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Choosing Biochemistry

As a child, you are constantly asked "What do you want to be when you grow up?" I always knew I wanted to do something science-related, but I never imagined that I would be pursuing Biochemistry. In the movies, you always see eager college freshmen moving onto campus with their perfect major picked out, with their entire life planned out down to the age that they plan to retire. This picture-perfect scenario was the total opposite of how I came to college and discovered my true passion.

I began my studies at Xavier University of Louisiana in the summer of 2012. This was directly following my graduation from high school in Tennessee. I had never even been to Louisiana a day in my life. I knew from my experiences in high school that I loved chemistry and I also very much enjoyed my biology classes. However, I didn't know that I could combine the two and get the best major ever created! I started at Xavier as a Chemistry and Math double major. I realized very quickly that math was not my strongest subject. So I dropped the Math as a major and focused on my Chemistry.

At Xavier, the chemistry department is phenomenal! I was able to take a lot of really interesting classes while gaining a true understanding of the material. It wasn't until my junior year of college that I took Introduction to Biochemistry. This is when I realized this may be the field for me. During the first semester of my senior year, I had the opportunity to take Metabolism, which essentially takes every process you could learn in biology, and explains all of the chemistry behind it. This was the coolest thing in the world to me! I wasn't that great at biology, and I'm not afraid to admit that. But when my professor explained Biology using Chemistry, everything just clicked!

So, yes! I changed my major my senior year to Biochemistry. This is definitely not the traditional route that most people take. And I wouldn't recommend this for anyone unless they have a concrete plan or are just simply miserable. Luckily for me, Biochemistry is within the chemistry department, so I only had to take a few other classes to obtain my degree in Biochemistry instead of Chemistry. In doing this, I was able to graduate on time and earn my degree in a field that I was truly passionate about. I am now a proud owner of a Bachelors of Science in Biochemistry with a minor in Biology from Xavier University of Louisiana!



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