Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry
The Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry integrates the chemical and biological sciences to prepare students for careers and advanced study in the health professions, biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, data‑driven life sciences, and basic research. The program emphasizes the core concepts of modern biochemistry: the relationship between macromolecular structure and function; energy transformation in biological systems; and information storage and flow; and quantitative discovery through experimentation.
Students gain rigorous training in biochemical theory and laboratory practice, supported by strong foundations in biology, chemistry, physics, mathematics, statistics, and computation. Advanced coursework in computational biochemistry, structural and mechanistic biochemistry, and physical biochemistry or molecular biophysics ensures depth and coherence across the discipline while aligning with national accreditation standards.
The curriculum offers flexible technical electives and focused specialization tracks in pre‑health, chemistry, computation, and biophysics, enabling students to tailor their studies to professional goals such as medical school, graduate research, or emerging fields including artificial intelligence. Graduates of the program are prepared to conduct reproducible experiments, analyze quantitative data, collaborate effectively, and communicate scientific knowledge clearly and responsibly.
Required Courses
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Biochemistry Requirements | (18) | |
| BIOL 301 | Introductory Biochemistry | 3 |
| BIOL 402 | Metabolic Biochemistry | 3 |
| BIOL 404 | Biochemistry Laboratory | 3 |
| BIOL 412 | Structural and Mechanistic Biochemistry | 3 |
| CHEM 438 | Physical Biochemistry | 3 |
| or PHYS 410 | Molecular Biophysics | |
| CHEM 456 | Computational Biochemistry and Drug Design | 3 |
| Biology Requirements | (15) | |
| BIOL 107 | General Biology Lectures | 3 |
| BIOL 109 | General Biology Laboratory | 1 |
| BIOL 115 | Human Biology | 3 |
| BIOL 117 | Human Biology Laboratory | 1 |
| BIOL 214 | Genetics | 3 |
| BIOL 445 | Cell Biology | 3 |
| BIOL 495 | Biology Colloquium | 1 |
| Chemistry Requirements | (17) | |
| CHEM 122 & CHEM 123 | Principles of Chemistry I and General Chemistry Laboratory | 4 |
| CHEM 126 & CHEM 140 | Principles of Chemistry II Without Laboratory and Principles of Chemistry II Lab | 4 |
| CHEM 235 & CHEM 236 | Organic Chemistry I and Organic Chemistry I-Lab | 4 |
| CHEM 239 | Organic Chemistry II | 3 |
| CHEM 240 | Organic Chemistry Laboratory | 1 |
| CHEM 485 | Chemistry Colloquium | 1 |
| Biology or Chemistry classes | (4) | |
| BIOL 100 | Introduction to the Profession | 2 |
| or CHEM 100 | Introduction to the Profession | |
| BIOL 451 | Biological Literature | 2 |
| or CHEM 451 | Undergraduate Seminar | |
| Upper Division Laboratory | (3) | |
| Select at least 3 credits of approved 300+ level lab classes, including: | 3 | |
| Animal Physiology Laboratory | 3 | |
| Cell Biology Laboratory | 3 | |
| Instrumental Analysis | 4 | |
| Advanced Chemistry Laboratory | 3 | |
| Spectroscopic Methods in Identification and Analysis | 4 | |
| Bioanalytical Chemistry Laboratory | 3 | |
| Analytical Method Development Laboratory | 3 | |
| Forensic Chemistry Laboratory | 3 | |
| Instrumentation Laboratory | 4 | |
| Biology Research Project | 1 TO 3 | |
| Undergraduate Research | 1 TO 3 | |
| Special Projects | 1 TO 3 | |
| Technical Electives | (13) | |
| Up to 7 credits of the following lower division courses will count towards this requirement | 13 | |
| Microbiology | 3 | |
| Microbiology Laboratory | 2 | |
| Analytical Chemistry | 0 OR 4 | |
| Object-Oriented Programming II | 0 OR 2 | |
| Nutrition and Wellness | 3 | |
| Introduction to Discrete Math | 3 | |
| Multivariate and Vector Calculus | 4 | |
| Introduction to Differential Equations | 4 | |
Any lower division course towards the certificate in AI fluency or AI management | ||
| Select at least 6 credit hours from the following upper division courses | ||
Any 300+ level BIOL or CHEM or FDSN course | ||
| Reaction Kinetics for BME | 3 | |
| Discrete Structures | 3 | |
| Data Structures and Algorithms | 3 | |
| Data Mining | 3 | |
| Introduction to Machine Learning | 3 | |
| Molecular Biophysics | 3 | |
Any 300+ level course towards the certificate in AI fluency or AI management | ||
| Physics Requirements | (8) | |
| PHYS 123 | General Physics I: Mechanics | 4 |
| PHYS 221 | General Physics II: Electricity and Magnetism | 4 |
| or PHYS 223 | General Physics III | |
| Mathematics Requirements | (10) | |
| MATH 151 | Calculus I | 5 |
| MATH 152 | Calculus II | 5 |
| Statistics Requirement | (3-4) | |
| Any statistics course, including: | 3 or 4 | |
| Introductory Statistics | 3 | |
| Business Statistics | 3 | |
| Undergraduate Statistics for the Behavioral Sciences | 4 | |
| Statistical Methods | 3 | |
| Biomedical Engineering Applications of Statistics | 3 | |
| Statistics for Analytical Chemists | 3 | |
| Computer Science Requirement | (2) | |
| Any CS core class | 2 | |
| Interprofessional Projects (IPRO) | (6) | |
| See Illinois Tech Core Curriculum, section E | 6 | |
| Humanities and Social Science Requirements | (21) | |
| See Illinois Tech Core Curriculum, sections B and C | 21 | |
| Total Credit Hours | 120-121 | |
Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry Curriculum
| Year 1 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Semester 1 | Credit Hours | Semester 2 | Credit Hours |
| BIOL 100 or CHEM 100 | 2 | BIOL 115 | 3 |
| BIOL 107 | 3 | BIOL 117 | 1 |
| BIOL 109 | 1 | CHEM 126 & CHEM 140 | 4 |
| CHEM 122 & CHEM 123 | 4 | MATH 152 | 5 |
| MATH 151 | 5 | Humanities Elective | 3 |
| 15 | 16 | ||
| Year 2 | |||
| Semester 1 | Credit Hours | Semester 2 | Credit Hours |
| BIOL 214 | 3 | CHEM 239 | 3 |
| CHEM 235 & CHEM 236 | 4 | CHEM 240 | 1 |
| PHYS 123 | 4 | PHYS 221 | 4 |
| Computer Science Core | 2 | Technical Electives | 4 |
| Social Sciences Elective | 3 | Humanities or Social Science Elective | 3 |
| 16 | 15 | ||
| Year 3 | |||
| Semester 1 | Credit Hours | Semester 2 | Credit Hours |
| BIOL 301 | 3 | BIOL 402 | 3 |
| STAT 225 | 3 | BIOL 404 | 3 |
| Technical Elective | 3 | CHEM 456 | 3 |
| Social Sciences Elective | 3 | Technical Electives | 3 |
| IPRO | 3 | IPRO | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Year 4 | |||
| Semester 1 | Credit Hours | Semester 2 | Credit Hours |
| BIOL 412 | 3 | BIOL 451 | 2 |
| CHEM 438 | 3 | CHEM 485 | 1 |
| BIOL 445 | 3 | Upper Division Laboratory1 | 3 |
| BIOL 495 | 1 | Techical Elective | 3 |
| Humanities Elective | 3 | Social Sciences Elective (300+) | 3 |
| Humanities Elective (300+) | 3 | ||
| 13 | 15 | ||
| Total Credit Hours: 120 | |||
The BS in Biochemistry offers specialization options that allow students to tailor their studies to specific career goals while maintaining a shared foundation in modern biochemistry. Each specialization is designed to prepare students for common post‑graduation pathways, including professional programs, graduate study, and careers in industry, research, and interdisciplinary or data‑driven fields.
Pre‑Health Specialization
The pre‑health specialization is designed for students planning to pursue professional programs towards becoming a doctor, dentist, pharmacist, nurse, physician assistant, or other health professional. This specialization emphasizes the biochemical basis of human health and disease, with coursework aligned to concepts central to professional school training and admissions exams. Students develop strong conceptual understanding, quantitative reasoning, laboratory experience, and scientific communication skills that support success in health‑related graduate programs and evidence‑based clinical careers.
Chemistry Specialization
The chemistry specialization is intended for students seeking rigorous, quantitative training in chemical analysis and preparation for careers or graduate study in chemistry‑intensive fields such as pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, analytical chemistry, and chemical biology. This specialization is structured to meet American Chemical Society (ACS) certification requirements. ACS certification strengthens preparation for graduate programs, enhances competitiveness for industry and research positions, and signals to employers a strong foundation in analytical, instrumental, and spectroscopic methods.
Computation Specialization
The computation specialization is designed for students interested in applying computational, statistical, and data‑driven approaches to biochemical problems, preparing them for graduate study or careers in computational biochemistry, systems biology, and data‑driven life sciences. By integrating biochemistry with programming, data structures, and machine learning concepts, this specialization equips students with skills increasingly essential in modern biotechnology, pharmaceutical research, and interdisciplinary scientific fields.
Biophysics Specialization
The biophysics specialization is intended for students who wish to pursue quantitatively focused careers or graduate study in biophysics, structural biology, molecular biophysics, or related interdisciplinary research areas. This specialization emphasizes the physical principles underlying macromolecular structure, dynamics, and function, preparing students for research environments in academia, industry, or national laboratories where biology, chemistry, and physics intersect.
Specializations
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-Health | ||
| Choose 3 courses from the below, with no more than one lower division course counting towards the specialization | 9 | |
| Microbiology | 3 | |
| Neurobiology | 3 | |
| Nutrition and Wellness | 3 | |
| Introduction to Immunology | 3 | |
| Medical Microbiology | 3 | |
| Systems and Behavioral Neuroscience | 3 | |
| Health and Disease in Modern Society | 3 | |
| Nutrition Through the Life Cycle | 3 | |
| Nutrition, Metabolism, and Health | 3 | |
| Neural and Biological Bases of Behavior | 3 | |
| Chemistry | 13 OR 14 | |
| Analytical Chemistry | 3 | |
| Instrumental Analysis 1 | 3 | |
| Inorganic Chemistry | 3 | |
| Spectroscopic Methods in Identification and Analysis 1 | 4 | |
| Computation | 11 OR 12 | |
| Object-Oriented Programming II | 2 | |
| Data Structures and Algorithms 1 | 3 | |
| Data Mining | 3 | |
or CS 484 | Introduction to Machine Learning | |
Select one of the following | 3 or 4 | |
| Discrete Structures | 3 | |
| Introduction to Discrete Math | 3 | |
| Multivariate and Vector Calculus | 4 | |
| Introduction to Differential Equations | 4 | |
| Biophysics | 9 or 10 | |
| General Physics III for Engineers | 3 | |
or PHYS 223 | General Physics III | |
| Thermodynamics and Statistical Physics | 3 | |
| Molecular Biophysics | 3 | |
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Fulfills Upper Division Laboratory requirement
