Biochemistry

Biochemistry is the molecular science of life. It explores the chemical processes that underpin all biological activity, from the catalytic mechanisms of enzymes to the replication of DNA, from the folding of proteins to the metabolic pathways that provide cells with energy. It is a discipline at the intersection of chemistry and biology, and its discoveries have generated the molecular understanding of disease that underpins modern medicine, pharmacology and biotechnology.

Understanding life at the molecular level is one of the defining intellectual achievements of modern science, and biochemistry graduates stand at the frontier of that knowledge.

At UCL, one of the world's top research universities with exceptional strengths in the life sciences, this three-year programme provides rigorous training in the core areas of biochemistry: protein structure and function, nucleic acid biochemistry, enzyme kinetics, metabolic biochemistry, cell signalling, molecular genetics and structural biology. You will develop substantial laboratory skills alongside your theoretical understanding, conducting experiments, analysing data and engaging with the methods that drive current biochemical research. UCL's research environment means that teaching is informed by active scientific inquiry, and students often have opportunities to engage with research groups as part of their studies.

The typical entry tariff is 184 UCAS points.

Biochemistry graduates from UCL move into pharmaceutical and biotechnology research and development, clinical research, medical science, academic research and doctoral study, science communication, patent law, management consulting in life sciences, and a wide range of roles in the healthcare and technology sectors. Many graduates continue to doctoral research at UCL or other leading institutions, contributing to advances in areas from drug discovery to synthetic biology. The rigorous quantitative and experimental skills the degree develops are also transferable to data science, finance and other analytically demanding fields.