College Life

Private Schools That Are Well Known for This Major

• Harvard University
• Scripps Research Institute
• Massachusetts Institute of Technology
• Stanford University
• Yale University

State Schools That Are Well Known for This Major

• University of California—Berkeley
• University of California—San Francisco
• University of Wisconsin—Madison
• California Institute of Technology
• University of California—San Diego

Classes in the Major

Analytical chemistry: Imagine building a beautiful model Death Star made out of literally thousands of Legos. We know, it's been your dream for a while now. Next, think of viciously ripping it apart and sorting each Lego into carefully organized piles according to size and color.

It may sound insane and unholy, but this is what Analytical Chemists are all about. They get down to the nitty gritty details, determining how much of each atom is present in a compound or organism and how they're arranged. Living, non-living, dead, in a swamp somewhere—doesn't matter. To specialize in chemistry, you have to build a good base. It's like a tan in that way. Or Starcraft, for all you pale-skinners.

Organic Chemistry: This is the big one. That "bio" part of "biochemistry" means organic. "Bio" is a Greek root meaning "life." Turns out, organic means more than arbitrary rules pertaining to chicken feed; it also refers to living matter. And no, we do not have gluten-free chemistry. Please stop asking.

You'll learn a lot about the chemical reactions that go on inside living things in this class, like how your body turns pizza into running energy, or alcohol into goofy dancing energy. If you couldn't tell from the title, this is the quintessential biochemistry course to take.

Calculus: Where there's science, there's calculus. It's a lot like bears and honey, only calculus won't tear your face off if you find it in the woods...even though it may feel like that when you don't study hard enough.

Science has to be quantifiable in some way, and more often than not, calculus seems to do a pretty good job of getting that taken care of.

Physics: You've got math down, sure, but what does it really do for you? You can calculate tips, or even prove to your friends why buying a house is more cost-effective than their rent-controlled apartment in the long run, but you want more. Physics takes math and applies it to the physical world. Want to calculate the trajectory of a pie to your friend's face? Boom. Banana crea—er, physics.

It shouldn't come as much of a surprise that in order to take your mathematical knowledge in a more biological direction, you need to understand how to apply math to the real world. From internal bodily functions to pastries in the face, physics is your friend.

Microbiology: Biology is the study of living organisms, so microbiology is…you guessed it, the study of living microwaves. Just kidding, horrifying monstrosities of that magnitude do not exist yet (we fear for the day they do, though). It's really the study of microorganisms. Studying these little guys is a whole lot simpler than big, complex things like kangaroos, so it's an important stepping stone in the teaching process.

Not to mention there are tons of microorganisms living inside you right at this moment, as if living microwaves didn't creep you out enough.