Chemistry

I’ve applied to two universities for MChem and was just wondering if it’s a actually a good degree to peruse or should I change it to biochemistry or Pharmacology/drug discovery. I’m just questioning the employability of doing a single since at uni…

Reply 1

sleep_supremacy

Universities Forum Helper

Do you enjoy studying chemistry? There is little point torturing yourself for three years with a degree you dislike.

Reply 2

TypicalNerd

Original post by userreagyk4qfx

Chemistry graduates are perfectly employable thanks to the number of transferrable skills they pick up. Some unis actually list which companies their graduates for a particular course tend to end up working for, so you can decide whether the employability prospects are all that appealing.

I would say a better thing to ask yourself is whether you would enjoy a chemistry degree or not. MChem courses tend to be either 4 or 5 years long (dependent on which university you are studying at) and it isn’t worth spending that length of time on a degree you won’t enjoy.

I’m currently doing MChem chemistry (I’m a first year at Oxford), so if you have any questions, feel free to ask away.

Edit: also, I’d give this a read: https://www.prospects.ac.uk/careers-advice/what-can-i-do-with-my-degree/chemistry

(edited 3 months ago)

Reply 3

Lancaster Student Ambassador

Official Rep

Original post by userreagyk4qfx

Hey!

I’m Oliver and am currently a fourth year in natural sciences at Lancaster. I'm actually studying both synthetic chemistry and biochemistry pathways with an aim to go into drug discovery so thought I’d share a bit about my degree.

Natural sciences is definitely one of the most flexible degrees out there allowing you to study across two or three different departments. At Lancaster there are so many different pathways to choose from across all branches of chemistry, physics, maths, biology, geography and psychology, just to name a few. Each university will do pathways slightly differently and a have a varied range of possible combinations so definitely check that out on the relevant websites. The full list of pathways and entry requirements for Lancaster can be found here: https://www.lancaster.ac.uk/natural-sciences/

There is also the option to alter you pathway choices as you progress through your degree. For me this was extremely valuable as I was able to drop my physical chemistry pathway after first year to allow for a greater focus on biochemistry.

One of the best things about natural sciences is the vast range of experiences you get and people you meet. Since you study alongside the single honours students across multiple departments, you get to see so many more faces and there is never a lonely lecture. It’s also great to see how all the different sciences interlink and you can often apply something you learnt in one subject to one of your other pathways which is fascinating!

Hope that is helpful and best of luck with your decision 😊Feel free to ask me any other questions if you have any

Oliver (Student Ambassador)