What is it?

A unique opportunity to receive official recognition from Purdue for engaging in significant undergraduate research in biochemistry (or a closely related area) and successfully completing a meaningful amount of graduate coursework in Biochemistry.  The coursework required to attain a Graduate Certificate is less than a Master’s degree but more than a Bachelor’s.  We designed the certificate to be completed during the last year of a 4-year undergraduate plan of study, and the certificate would be awarded concurrently with the Bachelor’s degree.

Why was it created?

We created this program as a formal mechanism to recognize and celebrate students with exceptional aptitude and promise for biochemistry research careers.  Receipt of this certificate is intended to convey to post-baccalaureate institutions and future employers that a student has truly gone above and beyond the standard Biochemistry curriculum.

This program is intended for students who love doing biochemical research and challenging themselves in the classroom.  In general, students who have engaged in significant hands-on research and who are ahead in their plans of study are more likely to complete the rigorous requirements of this program within the normal 4-year time frame of a Bachelor’s degree.  Although not required, credit from Advanced Placement exams or dual credit coursework taken in high school is likely to be beneficial in completing the standard Biochemistry curriculum and the requirements of the certificate within 4 years.

Participants will take 10 credits of graduate coursework during their senior year at Purdue:

Fall:      BCHM 60100 (Critical Thinking and Communication in Biochemistry I)

             BCHM 60501 (Macromolecules)

Spring: BCHM 61000 (Regulation of Eukaryotic Gene Expression)
            Choice of elective from a select list of classes

These are the required first-year courses for graduate students in Biochemistry at Purdue. As a result, students who successfully complete the graduate certificate program and enroll in the PhD program in the Department of Biochemistry at Purdue will begin the program as second-year student. Students may consider petitioning other post-baccalaureate institutions for transfer credit in their respective programs, but the policy of accepting such transfer credit will be determined by the other program and not by the Department of Biochemistry.

Interested students should apply by March 1 of their junior year.

Apply now!  

3.50 GPA or higher

8 credits of research in biochemistry (or equivalent experience)

Two letters of recommendation (one from undergraduate research advisor and one from another faculty member)

Statement of purpose (how the graduate certificate program fits into your career goals)

Contact biochem-boilers@purdue.edu