<p>Hello!</p>
<p>I am looking around at different colleges and I have noticed that not all of them have my intended major, biochemistry. So I was wondering if dual majoring in biology and chemistry would be the equivalent or if they are different. Would it just be better to get a chemistry degree with a concentration in biochemistry? I am also planning on going to medical school if that helps so I can get a major that might make it easier to get in.Thanks!</p>
<p>Biochemistry focuses more on how organic stuff works in reactions and stuff like that. A biology major learns biological concepts, a chemistry major learns about chemistry. They are not DIRECTLY intertwined. A Biochemistry is more of a “specialization” within chemistry. It uses biological concepts but a biology major’s upper classes will be more complicated than the biological stuff that youd be working with in biochem.</p>
<p>For Med School I I would not recommend double majoring, you will want the time to do research and focusing on one major to get a good GPA. Biology / Chemistry / Biochemistry are all fine options if you are intending on med school. Pick whichever you prefer.</p>
<p>The good thing is if you end up liking/not liking a certain one, I’d imagine there’d be a bit of overlap between Chem -> BioChem -> Bio, freshman year. So you can wade in the waters a bit.</p>
<p>“So I was wondering if dual majoring in biology and chemistry would be the equivalent”’
No. There are many things you learn within those majors that are at best tangentially related to biochemistry. Of course most biology or chemistry majors will learn a significant amount of biochemistry as part of their required classes. </p>
<p>You can easily change your major between any of these in the first two years of college as they all take the same classes (with the possible exception of physics - depending on the college, chemistry majors might have to take a more rigorous introductory physics sequence than biology majors, so keep this in mind. Usually a higher-level physics sequence would count for majors that require a lower-level sequence, so you could take the harder one to be safe (or wait until your third year to take physics when you’re more ready to decide). Your GPA is of paramount importance for medical school applications so whatever you pick, make sure you’re good at it. </p>
<p>Keep in mind that it’s very common to change your interests over time - for example, I thought I would be interested in biochemistry when I first entered college but after taking some classes my interest waned.</p>