The Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degree in biochemistry is the professional degree in the field of biochemistry and requires a minimum of 120 hours of course work and upon completion, students meet the minimum standards of the American Chemical Society as specified by its Committee on Professional Training.  Degree recipients are therefore certified by the American Chemical Society and are eligible for full membership in the world’s largest scientific society.

Biochemistry majors focus on the intersection of the fields of biology and chemistry to study living organisms at the cellular and molecular levels. It is easy to see how biochemistry applies to biological problems such as medicine and understanding diseases, but biochemistry is central to many other fields, as well, including agriculture (fertilizers, pesticides and herbicides), food science (food safety and preservation, and flavor chemistry), cosmetics, and forensics (DNA analysis).

The B.S. degree in Biochemistry provides students with a strong foundation

• in the traditional subdisciplines of chemistry- analytical, biochemistry, inorganic, organic, and physical- with the B.S. degree in biochemistry having a more biological chemistry related focus
• in laboratory skills emphasizing hands-on training with advanced instrumentation in modern facilities
• in research working with faculty on projects that span the entire field of chemistry and biochemistry

Prepares students to

• continue their studies in graduate school toward the Masters or Ph.D. in chemistry or biochemistry
• enter professional programs such as law, business, medicine, and forensic or veterinary science   
• gain employment with significant responsibility in laboratories in the chemical, pharmaceutical, biotech, clinical and allied professional industries. 

Students pursuing a chemistry or biochemistry major may not elect the P/NC option in major or related courses, or prerequisites for these courses, except as noted in specific course descriptions.  Students pursuing a BS/BA in Biochemistry cannot double major with a BS/BA in Chemistry, or minor in Chemistry. The minor in Green Chemistry and Engineering or the certificate in Analytical Chemistry are permitted.

For the bachelor of science degree in biochemistry, 49 hours of CHEM courses are required. The following required courses must be included:  

Course List

Code	Title	Hours
UToledo Core Curriculum		36
UToledo Multicultural		6
College of NSM Degree Requirements
NSM 1000	Foundations of Academic Success for Science and Math Majors	1
NSM 1500	Building a Career in Science and Math	1
One WAC course within the Program (3 cr)
Course Requirements for the BS Biochemistry
Required Chemistry courses:
49 hours of CHEM courses are required for the BS Biochemistry
CHEM 1230	General Chemistry I	4
CHEM 1240	General Chemistry II	4
CHEM 1280	General Chemistry Lab I	1
CHEM 1290	General Chemistry Lab II	1
CHEM 2410	Organic Chemistry I	3
CHEM 2420	Organic Chemistry II	3
CHEM 2480	Organic Chemistry Laboratory I for Majors: Separations and Elementary Synthesis	2
CHEM 2490	Organic Chemistry Laboratory II for Majors: Synthesis and Identification	2
CHEM 3310	Analytical Chemistry	2
CHEM 3360	Analytical Chemistry Laboratory	2
CHEM 3510	Biochemistry I	3
CHEM 3520	Biochemistry II	3
CHEM 3560	Biochemistry Laboratory	2
CHEM 3610	Inorganic Chemistry I	3
CHEM 4300	Instrumental Analysis	2
CHEM 4560	Biophysical Chemistry Laboratory - WAC	2
CHEM 4570	Biophysical Chemistry	4
One advanced CHEM laboratory:		1
CHEM 3910	Undergraduate Research II (One advanced laboratory: )	1
or CHEM 4880	Advanced Laboratory III
or CHEM 4910	Undergraduate Research III
One advanced CHEM course with biochemistry focus:
CHEM 4500	Advanced Biological Chemistry (One advanced biochemistry course, with biochemistry focus)	4
or CHEM 4510	Protein Chemistry
or CHEM 4520	Enzymology
or CHEM 4580	Bioinorganic Chemistry
or CHEM 4980	Special Topics In Chemistry
Required related courses:
MATH 1750	Calculus For The Life Sciences With Applications I	4
or MATH 1850	Single Variable Calculus I
MATH 1760	Calculus For The Life Sciences With Applications II	3
or MATH 1860	Single Variable Calculus II
PHYS 2070	General Physics I	4
or PHYS 2130	Physics For Science And Engineering Majors I
PHYS 2075	General Physics I - Lab	1
or PHYS 2135	Physics for Science and Engineering Majors I - Lab
PHYS 2080	General Physics II	4
or PHYS 2140	Physics For Science And Engineering Majors II
PHYS 2085	General Physics II - Lab	1
or PHYS 2145	Physics for Science and Engineering Majors II - Lab
BIOL 2170	Fundamentals of Life Science: Biomolecules, Cells, and Inheritance	4
BIOL 3030	Cell Biology	3
Electives:		3
Total Hours		120

Combined bachelor's to master's -, BS in Biochemistry/MS in Chemistry - Non-Thesis Option, BS in Biochemistry/MS in Chemistry - Green Chemistry and Engineering Concentration

Undergraduate students in the  SM-BCHM-BS (BS in Biochemistry) program who are accepted into the accelerated degree pipeline program option will be admitted to the SM-CHEM-MS (MS in Chemistry - Non-thesis Option) or SM-CHEM-MS (MS in Chemistry - Green Chemistry and Engineering Concentration) and allowed to complete up to nine credit hours or graduate courses after reaching junior status. Students must request admission into the BSMS program through their advisor no earlier than the spring of their sophomore year and no later than the spring of their junior year. To qualify for the pipeline program, an undergraduate student must have a GPA of at least 3.0 in CHEM courses and have the permission of their advisor. Students below this GPA cutoff may petition the department for admission.  Students accepted into the pipeline program will develop a plan of study in consultation with their advisor and must apply for admission to the College of Graduate Studies for the semester that they intend to matriculate. 

Once the student is admitted to the graduate program, there will be two matriculations: (1) the undergraduate program will remain primary and (2) the graduate program becomes secondary. They will then continue into the graduate program upon completion of the undergraduate degree requirements. The graduate coursework (up to nine hours) completed in the final undergraduate year may be applied to completion of both undergraduate and graduate degree requirements. It will be the joint responsibility of the faculty and administrators in the undergraduate and graduate programs to supervise students admitted to the combined program option, to ensure that the limit of nine hours taken as an undergraduate is strictly enforced, and to request that the College of Graduate Studies change their matriculation from Undergraduate to Graduate when they meet all undergraduate degree requirements.  When the student applies for graduation from the undergraduate program an automatic registration hold is placed on student records. However, as there is a second active program tied to the student’s record, the Registrar’s Office will send the list of students with an active graduate matriculation to COGS to ensure that future registration at the graduate-level is not restricted.

The following provisions apply for classes taken for graduate credit: 

1. Only graduate classes taken at The University of Toledo after the student is accepted in the BS/MS program may be included.
2. For students in the BS Biochemistry/MS in Chemistry - Non-thesis Option pipeline, the approved nine semester hours of graduate credit taken as an undergraduate should include CHEM 6500, CHEM 6570, and CHEM 6940. Substitutions to these courses may be made with authorization of advisor.
3. For students in the BS Biochemistry/MS in Chemistry - Green Chemistry and Engineering Concentration pipeline, the approved nine semester hours of graduate credit taken as an undergraduate should include CHEM 6200, CHEM 6210, and CHEE 6010. Substitutions to these courses may be made with authorization of advisor.

A minimum cumulative GPA of 2.5 in chemistry is required for graduation with this degree.

Below is a plan of study. Consult your degree audit for your program requirements.

Plan of Study Grid

First Term		Hours
CHEM 1230	General Chemistry I	4
CHEM 1280	General Chemistry Lab I	1
Select one of the following:		4
MATH 1750	Calculus For The Life Sciences With Applications I
MATH 1850	Single Variable Calculus I
ENGL 1110	College Composition I	3
NSM 1000	Foundations of Academic Success for Science and Math Majors	1
Arts/Humanities Core		3
	Hours	16
Second Term
CHEM 1240	General Chemistry II	4
CHEM 1290	General Chemistry Lab II	1
CHEM 1910	Survey Of Research	1
Select one of the following:		3-4
MATH 1760	Calculus For The Life Sciences With Applications II
MATH 1860	Single Variable Calculus II
NSM 1500	Building a Career in Science and Math	1
ENGL 1130	College Composition II: Academic Disciplines And Discourse	3
Social Sciences Core		3
	Hours	16-17
Third Term
CHEM 2410	Organic Chemistry I	3
CHEM 2480	Organic Chemistry Laboratory I for Majors: Separations and Elementary Synthesis	2
CHEM 3310	Analytical Chemistry	2
Select one of the following sets:		5
PHYS 2070	General Physics I
PHYS 2075	General Physics I - Lab
OR
PHYS 2130	Physics For Science And Engineering Majors I
PHYS 2135	Physics for Science and Engineering Majors I - Lab
Arts/Humanities Core		3
	Hours	15
Fourth Term
CHEM 2420	Organic Chemistry II	3
CHEM 2490	Organic Chemistry Laboratory II for Majors: Synthesis and Identification	2
CHEM 3360	Analytical Chemistry Laboratory	2
Select one of the following sets		5
PHYS 2080	General Physics II
PHYS 2085	General Physics II - Lab
OR
PHYS 2140	Physics For Science And Engineering Majors II
PHYS 2145	Physics for Science and Engineering Majors II - Lab
Social Sciences Core		3
	Hours	15
Fifth Term
CHEM 3510	Biochemistry I	3
BIOL 2170	Fundamentals of Life Science: Biomolecules, Cells, and Inheritance	4
Diversity of US		3
Electives		5
	Hours	15
Sixth Term
CHEM 3520	Biochemistry II	3
CHEM 3910	Undergraduate Research II	1
CHEM 3560	Biochemistry Laboratory	2
CHEM 3610	Inorganic Chemistry I	3
BIOL 3030	Cell Biology	3
Non-US Diversity		3
	Hours	15
Seventh Term
CHEM 4570	Biophysical Chemistry	4
CHEM 4300	Instrumental Analysis	2
CHEM 4560	Biophysical Chemistry Laboratory - WAC	2
Select one of the following:		2
CHEM 3910	Undergraduate Research II
CHEM 4910	Undergraduate Research III
CHEM 4880	Advanced Laboratory III
Elective or select one of the following: 1		4
CHEM 4500	Advanced Biological Chemistry
or select one advanced biochemistry course in spring semester
	Hours	14
Eighth Term
Elective or one advanced biochemistry course if not taken in the fall: 1		4
CHEM 4510	Protein Chemistry
CHEM 4520	Enzymology
CHEM 4580	Bioinorganic Chemistry
CHEM 4980	Special Topics In Chemistry
Electives to reach 120 hours		10
	Hours	14
	Total Hours	120-121

¹

Listed twice because courses offered in different semesters; only need one course.

See course catalog for pre- and co-requisites.

Courses which satisfy the College and University degree requirements can be determined by running a degree audit and looking at the list of courses presented as satisfying the requirement. Always try to take courses in which you have an interest.

• PLO1. Demonstrate a mastery of foundational concepts in math, physics and chemistry.
• PLO 2. Demonstrate a mastery of concepts in biochemistry and biology, including energy transduction in living systems, macromolecular structure and function, and biological information storage and flow, and the importance of evolution and homeostasis.
• PLO 3. Make observations, formulate hypotheses, understand the conceptual basis and practical application of fundamental biochemical and molecular biological laboratory techniques and instrumentation, design and carry out experiments, analyze and interpret data, and use equations, models and statistics to test and apply these concepts.
• PLO 4. Communicate technical information clearly and accurately in written, oral and visual formats.
• PLO 5. Locate and use information in the primary literature and research databases.
• PLO 6. Critically read, assess, and evaluate scientific publications, presentations and data.
• PLO 7. Understand and observe proper safety, ethical, and professional practices.
• PLO 8. Apply the concepts and practices of chemistry and biochemistry to areas outside the laboratory, including health and policy issues.