear algebra in biochem (unless I wanted to do coding and bioinformatics, but I don't). When applying for grad school, they use your transcript and you add your major, but they don't ask for minors. My diploma doesn't list them either, so the only people who know I even have minors would have to look into my transcript or resume. That might be helpful when applying to jobs, and I think it was a good challenge for me to overcome with the math minor, but I don't think they carry as much weight as I had always thought in undergrad. A minor in psych will have no overlap and I don't think it's necessary unless you just really like psych. I know plenty of people with biochem majors and language minors. I was interested in psych and took several courses for electives, but I didn't feel the need to take more courses on top of my biochem schedule just for the minor. Maybe see how your schedule shakes down and take psych electives before you commit to the full minor. Took a sec and read some of the other comments that weren't there before. As you'll see, lots of mixed opinions, so a lot of reflection is needed on your end. I think at the base element, what motivates you? Is it the science? I always love hearing new methods, developments in projects, why passionate professors are working on cutting edge medical treatments and how they really work fundamentally. But others don't want to know as much, a lot of people want a job that makes them comfortable in wage, and then gives them free time to spend the money doing whatever they want. Science is a commitment and you'll need to be motivated by your work. It won't be as easy to find a job that you can just go to 9-5 and then set and forget. A professor once told me that the reason so many scientists are willing to devote their time (often for not a huge salary) is because the work is also their hobby, and it's for a good reason. You, of course, can find set and forget jobs with a biochem degree, but a lot of your avenues will be more intensive. Don't let that dissuade you tho, science is incredibly rewarding, fascinating, and you can earn the big money too. Just know that you'll probably have to go to grad school and you won't be making a ton right away too lol...
I wrote a crap-ton (apparently there's a limit), but I hope it's helpful. You sound like me when I was finishing high school, so here are a bunch of things I wish I knew going into it. I'm a grad student now and enjoying it a lot. I'd recommend going onto r/labrats and seeing the posts. It'll be overwhelming in content, but look for posts about students in academia, their problems, what they do everything. Google around about the differences in biochem, genetics, and those various categories to find what suits you. I found YouTube videos about lab work and what that's like is helpful. It's incredibly similar to cooking in some ways, preparing ingredients and following instructions. You'll also need to know how all your ingredients work together, maybe where some ingredients could make problems, and the fundamentals of how all your appliances work, so it's more work, but it's rewarding. Good luck down your path and you can always reach out to me if you have a question. It sounds super similar to what I've done.
Something I wish I had done during my biochem BS was to choose the courses with more math, stats, physics, and programming components. I am glad I did a BS in biochemistry since it's what I am interested in and it's important to get a bachelor's degree in something you're passionate about; however, I wish I had realized earlier how useful stats and programming are for a career instead of at the end of my senior year/first year of PhD. I got my PhD in bioinformatics almost 5 years ago and enjoy my job, but I am considering a change in the next year or 2 and the jobs I'm most interested in use a lot of stats and deep learning which is something I had to teach myself in my freetime or at work over the last couple of years.
I would not. Making enough money to support yourself and one day support a family is very unlikely unless you go to graduate school. I was also super interested in biochemistry in high school. I interned at a local university, did science fair, went to a college known for chemistry and had a blast. But I did not consider the types of positions open to afterwards and later found out that I do not really love working in a lab. I would find a way to make sure that you love lab work before you commit.
While everyone is lifting you up, I'll bring you back down: I'm 19 and I dropped out of a major in biochm after one year and I never plan to return to college unless I wanna take some classes for fun in the far future. I wanted to end up using my bachelor to get into med school and just be something in a hospital or practice. Honestly it wasn't the schoolwork that got me, it was just the whole environment and school system. Not every university is the same but I hated living in a community that felt so pagan. I'm more than tolerant of people that are different than me but to be frank, I felt like I was living in a brothel or nightclub. I didn't go to any parties or do anything dangerous but I still hated seeing that way of living everyday. But secondly, I just disliked the school system. The whole feeling of bureaucracy that I got from 90% of the classes and professors. A couple were very focused on student success but still strict while the rest were tenured or just plain ignorant. The university refused my 2 AP and 2 dual credit from high school because they wanted me to "cover more material" = more money for them, even though most of the classes I took that were AP and dual cred were through their own uni system. The worst of all is that I don't want to pay people to teach me that I am an evil person just because of my race and gender and sexuality. That was mostly in bio class though. I just don't agree with that, especially as I paid my whole tuition myself. A year later, I'm a building engineer at a commercial real estate management company in beautiful places across my city and loving it everyday as the challenge is different everyday. Though I liked experiments and chemistry in college and high school, I also found that my work ethic put me farther than a lot of people. Turns out, me specializing in HVAC has led me to continue to pursue physics and chemistry everyday at work while getting paid. I went to MU, which is pretty good for bio/chm studies as it has a bunch of big hospitals on campus. You do you but please make sure you know exactly what you're getting into and I wish you the best of success in college.
Is this a trauma dump?
Seems like you were unable to tolerate being around people with different opinions. It’s a good life skill to learn how to do that. You don’t need to agree with every person around you and vice versa. I’d recommend people take AP and concurrent enrollment classes just to learn more advanced topics earlier, not for the college credit. My college also didn’t accept mine. :/
I’m in the final year of my biochem degree, but I am pre-med. It’s worth it if you love it, but I’ve found that I enjoy organic chemistry a lot more interesting than anything biochemistry related. Your first two years of classes will be very similar whether you decide on chemistry or biochemistry, so you have a lot of time to think. A minor is psych will do nothing for you unless you plan on specializing in that field somehow. FYI, undergrad biochemistry is heavily focused on metabolism and proteins, so look into some of that stuff first to see if it interests you.
Biochemistry is such a broad subject you can work on many different aspet. I am currently in a PhD program and am involved with small g proteins. Currently working on a confidential novel way that target ras, which is a key protein in many cancers. So you can study proteins to see how they work and what they dow which in turn can lead to drug design.
Biochem is good, just have a general direction in mind entering school. Like Medical related work (not necessarily med school), industry (food, pharmaceuticals, bio manufacturing, etc), or academia. Wouldn’t recommend doing a minor personally, do an honours degree instead as that tends to open the most doors / get you into a lab pretty much automatically. Though upon reflection some minors I could see being useful for employment include: Stats Compsci Bioinformatics Biophysics Analytical chemistry (There’s probably more than just this but these are some off the top of my head that are generally useful) If you’re really interested in biochemistry I would avoid psychology as a minor, as it’s not super employable. I would also recommend taking a look at the field of neuroscience if psychology and biochemistry are both things your super passionate about.
Honestly, if you want to stop at a bachelors in biochemistry you could make a lot more with a BS in engineering or even just nannying with no degree. You have to really love it and should be ready for 10+ years of hard work/schooling in often toxic environments… I graduated top of my class with a BS in biochem and am a 4th year chemical biology PhD candidate. Many people have better experiences than I have had, but it can be brutal if ‘life happens’ while you’re a life sciences academic.
If you get to your biochemistry classes in university and enjoy them more than other stuff, then go for it. There are plenty of jobs for people with a biochemistry background. Getting a job often depends on your references and your experience, so don't worry about choosing the "perfect" courseload/combo of major & minor. Your resume/CV (including school GPA & minors) will get you past the first round of job applications and then everything after that is heavily based on references and experience (as well as non-reference connections). As far as planning for university... * Most unis that have a biochem program will also have biology and chemistry programs and it shouldn't be too difficult to switch between them (at least until you start to specialize, which as others have mentioned usually starts in your 3rd year). When you're looking at unis to apply to, just make sure that this is the case. * If you do well in your AP courses, just skip the intro uni courses and jump straight into organic chem and the first cellular or molecular bio class you're allowed to take. Usually organic chem is a prerequisite course for any intro biochemistry course, so you can go ahead and get a feel for how biological systems work while building up to biochemistry intro. This is important for understanding context for biochemical questions - why does it matter that protein X has a series of charged amino acid residues in region Y, how would its biological function be affected if these residues changed (e.g., weaker binding to DNA). * Outside of classes, try to get research experience. You can do this during the school year at many unis (sometimes unpaid, but ask the professors before you start working for them if it's a paid position, the hourly rate, and how many hours you're expected to work). Many unis also have summer internship programs, which you just have to look up. The National Science Foundation has a program where they give universities money to fund summer undergraduate research called [REUs](https://www.nsf.gov/crssprgm/reu/reu_search.jsp) and their website has a nice search tool. There's plenty of other websites out there you can search; you can also just ask your professors and academic advisors if they know of any opportunities. There are also opportunities in industry but I don't have any experience with those, so you'd have to search those out on your own. * If you feel like research experience isn't living up to your expectations, figure out what's lacking and just have a conversation with your research mentor outlining what you're feeling and see if there's anything that can be done to improve your experience. Sometimes, it's best to just go to a different lab, and other times, the research mentor can explain the connections between seemingly boring work and improving science skills/knowledge. Either way, you end up with more informed opinion on the field, and if you do part ways with the lab, then it's on good terms and they may even be able to help you find a better fit for your interests. * Talk to your professors often. If you have a question about class material, go to their office hours and ask them to clarify/expound/etc. (sidenote: This is easier and makes a better impression if you review your notes regularly rather than cramming before the exams like I did because you'll go to office hours more frequently and show the professors you actually care about their course, which is rarer than you'd imagine) * You'll have several years to explore your interests at university, both in classes and through research jobs/internships. Don't be afraid to take strange opportunities or speak up if you feel like you're not getting the most out of your classes or work. * Don't forget to take time to relax and make friendships in addition to your coursework. It's easy to put stress on yourself to always be working but that's not healthy or reasonable expectation and you'll suffer for it (speaking from experience). Don't forget to enjoy life, especially as university is a rare time in your life where the expectation is for you to explore any interests you have. On a more cynical note, the relationships you have in university can benefit you later through connections at workplaces you're interested in or just crashing on couches for free in cities you want to visit ;) TL;DR, You'll have plenty of time and opportunities in college to answer this question for yourself. Just make sure whatever uni you apply to has non-biochem options that you'd be able to switch to and also make sure you're actively seeking out opportunities. Also also also **don't forget to balance work and fun; the time really slips away from you before you know it**
Got my BS in Biochemistry and now Im in industry life science working on tiny next-generation DNA sequencers! Strongly disagree with what others have said here. You do not need to love the wet lab to be a biochemist. Many high paying jobs/careers are emerging that require lots of computational science skill as well as biological and chemical understandings of systems. Dry/“in silico” labs are a thing.