Biology/Biological Sciences vs Biochemistry vs Biomedical Science

3

Hi, I’m currently in year 12 wanting to study one of these three at university, was wondering if anyone could outline the main difference between them? I’m looking at places like Durham, St Andrews, Keele, Royal Holloway, York, Oxford, Imperial, Kings, Edinburgh, Glasgow but most of these offer two if not all here of these courses and I’m hoping to narrow it down a bit
Thanks so much :smile:

Reply 1

totoroisstudying

12

I think biochem/biomed have the most job options afterwards but are more competitive... but as a fellow yr 12 I'm not completely sure (I want to do bio tho bcs that's what I'm most interested in)

Reply 2

Lancaster Student Ambassador

Official Rep

18

Original post

by 989068

Hi, I’m currently in year 12 wanting to study one of these three at university, was wondering if anyone could outline the main difference between them? I’m looking at places like Durham, St Andrews, Keele, Royal Holloway, York, Oxford, Imperial, Kings, Edinburgh, Glasgow but most of these offer two if not all here of these courses and I’m hoping to narrow it down a bit
Thanks so much :smile:

Hi @989068

There will be a good overlap between all these degrees, and you can tailor the broader biological science degree through optional modules to make it more biomedical or biochemical. The compulsory modules will be different for each, so I'd check the modules available at any universities you're considering to see if you have any preferences.

I chose biochemistry, because I much prefer smaller biology, and it meant I could focus on cellular and sub-cellular biology, as opposed to the human body or ecology.

Most postgraduate opportunities wouldn't see much of a difference between these, when I've been applying for PhDs and graduate programmes most don't specify between them.

Rebecca (Lancaster Student Ambassador)

Reply 3

989068

OP

3

Original post

by Lancaster Student Ambassador

Hi @989068
There will be a good overlap between all these degrees, and you can tailor the broader biological science degree through optional modules to make it more biomedical or biochemical. The compulsory modules will be different for each, so I'd check the modules available at any universities you're considering to see if you have any preferences.
I chose biochemistry, because I much prefer smaller biology, and it meant I could focus on cellular and sub-cellular biology, as opposed to the human body or ecology.
Most postgraduate opportunities wouldn't see much of a difference between these, when I've been applying for PhDs and graduate programmes most don't specify between them.
Rebecca (Lancaster Student Ambassador)

Thank you so much! So biochem is mostly cellular? I’d really love to focus on cells, genetics, the human body etc and if possible avoid doing more environmental areas?

Reply 4

Lancaster Student Ambassador

Official Rep

18

Original post

by 989068

Thank you so much! So biochem is mostly cellular? I’d really love to focus on cells, genetics, the human body etc and if possible avoid doing more environmental areas?

Hi @989068

It's going to vary between universities, and all bioscience degrees will likely include some breadth of modules. The biochemistry degree I do is mainly molecular biology, cell signalling, chemical pathways in cells, genetics and cellular biology - however because of the pathway I chose (biochemistry at Lancaster has three "pathways" which affect which modules are compulsory/core) I also do a decent bit of chemistry alongside this. Different universities can have the same degree name and have variety in modules which is why it's so important to check.

Based on what you said, maybe look into biomedicine, biomedical science, and biochemistry over biological sciences, as a broader biology degree might have a few ecology/zoology/environmental modules as core in first year? But again, it'll depend on the university and how they've chosen to structure their degree so I would highly recommend looking through the module list; it's usually available on the website page for each course.

Rebecca (Lancaster Student Ambassador)

Reply 5

Royal Holloway, University of London

Official Rep

13

Original post

by 989068

Hi, I’m currently in year 12 wanting to study one of these three at university, was wondering if anyone could outline the main difference between them? I’m looking at places like Durham, St Andrews, Keele, Royal Holloway, York, Oxford, Imperial, Kings, Edinburgh, Glasgow but most of these offer two if not all here of these courses and I’m hoping to narrow it down a bit
Thanks so much :smile:

Hi there,

It's great to hear you're considering studying this subject area. We offer a variety of courses in our Department of Biological Sciences, including BSc Biochemistry, BSc Biomedical Sciences, BSc Medical Biochemistry, and BSc Genetics - you can view all undergraduate courses in this department here.

We would also recommend chatting to our current Biomedical Sciences student Grace who'll be able to give you invaluable insight into her course and experience of studying at Royal Holloway in general.

We hope this helps!

Best wishes
Royal Holloway, University of London

Reply 6

University of Sheffield Students

Official Rep

16

Original post

by 989068

Hi, I’m currently in year 12 wanting to study one of these three at university, was wondering if anyone could outline the main difference between them? I’m looking at places like Durham, St Andrews, Keele, Royal Holloway, York, Oxford, Imperial, Kings, Edinburgh, Glasgow but most of these offer two if not all here of these courses and I’m hoping to narrow it down a bit
Thanks so much :smile:

Hi 989068,
There can be a lot of overlap between these courses. I studied a BSc in Biochemistry, but I had friends who did Biomedical Science and Biology. In Biochemistry, we focused on the more molecular aspect of biology like protein interactions and genetics. My friends doing Biomed also did some of these modules. They then also did some work on organ systems/ physiology. For example, the lungs or kidneys.

Biomed also had more of an emphasis on disease and development. However, if you are still interested in disease but want a more molecular focus, I found Biochemistry to be a good degree choice too! For example, my Biochemistry degree has led me to study a masters in Cancer Biology.

Biology tended to be a bit more broad in terms of module options, and a lot of my friends doing biology also did some molecular modules alongside ecology etc.
Hope this helped,
Sofia :smile:

Reply 7

University of York

Official Rep

13

Original post

by 989068

Hi, I’m currently in year 12 wanting to study one of these three at university, was wondering if anyone could outline the main difference between them? I’m looking at places like Durham, St Andrews, Keele, Royal Holloway, York, Oxford, Imperial, Kings, Edinburgh, Glasgow but most of these offer two if not all here of these courses and I’m hoping to narrow it down a bit
Thanks so much :smile:

Hi there,

Firstly, I'm so sorry for our late reply - we missed this thread!

As has been said by the other university reps, the differences between the courses depend on the universities, but there will likely be a lot of overlap between the three courses.

I studied Biology at York, and we offer Biology, Biochemistry and Biomed. When I left school, I knew I wanted to study something related to Biology, but I didn't know which area(s) I was most interested in. I chose to study Biology over Biomed or Biochem because it had a bigger variety of modules, from genetics, cell biology and immunology to ecology, neuroscience and ageing. I ended up sharing modules with Biochem, Biomed and Biology students, so I met lots of different people and made friends from across the Department.

My advice would be to look at the modules for each of the courses and see which most appeal to you. If, like me, you're not sure where your interests lie yet, then maybe going for a course with a broader range of module choices would be best for you.

Best of luck in your search for a course and a university - if there's anything we can help with, just let us know!

I hope this helps - Hannah 😀

Reply 8

LondonMetIz

Official Rep

6

Original post

by 989068

Hi, I’m currently in year 12 wanting to study one of these three at university, was wondering if anyone could outline the main difference between them? I’m looking at places like Durham, St Andrews, Keele, Royal Holloway, York, Oxford, Imperial, Kings, Edinburgh, Glasgow but most of these offer two if not all here of these courses and I’m hoping to narrow it down a bit
Thanks so much :smile:

Hi there!

I currently study Biomedical Sciences at London Metropolitan University.

You have some great answers so far! I just thought I'd add to it with my own experience.
When I was looking to apply, I had the same decision to make between the two and looking at the modules really helped my decision. I was never really a fan of the ecology and population topics at A-Level. I much preferred learning about the human body. Biological Sciences tends to be broader and includes the plant topics, where as Biomedical Science tends to just focus on the body systems and cellular level study. After seeing that throughout the modules of different courses, I was able to decide that Biomedical was the right course for me.

I hope this was able to help. Good luck with your studies!!

Biology/Biological Sciences vs Biochemistry vs Biomedical Science

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