Humanities & Sciences

By combining studies in the biology and chemistry departments, your biochemistry degree from Ithaca will provide a strong foundation for graduate or professional school or for a career in business or industry. The biochemistry program will prepare you to pursue advanced study in molecular biology, biochemistry, genomics, environmental toxicology, medicinal chemistry, public health, or another field. Your health-related professional options will include medicine, dentistry, optometry, or veterinary medicine. Recent graduates have also found jobs in biotechnology and the pharmaceutical industry.

Your first two years in the biochemistry program lay a strong foundation in both biology and chemistry. Specialization begins in your junior year with courses in biochemistry, cell biology, and physical chemistry. During your senior year, you'll take at least one advanced elective in biology or chemistry, and you'll also enroll in Current Topics in Biochemistry. Typically, students who complete the interdisciplinary biochemistry program plan to pursue a graduate degree in medicine or in another health-related field.

As in our chemistry and biology programs, the emphasis is on hands-on research, working in close collaboration with faculty in their labs. You'll also get experience in the technical literature of the profession and the presentation of research results -- valuable skills for any career in science.

You may also select a concentration in museum studies, which provides learning opportunities related to the work of museums, from curation and collections management to grant writing and public relations.

You will have an opportunity to apply and expand your knowledge in hands-on learning activities in classes and during internships at museums and galleries, including our own Handwerker Gallery. Our graduates go on to a variety of careers, including museum and gallery work, education, publishing, advertising, graphic design, architecture, and historic preservation.

Studio courses in art, as well as a two-course sequence in architectural design and the senior design portfolio course, will teach you how to develop and critique design projects and give you structured guidance in how to explain and present your own work.

Many of our graduates continue their study in graduate programs in architecture, landscape architecture, and urban planning around the country while others go directly into careers in architecture, academia, real estate, construction, and related fields.

Note: The B.A. in Architectural Studies is a degree that does not qualify students to practice architecture. Students who want to practice architecture and become licensed architects may pursue an NAAB accredited Master of Architecture program after completion of the B.A. in Architectural Studies or the student may submit experience to the New York State Education Department that is acceptable to the New York State Board for Architecture totaling 9 years after completion of the B.A. in Architectural Studies. Graduates of the B.A. in Architectural Studies would most likely need to pursue a 3-3.5 year Master of Architecture program in order to receive a Master of Architecture degree from an NAAB accredited program.