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Biotech, biomed and molecular bio & genetics

 
Old 05-25-2011 at 09:13 PM   #16
musicislife
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Originally Posted by mally View Post
When i started university, i didn't exactly understand what research was. In fact, research was not something that was even on my mind. But as I finished first year, due to some awesome professors (like Dr. Boreham and the great researchers he brought in class as guest lecturers) I started to understand what research really was. To further explore research as an alternative career option I decided to major in biochem. Biochem seemed like a research oriented program and it in fact is exactly that. And so far I have not regretted my decision. I have absolutely loved every part of biochem, whether it was the lab course or the normal course...i just love it. Another thing is, biochem courses have a lot of group projects...so if you don;t like group work that might be a problem. But if you are worrying about the kind of people you might get in your group, you shouldn't worry about that. Almost all the people I worked with were very focused and hard working people...not to mention the great friendships you build over the course of the year!

As for GPA, for me it didn't really affect much. But that really depends on your work habits (not that I have any great habits either but still a little bit of organization goes a long way!). I think that as long as you work hard and smart, maintaining a great gpa (which i think is anything 11 and plus) is definitely doable. But again its an individual thing. Also as far as I know, some research work is absolutely critical to med school application (this is very true for US med schools as well). Research work can range from simple summer research position to working on a thesis project, depending on your interest.

So that's really my insight into the biochem program. Oh another thing I just remembered is that even I applied for the molecular and bio genetics major but I feel that the bio dept at mac is very poorly structured. Except for a few courses, I have been largely disappointed by the bio courses i have taken so far. That was the main reason I didn't opt for molecular bio and genetics.

If you have anymore questions don't hesitate to ask. I fully understand the dilemma you are facing cuz only last year I was facing the same problem!

Thank you so much did you find the courseload to be harder than first year? And is biochem 2L06 as brutal as it sounds?
Old 05-26-2011 at 01:04 AM   #17
mally
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Originally Posted by musicislife View Post
Thank you so much did you find the courseload to be harder than first year? And is biochem 2L06 as brutal as it sounds?
I would say that the courseload would increase in 2nd year no matter which major you take. But after first year, you can better evaluate what works for you in terms of studying techniques and such. So the studying skills you learn over the course of an entire year will come as second nature and the "extra" workload just becomes the new norm. So you wouldn't necessarily feel the burden of heavier courseload. That at least is how I see it but some of my friends who are in other programs (various bio specialization) after watching us study did feel that biochem has a heavier course load. Initially that is the case. Especially with the traumatizing 2l06 prelabs which would take an entire day to complete. However, that was not because the prelab was very hard...in fact the first couple of prelabs are kinda easy (you'll realize this when term 2 starts). The problem was we didn't know how to effectively research and use resources such as pubmed. By the end of first month you'll become pretty used to finding journal articles and using them in your prelab and by term 2, prelabs are more or less a breeze. I would agree that 2l06 does sound brutal but it's exactly the opposite. It is one of the best 2nd year courses offered at mac. You'll learn so much that at the end you'll actually amaze yourself about how much you'll know. Felicia, Adam and all the TAs are very very nice and extremely helpful. They don't just offer help regarding the lab but if you need help with any other course, they'll be more than willing to help you out. And again I cannot emphasize enough about the good friendships you'll build (which are pretty imp...esp when nearing a midterm you need past midterms for practice ). Because you'll meet your group members every week, you'll get to know them better and this makes working on the group projects very easy and a lot of fun.

That's probably the least I can say about biochem I have thoroughly enjoyed my 2nd year and if you do choose biochem then I can assure you that you won't be disappointed.
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Maleeha Qazi
Biochemistry and Biomedical Sciences IV (Co-op)
Biotechnology Specialization
Old 05-26-2011 at 01:08 AM   #18
mally
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Also another question! Can I apply for co-op later, or do I have to be enrolled in a co-op program? Also if anybody in a science co-op could share their experience, that would be appreciated
You'll apply for co-op in term 2 of your 2nd year. I am not sure if you can apply for it in 3rd year or not cuz the co-op term starts in Jan of 3rd year. As for experience I haven't had any yet. But if I stayed stuck to my co-op choice, I'll probably have a better idea in Feb/March time.
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Old 05-29-2011 at 11:39 AM   #19
musicislife
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I'm sorry I have one more question for anybody who can answer! Which courses in biochem did you find hardest, or which ones required the most work?
Old 05-31-2011 at 12:42 AM   #20
biochemer
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I'm sorry I have one more question for anybody who can answer! Which courses in biochem did you find hardest, or which ones required the most work?
2L06 is tough.
If you're in any of the specializations then you'll take Biochem 3P03, which is basically only one term of 2L06, but you get to do your own project with a small group.
Biochem 3C03 is for biomed students, it was pretty tough, i've posted a review recently if you wanna check it out.
Mol bio 3O03, also for biomed students was kinda hard.
And don't forget you have to take both orgos, plus one more in 3rd year if you're in specialization.
But overall, you learn stuff from all of these courses, even if they are hard, and you can still do well.
Hope that helps
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