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Chemistry/Biochemistry Major with Biochemistry Option, Bachelor of Science (BS)

This program is recommended for students planning to go directly into professional fields of biochemistry, for students planning to attend graduate school in biochemistry, molecular biology or pharmacology, and for students planning to enter professional schools such as medicine, veterinary medicine, or pharmacy.

Note: the option will require more than 12 terms (or 4 years) to complete at an average of 15 credits per term.

Grade Requirements: due to the cumulative nature of chemistry courses, the department strongly recommends that students receive a grade ≥C in all prerequisite chemistry courses.

Required Courses
CHEM 171
171L
CHEM 172
CHEM 172L
CHEM 173
CHEM 173L
GENERAL CHEMISTRY I
and GENERAL CHEMISTRY LABORATORY I
and GENERAL CHEMISTRY II
and GENERAL CHEMISTRY LABORATORY II
and GENERAL CHEMISTRY III
and GENERAL CHEMISTRY LABORATORY III
15
CHEM 304
304L
QUANTITATIVE ANALYSIS
and QUANTITATIVE ANALYSIS LAB
6
CHEM 351ORGANIC CHEMISTRY4
CHEM 352ORGANIC CHEMISTRY4
CHEM 353ORGANIC CHEMISTRY3
CHEM 372ORGANIC CHEMISTRY LABORATORY I3
CHEM 421PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY4
CHEM 422PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY4
CHEM 431PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY LABORATORY1
CHEM 480BIOCHEMISTRY5
CHEM 481INTERMEDIARY METABOLISM5
CHEM 482INTEGRATED TOPICS IN BIOCHEMISTRY AND BIOPHYSICS3
CHEM 483BIOCHEMISTRY LABORATORY 12
Choose one of the following three courses3-5
MODERN INORGANIC CHEMISTRY
INSTRUMENTAL ANALYSIS
PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY
Choose one or more of these courses2-3
PRE-MEDICAL, DENTAL, VETERINARY AND PHARMACY PREPARATION
PRE-MEDICAL, DENTAL, VETERINARY AND PHARMACY PREPARATION
ORGANIC CHEM LABORATORY II
BIOCHEMISTRY LABORATORY 2
Choose one of the following three courses4
INTERNSHIP
SEMINAR
DIRECTED STUDY
Required Supporting Courses
BIOL 171BIOLOGY I5
BIOL 172BIOLOGY II5
BIOL 173BIOLOGY III5
BIOL 310FUNDAMENTALS OF GENETICS5
MATH/HONS 161CALCULUS I5
MATH 162CALCULUS II5
MATH 163CALCULUS III5
PHYS 151GENERAL PHYSICS I4
PHYS 152GENERAL PHYSICS II4
PHYS 153GENERAL PHYSICS III4
PHYS 161MECHANICS LABORATORY1
PHYS 162HEAT AND OPTICS LABORATORY1
PHYS 163ELECTRONICS LABORATORY I1
Suggested–a computer programming course is strongly recommended. See your chemistry/biochemistry advisor.
Suggested supporting courses for Pre-Med/Pre-Dent/Pre-Vet students
BIOLOGICAL INVESTIGATION
MICROBIOLOGY
HUMAN ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY III
BIOMEDICAL ETHICS
INTRODUCTION TO TECHNICAL COMMUNICATION
Required Capstone
CHEM 491SENIOR THESIS4-6
or CHEM 490 ADVANCED INORGANIC CHEMISTRY OR SENIOR CAPSTONE
Total Credits122-127

Plan of Study

The following plan of study is for a student with zero credits. Individual students may have different factors such as: credit through transfer work, Advanced Placement, Running Start, or any other type of college-level coursework that requires an individual plan.

Courses may be offered in different terms and not all courses are offered every term, checking the academic schedule is paramount in keeping an individual plan current. There may be some courses that have required prerequisites not listed in the plan, review the course descriptions for information. Students should connect with an advisor to ensure they are on track to graduate.

All Undergraduate students are required to meet the Undergraduate Degree Requirements.

First Year
Fall QuarterCreditsWinter QuarterCreditsSpring QuarterCredits
CHEM 171
171L
5CHEM 172
172L
5CHEM 173
173L
5
MATH 1615MATH 1625MATH 1635
PHYS 151
PHYS 161 (Natural Science BACR 1)
5PHYS 152
PHYS 162 (Natural Science BACR 2)
5PHYS 153
PHYS 163
5
 15 15 15
Second Year
Fall QuarterCreditsWinter QuarterCreditsSpring QuarterCredits
BIOL 1715BIOL 1725BIOL 1735
CHEM 304
304L
6Humanities & Arts BACR 115ENGL 2015
ENGL 1015Social Science BACR 115Global Studies - graduation requirement15
 16 15 15
Third Year
Fall QuarterCreditsWinter QuarterCreditsSpring QuarterCredits
CHEM 3514CHEM 319, 420, or 4233-5BIOL 3105
Humanities & Arts BACR 215CHEM 3194CHEM 3533
Social Science BACR 215CHEM 3524Diversity - graduation requirement15
 CHEM 3723Elective - certificate, minor, or general elective4
 14 14-16 17
Fourth Year
Fall QuarterCreditsWinter QuarterCreditsSpring QuarterCredits
CHEM 4214BIOL 371, CHEM 371, CHEM 373, or CHEM 4841CHEM 4823
CHEM 4311CHEM 4224CHEM 490 or 491 (Senior Capstone - graduation requirement)5
CHEM 4805CHEM 4815Elective - certificate, minor, or general elective5
CHEM 4832CHEM 4842Elective - certificate, minor, or general elective3
CHEM 4992CHEM 4992 
 14 14 16
Total Credits 180-182
1

University Graduation Requirements (UGR) and Breadth Area Course Requirements (BACR) courses may be less than 5 credits and additional credits may be required to reach the required 180 total credits needed to graduate.  Students should connect with an advisor to ensure they are on track to graduate.

University Competencies and Proficiencies

English 
Quantitative and Symbolic Reasoning
Placement and Clearance 
Prior Learning/Sources of Credit AP, CLEP, IB


General Education Requirements (GER)
  • Minimum Credits—180 cumulative credit hours 
    • 60 upper-division credits (300 level or above)
    • 45 credits in residence (attendance) at Eastern, with at least 15 upper-division credits in major in residence at Eastern
  • Minimum Cumulative GPA ≥2.0

Breadth Area Core Requirements (BACR)

Humanities and Arts 
Natural Sciences 
Social Sciences


University Graduation Requirements (UGR)

Diversity Course List
World Language (for Bachelor of Arts)
Global Studies Course List
Minor or Certificate
Senior Capstone Course List


Application for Graduation (use EagleNET) must be made at least two terms in advance of the term you expect to graduate (undergraduate and post-baccalaureate).

Use the Catalog Archives to determine two important catalog years.
Requirements in Degree Works are based on these two catalog years:

  1. The catalog in effect at the student's first term of current matriculation is used to determine BACR (Breadth Area Credit Requirements) and UGR (Undergraduate Graduation Requirements).
  2. The catalog in effect at the time the student declares a major or minor is used to determine the program requirements.

Students who earn a BS in Chemistry/Biochemistry with Biochemistry Option from EWU should be able to:​​
  • demonstrate a broad-based knowledge of major concepts in the areas of inorganic, organic, analytical and physical chemistry;
  • demonstrate sufficient preparation in chemistry to successfully compete in a graduate or professional program or to realize employment in a chemistry- or biochemistry-related career;
  • demonstrate a capacity to use modern instrumentation and classical techniques for the analysis and/or separation of chemicals and an ability to interpret data;
  • demonstrate effective oral and written communication skills and critical thinking skills as related to the field of chemistry;
  • demonstrate knowledge of safe practices in the handling, usage and disposal of chemicals.