Careres advice - Medicine vs Biochemistry or pharmaceutical
I am really struggling with what university course and career path I want to pursue. I really enjoy working with chemicals; however, the pay is almost half that of medicine. I do enjoy medicine (though not as much as chemicals), but I am aware to the extreme competition for courses, much longer years of study and having to work night shifts. However, medicine has a much higher pay (almost double in specialised sectors). Yet still, I am unsure what I should pursue. Could people comment on what they think and ways in which I can narrow what course to pick?
Reply 1
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The Medicine forum gets a high volume of questions being posted, and some of these are already answered by the resources and Megathreads that members of the community and volunteers have created. This is an automatic post which is designed to highlight these resources. Below is a list of threads and articles that could answer your question (you should be looking in the original post of the megathreads). If one of the below threads is a more relevant place to ask your question, please post a reply in that thread to ask your question. If your query is answered by one of the Megathreads or articles linked below, and you would like us to close this thread for you, please reply to this thread with just the words "thank you". A member of our team will then get it locked.
Megathreads (Please read the first post before posting any further questions you have within that thread.)
The "Which Medical School Should I Apply To?" Uberthread
The Ultimate 'Am I Good Enough For Medicine?' Angst Thread
Medicine A-Level subjects queries
Work Experience and Voluntary Work
GANFYD's "Which medical schools accept retake A-Levels" list
2026 Applicants :
Official Thread: (Undergraduate) Medicine 2026 entry
Official Thread: Graduate Entry Medicine 2026 Entry
Medicine 2026 entry for resit/retake/gap year applicants
International Students for Medicine 2026 Entry (overseas students applying to the UK)
UCAT 2026 Entry Discussions Megathread
GAMSAT Megathread 2026/2027 entry
GAMSAT Megathread 2025/2026 entry
2026 entry A100/ A101 Medicine fastest and slowest offer senders
Medical Schools Index 2026 entry
Medical Schools Index 2025 entry
UCAS Extra and Clearing:
Medicine UCAS Extra for 2025
Medicine UCAS Clearing for 2025
Other application years:
Official Thread: (Undergraduate) Medicine 2027 entry
Official Thread: Graduate Entry Medicine 2027 Entry
Official Thread: Graduate Entry Medicine 2028 Entry
Current Medical Students and Doctors:
Guidance on posting in this subforum
So, you're going to medical school.... MKII
OSCE Tips and Advice
Increase in the NHS Bursary and expenses for placement
The postgraduate exams thread
Useful Articles:
Work Experience as a Graduate or Mature student
Medicine Personal Statement Advice
Medicine Personal Statement Advice (Graduate Entry)
Interview Frequently Asked Questions
MMI Medicine Interview Tips
What to do after an unsuccessful first application
Funding medicine as a second degree
Our Community:
Medicine Community Feedback and Suggestions
Medicine Gap Year Stories
Project: Minimum UCAT Score Trends
If your query is answered by one of the Megathreads or articles linked above, and you would like us to close this thread for you, please reply to this thread with just the words "thank you". A member of our team will then get it locked.
Reply 2
Original post
by oneMoreScrollI am really struggling with what university course and career path I want to pursue. I really enjoy working with chemicals; however, the pay is almost half that of medicine. I do enjoy medicine (though not as much as chemicals), but I am aware to the extreme competition for courses, much longer years of study and having to work night shifts. However, medicine has a much higher pay (almost double in specialised sectors). Yet still, I am unsure what I should pursue. Could people comment on what they think and ways in which I can narrow what course to pick?
Hey!
Im not a med student but doing it in September and I have a mate who is doing biochem.
I would say that you need to establish whether you want patient contact. Medicine has a big emphasis on it and is very rewarding but biochemistry doesn't as much and involved much more lab work. Also, it does sound like you are wanting to go into med primarily for the pay which I would really advise on not doing- especially with the state of resident doctor pay at the moment.
When you mean pharmaceutical do you mean pharmaceutical science or pharmacy. As, if you still do what patient contact, pharmacy is still a great option. it is a 4 yr course, a bit less competitive and you have more flexibility on whether you want patient contact as you can go anywhere from industry to community care. The hours also tend to be more regular than med.
Hope this helps
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