Chemistry & Biochemistry

The relationships you build here through mentored teaching and unsurpassed undergrad research are valuable resources that will be helpful throughout your life. At BYU, you’ll approach science in a way that is both spiritually strengthening and intellectually enlarging. You’ll address real scientific questions in the light of the Gospel.

Undergraduate research makes classroom learning come alive and can help propel you into a professional career. You will have the opportunity to put your book knowledge into practice by working in laboratories on a variety of instruments. You will gain knowledge of labs and equipment, plus hands-on experiments, that will prepare you for careers and higher education.

BYU is a pioneer in this area—one of the few universities that allows undergrad students to work side by side with professors on their research projects. This means that even though you may be fresh out of high school, you could find yourself assisting professors and grad students in valuable projects with real-life applications. Some students are even paid during their mentorships.

• Analytical Chemistry

Students detect, identify, and measure amounts of chemicals in specific substances. Analytical chemists participate in a variety of projects such as environmental pollution evaluation and control, pharmaceutical development, and forensic analysis.

• Biochemistry

Students study living systems, what they are composed of, and how they function. This research relates to numerous biomedical fields such as neurobiology, immunology, and cancer biology.

• Inorganic Chemistry

Students create new materials by combining metals and other elements. Inorganic chemists apply their work to various areas including human illness, pollution, and the study of metals in biological systems.

• Organic Chemistry

Students study carbon-based molecules including how to make organic molecules and identify their structure. Organic chemists study molecules that lead to important developments in both biology and medicine.

• Physical Chemistry

Students study the properties of matter on a molecular level. In this area, chemistry and physics crossover. Studies range from researching the physical state of chemicals to thermodynamics.

People come from all over to use BYU’s facilities and equipment. Some resources specific to the Chemistry & Biochemistry Department include:

• Calorimeters 

Literally meaning “heat measurement,” these machines measure the output of heat given off when a substance is burned.

• DNA synthesizers and sequencers

Synthesizers allow chemists to artificially create DNA into various chains while sequencers determine the order of DNA components.

• Environmental chambers

These can control the atmosphere and temperature for a particular purpose to determine what kind of chemistry is occurring.

• Mass spectrometers

All atoms have a particular mass; these machines look at fragmentation patterns and add up masses of atoms to piece together weights and identities of molecules.

• Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) devices

Similar to medical imaging technology, these devices determine the structure of molecules.

• X-ray diffraction devices

These devices are used to determine molecular structure by establishing the detailed atomic placement within a molecule.

Chemists can work in practically any field. With an undergraduate degree in chemistry & biochemistry, many job possibilities are open, including working as a:

With an undergraduate degree in chemistry & biochemistry you could earn:

*Industry-wide estimate from: payscale.com/best-colleges/degrees.asp

Many of our students go on to get advanced degrees and additional experience that broaden their career opportunities. BYU Chemistry & Biochemistry alumni have found jobs in academia, government laboratories, and numerous industrial positions including working at: