Biochemistry University Rankings

Hi I am new to these forums but wanted to ask how everyone decided on their Universities in particular to a Biochemistry degree?

My first instinct was to check the times online guide, however I noticed many of you regard Imperial as one of your top choices for Universities in relation to this course, however Times have ranked it join 18th with Warrick? So why pick this University for this course?

I myself had applied to Imperial originally (and have the grades now for it), however I applied towards the end of the deadline for UCAS and they took so long to accept/decline me that I withdrew my offer and just chose another University for my firm/insurance.

So basically all I want to know is why Imperial is ranked so high in your eyes whereas guides such as Times say its only 18th. I know that Imperial as an overall University ranks 3rd on Times, but that shouldn't matter to be honest, as the course you take should really be the highest factor in choosing a University right?

Thanks in advance for any replies. :cool:

Reply 1

ally22

I am starting the Imperial Biochem course in oct. I chose Imperial because of it's general reputation as a University (although my first choice was Cambridge - I'm another reject!)

I know that when I finish my degree at Imperial, that I do not necessarily want to go into research, or something so defined - I'd like to go into buiness or accounting when I leave - so in my opinion, when I apply to start accountancy for example, it will not be the fact that I took Biochem at Imperial, it will be the fact that I went to Imperial that is hopefully looked well upon.

Where are you actually going now? And If you withdrew your application before you had an offer, how do you know that you now have the grades you needed to study there? (that isn't meant to sound rude)

Reply 2

Steeeeevo

15

Well you should never judge the quality of universities by league tables , they only tell you how well universities perform, not how they are as a university, put it this way if a university opened that was just 1 room, no equipment in a really dodgy area put had really good teachers that just drilled information into your head so you did well in exams it would likely score well in the league tables, but to be honest you wouldn’t want to go there even if it was number 1 on the list, that’s why you should look at all aspects of a university.

In respect to Imperial it has a great reputation as a university as a whole by students, teaching, equipment and location so allot of students prefer this university as oppose to others, also in the league table the top 10-20 usually have very little separating them so its position is not seen as very important just the fact it is one of the top performing universities in the country in this area. Hope this answers your question.

Reply 3

Sw1ft

OP

I will be going to University of Kent for Biochemistry. I got AAAB for my A levels. I had the offers from the following on UCAS; Warwick, Nottingham, Durham and Kent. But I chose Kent as my firm choice because a) it is fairly local to me, so I won't incur a large transport cost, also because Kent is one of the top 10 universities for getting a job post-grad. And also I entered into a scholarship program with pfizers, however because they had business problems they said the scheme wasnt going through this year, so instead I have to go through schooling the University route. As such because Kent also has strong ties with Pfizers as they are local to one another, it is very possible that I can get a job there after, or a job placement during the 3rd year of the course.

Although the other universities have a better known reputation compared to Kent. Due to its location and job prospects, I felt it was the better choice.

And by what I meant in relation to Imperial. I meant that I applied for their biochemistry course, however I failed to get a reply so I withdrew my application in order to finalize my firm/insurance choice. And by getting into the course I meant this in terms of myself getting 5 A's in AS at the time, and getting the grades I have now. So I would have thought I would have been accepted had I waited long enough, but like I said probably because I applied too late, they didn't bother to respond, so I withdrew.

Reply 4

silent ninja

19

Imperial is quality and is very highly regarded. Its in the top ten in the world.

Reply 5

Tom H

9

Well, not quite top ten in the world... more like top 30.

But yeah, Imperial is pretty good. Also, if the admissions tutor is to be believed, employers love Imperial Biochem graduates as we have one of most practical-based Biochem courses in the country (which honestly surprises me seeing as I didn't think we did that many practicals in the first year).

Reply 6

silent ninja

19

Thats what their website says, of course based on The Times:

"Global rankings:

* Times Higher Education Supplement World University Rankings (November 2004)
* 1st in Europe and 5th in the World for engineering and IT
* 3rd in Europe and 10th in the World for science
* 5th in Europe and 10th in the World overall"

According to this list its 23rd (there's a LOT of american uni's in the list!):
http://ed.sjtu.edu.cn/rank/2005/ARWU2005_Top100.htm

Biochemistry University Rankings

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