Hey guys...just curious. Can i do a double major in Biochemistry and Biological Sciences?

9/13/2008 8:51:50 PM

Sure.

9/13/2008 8:55:17 PM

You can double major in anything you want!

9/13/2008 9:04:25 PM

What are the procedure for double majoring. If i want to double major in Biochemistry and Biological Sciences...that means I have to complete all of the classes in the Degree Audit right?

You think i have to talk to Dr. Knopp about this? Will i get 2 Degree?

Thank you for your inputs.

9/13/2008 9:08:25 PM

Yes, if you double major that means your getting two degrees.

You complete the courses for both degree audits but obviously, there's enormous overlap between the two degrees Biological Sciences and Biochemistry.... so it will probably equate to either a heavier course load or 1 more semester than if you were to just complete a single degree.

The courses that satisfy one degree audit can be used to satisfy the other degree audit. All you have to do to declare the second major is march over to the Biological Sciences admin office and fill out a little form, then you're done. In a few days, two majors will show up in PackTracks and your all set.

You can talk to Dr Knopp if you want, but its not required.

9/13/2008 9:15:16 PM

What are your career goals? If you are already a Biochemistry major, I don't see how getting a general Biology degree with help you at all. Now, if you are already getting a degree in Biological Sciences and you have taken most of the courses for it, but you want to add Biochemistry then that makes more sense.

Talk to an advisor or career counselor at the CALS career center.

9/14/2008 4:28:45 PM

^ There are several reasons why someone would want to get a second degree. For instance, they might be in college to become *educated* not to just get a sheet of paper. In my case, its unlikely my second degree will do anything in terms of my paycheck but I'm not really here for that, I'm here to learn.

Secondly, even if you are here just to grab your degree and get out the door, why not grab a second degree if it takes the same amount of time as one (buy 1 get 1 free)? It couldn't ever hurt to have a second degree to list on your resume.

9/14/2008 5:51:11 PM

do it if it doesn't take longer than the usual 4 years. If it does, then don't, because both degrees are pretty worthless anyway.

9/14/2008 8:33:36 PM

^ Thats ridiculous. Biochemistry is the heart of the latest medical / pharmaceutical research. . . thats where all the big research money is!

9/14/2008 9:08:11 PM

Quote :

"There are several reasons why someone would want to get a second degree. For instance, they might be in college to become *educated* not to just get a sheet of paper. In my case, its unlikely my second degree will do anything in terms of my paycheck but I'm not really here for that, I'm here to learn. Secondly, even if you are here just to grab your degree and get out the door, why not grab a second degree if it takes the same amount of time as one (buy 1 get 1 free)? It couldn't ever hurt to have a second degree to list on your resume."

Okay.. I have two bachelor's degrees. I am not discouraging two degrees in any way, but if she is already getting a BS in Biochemistry, then adding a BS in Biological Science won't help with anything. It won't help get into grad school or professional school, get a job, or even broaden your education. And if you have to go an extra semester or two, it would be even less worthwhile. Now if she majoring in Biological Science and wants to add a Biochemistry degree, that is a different story, like I said before.

Biochemistry isn't a worthless degree at all. Biological Sciences, while it isn't worthless, isn't a strong degree, though I think it might be geared more for Biology teachers.

9/15/2008 12:21:39 AM

^ Wisdom

9/15/2008 1:25:26 PM

Quote :

"Secondly, even if you are here just to grab your degree and get out the door, why not grab a second degree if it takes the same amount of time as one (buy 1 get 1 free)? It couldn't ever hurt to have a second degree to list on your resume."

Some people like to enjoy life outside the textbook?

9/15/2008 1:53:51 PM

^ I had a life, and I got two degrees in two unrelated subjects.

[Edited on September 15, 2008 at 2:16 PM. Reason : it's not for everyone, but it's not so hard that it's impossible to do anything else]

9/15/2008 2:16:08 PM

i had 24 hours for free electives in the media communications program

i augmented that joker with a film degree

9/15/2008 3:00:06 PM

Quote :

"Biochemistry is the heart of the latest medical / pharmaceutical research. . . thats where all the big research money is!"

yea, but you can't do that stuff with just a BS degree. Like I said, you couldn't do much with a BS degree. If the OP is trying to go professsional school, then there's no point getting a 2nd degree.

9/15/2008 5:09:37 PM

I think you have to figure out what your purpose of getting those two is. Most people who double major do it because they want to make themselves more well-rounded, educated, and show that they have interests in more than just one industry/concentration.

For example, I'm doubling Industrial Engineering with Business Mgmt because a lot of post-graduate engineers lack the communication skills necessary for employment in the "real world". My father and I both agreed that pursuing the two degrees would be beneficial.

Because bio & biochem are so similar, I really don't see how holding both degrees will help you. Sure, it's another BS you can throw on your resume, but I think an employer would rather see you vary your degrees to show you can take on something completely different, too.

[Edited on September 15, 2008 at 8:56 PM. Reason : a]

9/15/2008 8:55:38 PM

^so why don't you get a degree in Industrial Engineering and communications?

9/15/2008 9:11:49 PM

^because I want more than just good people skills; I want the management aspect as well. I don't want to be an entry-level engineer for the rest of my life.

9/15/2008 9:20:42 PM

Most engineers aren't entry-level for the rest of their lives, you know.

9/15/2008 9:44:33 PM

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&safe=off&q=define%3Aentry-level

9/15/2008 10:03:36 PM

^^ True. Some get fired.

9/17/2008 4:18:29 PM

grow a set & go for the triple major

9/18/2008 12:28:22 AM

^ You might as well just get a PhD.

9/18/2008 1:52:10 AM

triple major's easier

9/18/2008 4:17:03 PM

i'm kinda glad jessiejepp posted in here

I'm walls1441 and i approved this message.

9/18/2008 10:01:05 PM

or you could get a single major and just be really good at what you do and still pull down 70k after a year or 2

9/18/2008 11:55:28 PM

Those majors overlap so much, I wouldn't think you would get any benefit to double majoring. Biological sciences doesn't have its own upper level classes, so you are taking life science electives mostly.

Look into microbiology, you would have overlap in the basic science courses, but there is set list of micro classes (med micro, micro diversity, etc.)

If you want to add beneficial courses to your degree, then look into the BIT (bio tech) courses. They will be extremely beneficial if you do a science grad program or if you are looking for a job.

9/19/2008 10:51:25 AM

I'm now hijacking this thread

I'm an English:LWR major. As you might imagine, this degree path is quite easy, only requiring 122hrs, 30 of which are free electives. Can I add another specialization in the english department as a double major, or is that technically still the same degree? If not, I may consider adding english ed as a double. Does anyone know whether or not this can be done in 4 years(reasonably)? I am simply looking to augment my mind, not really my paycheck, so I am open to any useful or otherwise degree paths I could pursue that would have some overlap. Thanks.

9/19/2008 11:36:00 AM

^ Start your own thread retardo tron.

I've got a biology degree and it's served me pretty well so far. While not a license to print money, I can still put food on the table.

9/19/2008 12:15:57 PM

This is college so you can do pretty much whatever you want including get two degrees, but these two together are really pointless. Anything you can do with a biology degree you can do better with biochem.

As for the actual classes, I'm fairly sure (graduated with a biology BS this spring) that it's only a few classes difference. Add the fact that biology is a much weaker degree and it's just silly to get a biology degree if you already have a biochem. Biology by itself is almost worthless, any real career involves graduate/professional school.

A much better idea would be to think about what you want to do when you graduate and pick a major that will help. If it's research, you don't need two majors...you need research experience. If it's professional school...almost anything will work well, english or history would be good.

9/19/2008 5:54:16 PM

masters

9/19/2008 8:58:12 PM

^a masters in a life science area won't do you any more good. You have to have a PhD to qualify for most of the jobs that require more than a bachelors and experience.

9/29/2008 1:37:06 PM

I double majored in microbiology and biochemistry, as well as minoring in genetics. It took me 4.5 years to complete. Adding biochemistry added a year onto my graduation. I could have graduated in 3.5 years, but that's b/c I usually took a ton of hours. I was originally a microbiology major and had a minor in genetics, but I actually liked the challenging parts of BCH 451, so I filled out a form to add biochemistry as a second major and went and talked with Dr. Knopp. He was a first a little apprehensive about letting me become a biochem major since I took 451 with Sylvia, but he added me anyways. I knew it was going to be tough and it was, but I'm so glad that I did it. I agree with Ytsejam in that being a biochem major and adding biological sciences as a major wouldn't really add on to your education. I would consider going into a more specialized science major like microbiology, animal science, zoology, chemistry, physics, etc.

While there was overlap with the microbiology and biochem curriculum the 400 level courses in both differed greatly. Also the biochem curriculum had you take physical chemistry which the microbiology curriculum didn't. I liked the microbial biotechnology course, even though it was at night. It was an easy A too. The virology course was worth taking but since it was early in the morning it was fairly boring and most of the people were like zombies in there. Immunology was a great MB course. I took it for fun actually. I already had all the MB classes required to graduate. I really enjoyed the advanced biochemistry lab.

And yes you get two degrees. Mine are both hanging up in my parents living room, while the certificate for the genetics minor hangs in their bedroom.

10/1/2008 10:11:16 AM

Use the extra major as an excuse to stay in school and delay the inevitable "real world"

The extra year it took to get my CSC/ECE/EE triple major was worth it's weight in gold!

10/13/2008 10:44:22 PM

have fun with that.

10/21/2008 12:49:52 PM

i wouldnt mind getting a double major but i dont think my mom would be happy cause shes ready for me to gtfo...plus i think i have to start paying back a loan like 6 months from dec of 08

10/21/2008 12:53:54 PM

Of my friends that have different types bio degrees, they all pretty much ended up working the same jobs. If you really are doing it to stand out, you should do something beyond your degree, especially these days. It'll probably all be over by the time you grad, but I know that the biotech jobs they are looking for to move up have been pretty much frozen by whats going on in the market, so it would probably be beneficial to have a skill in something a little different from what you originally planned, just in case things go south for awhile.

10/21/2008 4:03:35 PM