While aspects of biochemistry and molecular biology can be very diverse, a common set of chemical and biological principles underlie the more advanced topics. With this in mind, the program has been structured to provide the necessary background in chemistry and biology and the opportunity to study the many facets of the modern areas of the biochemical sciences.
BIOL 101 The Cell
BIOL 102 The Organism
BIOL 202 Genetics
CHEM 151 or 153 or 155 Introductory Chemistry
CHEM 156 Organic Chemistry: Introductory Level
CHEM 251 Organic Chemistry: Intermediate Level
CHEM 256 Foundations of Modern Chemical Science
BIMO/BIOL/CHEM 321 Biochemistry I: Structure and Function of Biological Molecules
BIMO/BIOL/CHEM 322 Biochemistry II: Metabolism
BIMO 401 Topics in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
and at least one Elective in biology and one elective in chemistry from the list below.
In addition–you must attend at least 8 Biology Dept. or Chemistry Dept. colloquia during your four years at Williams.
BIOL 301 Developmental Biology
BIOL 306 Cellular Regulatory Mechanisms
BIOL 308 Integrative Plant Biology: Fundamentals and New Frontiers
BIOL 310 Neural Development
BIOL 313 Immunology
BIOL 315 Microbiology: Diversity, Cellular Physiology and Interactions
BIOL/CHEM/CSCI/MATH/PHYS 319 Integrative Bioinformatics, Genomics and Proteomics Lab
BIOL 405 Stem Cells and Cellular Identity in Development and Disease
BIOL 407 Neurobiology of Emotion
BIOL 408 RNA Worlds
BIOL 413 Molecular Basis of Biological Clocks
BIOL 414 Life at Extremes: Molecular Mechanisms
BIOL 416 Epigenetics
BIOL 418 Signal Transduction to Cancer
BIOL 426T Frontiers in Muscle Physiology: Controversies
BIOL430T Genome Sciences: At the Cutting Edge
CHEM 324 Enzyme Kinetics and Reaction Mechanisms
CHEM 326 Chemical Biology: Discoveries at the Interface
CHEM 341 Toxicology and Cancer
CHEM 342 Synthetic Organic Chemistry
CHEM 343 Medicinal Chemistry
CHEM 344T Physical Organic Chemistry
CHEM 348 Polymer Chemistry
CHEM 364 Instrumental Methods of Analysis
CHEM 366 Physical Chemistry: Thermodynamics
CHEM 367 Biophysical Chemistry
Students interested in the Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Program should plan their course selection carefully. Since it is typical that Biochemistry 321 would be taken in the junior year, students are advised to take the prerequisites for that course in both chemistry and biology during their first two years at Williams. While the concentration is open to all students, it is expected that it will appeal primarily to majors in biology and chemistry because of the number of courses required in those fields. In addition to taking the required courses, students planning to concentrate in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology are strongly encouraged to elect courses in mathematics and physics.
 It looks like a lot, but…Since the Chemistry Department counts two biology courses and the Biology Department counts two chemistry courses toward the majors (each of which can be completed with only eight other courses), a student majoring in either chemistry or biology would have to take only three additional courses to complete the program. |
From the Registrar’s site:
BIMO: Description | Courses Offered
Biology: Description | Courses Offered
Chemistry: Description | Courses Offered
