Biochemistry is central to many areas within the Life Sciences, seeking to generate knowledge of the structure and function of living organisms at the level of individual molecules. Biochemistry emerged in the twentieth century from a desire to understand the chemical reactions occurring in living organisms and the enzymes that catalyse them.
However, modern Biochemistry has a much broader remit, covering all aspects of how cells behave. These include the complex mechanisms by which our genetic information is interpreted, how the multitude of different cellular proteins function and how cells detect and respond to internal and external signals. The goal of Biochemistry is to provide an understanding at the molecular level of complex cellular processes, for example how our immune system functions and why we develop cancer. Biochemistry therefore has close links to many other life sciences, for example Cell Biology, Immunology, Microbiology and Genetics. Biochemistry has given rise to the new disciplines of Molecular Biology and Molecular Genetics, and with them underpins many of the exciting advances being made in medicine and biotechnology today.
While the work of Mendel led to the development of classical genetics, the study of heredity, Molecular Genetics seeks to study the structure and function of our genetic material at the molecular level, as exemplified by the Human Genome Project. Molecular Biology studies the plethora of molecular machines that perform the many functions occurring within cells and which integrate cellular and subcellular activities. The boundaries between Biochemistry and its related disciplines are becoming less distinct as research in different areas becomes unified by the adoption of molecular techniques and approaches. This is reflected at Dundee by a common structure to the Degree Programmes for Biochemistry, Molecular Biology and Molecular Genetics at Levels 1 to 3, with the distinctive nature of each degree title conferred by the choice of specialist Course Units and Research Project at Level 4. Biochemistry and the related molecular life sciences are practical laboratory sciences, and Dundee can offer you a range of Level 4 Research Projects in leading laboratories because of its high level of top-rated research activity in these areas.
Biochemists are in demand in a wide range of areas and the employment rate for new graduates is excellent. You might join a research team in a university, research institute or pharmaceutical company, using your scientific skills and practical ability to help advance knowledge or to discover new therapeutic agents. You could work in a clinical laboratory, providing a diagnostic service in a hospital, for example, or be involved in product development or in monitoring product quality or safety in an industrial or agricultural company. A significant fraction of our graduates go on to study for a higher degree before moving into areas such as these, and while initially involved directly in laboratory-based roles, many will have moved on to a variety of other positions by mid-career. A Biochemistry degree provides an ideal basis for entering the teaching profession, while a few of our graduates also go on to take a degree in Medicine. In addition, Biochemistry graduates often enter areas of employment not directly related to their degree subject, for example accountancy, publishing and journalism, as managers or in sales. A degree in Biochemistry or a related area will give you training in problemsolving, analytical thinking and handling complex information as well as basic numeracy, skills in demand in many walks of life, and this is reflected in the range of career opportunities available.
