3 answers
Katarina
Student
Avon, Connecticut
2
Questions
Updated
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What part of science should I focus on if I want to make cures for diseases? What major is best for my goal?
I know I want to be in some field of chemistry and biology, but I am not sure which one aligns best with my goals.
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3 answers
Brittany Powell
Engineer
4
Answers
Seattle, Washington
Updated
Brittany’s Answer
Biomedical engineering and bioengineering are excellent choices for majors. You can specialize in drug delivery to explore developing treatments for diseases. It's beneficial to connect with a research professor who is working in a field you are passionate about.
Thank you so much for helping me!
Katarina
Wong Loke Yuen
Head of Programme cum Senior Lecturer
645
Answers
Johor Bahru, Johor, Malaysia
Updated
Wong’s Answer
The best areas to focus on are biology and chemistry, especially the parts that study living things and chemicals that can help people.
In biology, you should focus on subjects like molecular biology, genetics, and microbiology. These areas teach you about cells, DNA, and tiny organisms like bacteria and viruses that can cause diseases. Understanding how these work helps scientists find ways to stop diseases from spreading. In chemistry, you should focus on organic chemistry and biochemistry. Biochemistry is where biology and chemistry meet, and it helps explain how chemicals work inside living things.
For a major in college, you can consider studying biochemistry, molecular biology, or pharmacology. Molecular biology is great if you want to study diseases at a very small level, like how genes affect illness.
You might also think about majoring in chemical biology, a field that mixes both chemistry and biology to study and create new treatments.
In biology, you should focus on subjects like molecular biology, genetics, and microbiology. These areas teach you about cells, DNA, and tiny organisms like bacteria and viruses that can cause diseases. Understanding how these work helps scientists find ways to stop diseases from spreading. In chemistry, you should focus on organic chemistry and biochemistry. Biochemistry is where biology and chemistry meet, and it helps explain how chemicals work inside living things.
For a major in college, you can consider studying biochemistry, molecular biology, or pharmacology. Molecular biology is great if you want to study diseases at a very small level, like how genes affect illness.
You might also think about majoring in chemical biology, a field that mixes both chemistry and biology to study and create new treatments.
Thank you, this is amazing! I really needed it.
Katarina
You are most welcome!
Wong Loke Yuen
Quyen Tran
Product Marketing Manager
3
Answers
Seattle, Washington
Updated
Quyen’s Answer
Hi Katarina,
Just wanted to add more to Brittany's answer as I am a biomedical engineer (Bachelors and PhD). Agree that BME is an excellent major for your goal. There are generally 3 major groups within BME: (1) biology focus, (2) device focus, and (3) informatics focus. All these groups will allow you to contribute meaningfully to curing diseases, just depends on what you like to study. Option 2 is what I focused on, and this is where you will find people working with cells and tissues to understand and tackle diseases through drug discoveries. Option 2 typically build medical devices to tackle diseases. Think insulin pump for those with diabetes type 1. Option 3 typically do bioinformatics and examine how genomics or proteomics shape our understanding of diseases.
Additionally, BMEs take both chemistry and biology courses, as well as engineering courses. So if you love both then you don't necessarily have to choose.
Just wanted to add more to Brittany's answer as I am a biomedical engineer (Bachelors and PhD). Agree that BME is an excellent major for your goal. There are generally 3 major groups within BME: (1) biology focus, (2) device focus, and (3) informatics focus. All these groups will allow you to contribute meaningfully to curing diseases, just depends on what you like to study. Option 2 is what I focused on, and this is where you will find people working with cells and tissues to understand and tackle diseases through drug discoveries. Option 2 typically build medical devices to tackle diseases. Think insulin pump for those with diabetes type 1. Option 3 typically do bioinformatics and examine how genomics or proteomics shape our understanding of diseases.
Additionally, BMEs take both chemistry and biology courses, as well as engineering courses. So if you love both then you don't necessarily have to choose.
Wow, thank you so much!! You’re really helpful!
Katarina