Goucher Biochemistry and Molecular Biology students excel on industry exam

Goucher’s Biochemistry and Molecular Biology students have outpaced the national cohort on the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology exam.

The exam, which tests students’ knowledge and core competencies in biochemistry and molecular biology, is offered to juniors and seniors in ASBMB-accredited programs.

At Goucher, 80% of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology students received either Proficiency or Mastery status on the exam, compared with 62.8% of the national cohort. Students who receive Proficiency status and above are offered a complimentary one-year membership to the ASBMB.

The ASBMB initiated an accreditation program for schools offering majors in biochemistry and molecular biology in 2014. Goucher was in the first cohort to become provisionally accredited, and subsequently approved for full accreditation in 2017. The accreditation is based on evaluation of the rigor of the curriculum in the major, as well as the quality and quantity of faculty and support staff, equipment and facilities, and budget supporting the program.

The Biochemistry and Molecular Biology major was created in 2011. Prior to that, students interested in this field at the intersection of biology and chemistry chose between a major in biology with a concentration in molecular biology or a major in chemistry with a concentration in biochemistry. This major is especially appealing to students interested in careers in medicine, pharmacy and biotechnology.

Program director Judy Levine says that though the Biochemistry and Molecular Biology program is still growing, the high percentage of students who succeeded on the exam speaks well to the quality of education they received. She says that membership to the ASBMB is an honor that provides many tangible benefits to students as well. 

Membership to the ASBMB provides students with access to resume coaching, exclusive webinars, job boards, and the ability to submit abstracts and research to the ASBMB Annual Meeting.

The exam was designed to test both student knowledge and programs’ effectiveness in teaching several core competencies, including both foundational concepts in energy and metabolism, structure and function, information storage and transfer, and scientific skills, as well as five threshold concepts that, when mastered, represent a full and transformed understanding of the overall discipline.

Goucher students who achieved “Proficiency” include Sean Nolan ’24 and Zayan Sami ’25, while Maria James ’25 and Cas Sturdivant ’25 achieved mastery status.