Bachelor of Medical Sciences, Major in Biochemistry

at EduCo - Western University Canada

Earth Sciences is the science of the planet Earth. We seek to understand the Earth's internal structure and composition; its dynamic character (earthquakes, volcanoes, plate tectonics); the processes that occur within it; the processes that shape its surface and the materials that constitute its surface layers; the origin, occurrence, extraction and conservation of the Earth's natural resources (minerals, fossil fuels, soils, and water); the place of the Earth within the Solar System, and the history of life on Earth. Earth Sciences puts the human race in planetary perspective within space and time. As our awareness of human interactions with the environment increases, our need for better understanding of the way the earth works becomes more urgent. Increasingly, a grounding in Earth Sciences is seen as essential for those concerned with care of the environment and assessment of natural hazards, as well as for those involved with utilising Earth's resources. Solutions to problems of pollution and waste disposal, to major civil engineering problems such as those encountered at dam sites, and to the effects of global change arising from human impact on the environment, must all be sought within the framework of Earth Sciences.

Economics is a social science devoted to the study of scarcity, and how individuals, organisations, and governments make choices. The discipline’s guiding principle is found in the idea that all of these choices can most usefully be seen as decisions to allocate scarce resources across a range of competing uses. This single principle is always in play, and leads economists to study a wide array of social questions.

In the first year Economics courses you will be exposed to the use of this basic principle and the analytical tools that go with them in both the microeconomic and macroeconomic realm. The first of these (micro) refers to the study of choices made by individuals and/or individual firms, and how these decisions interact in markets. The macro segment then looks at how this principle allows us to better understand the behaviour of the economy in the aggregate. This leads to the study of unemployment, inflation, government budgets and international trade balances. These courses then provide the basis for all of the more senior – and more specialized – courses offered by the Department.

The Major in Economics Module, by itself, can be either a 3 or 4 year Degree. The Economics Major can be combined with a Major in another subject in order to create an Honors Double Major Degree. For the purposes of progression and graduation, ALL Honors Economics courses taken shall be counted as principal courses, and the requirements for both majors must be met in order to graduate with an Honors Double Major.

Western provides and fosters an interdisciplinary platform for teaching and research on environment and sustainability. Interdisciplinarity is the key to environmental science and the modules brings together the strengths of the Faculties of Science, Engineering, Social Science, Arts and Humanities, Information and Media Studies, the Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, the Richard Ivey School of Business and the Faculty of Law. Our students take courses that bring them a wide variety of outlooks on processing environmental issues ranging from biodiversity loss, access to safe and clean water, energy, renewable resources, to ecosystem health, natural disasters, and sustainable business practices.

The first year for all Bachelor of Music students includes courses in Music Theory, Music History, Music Skills (Sight-singing, Ear-training, and Keyboard Harmony), a half-course in music composition, teaching & learning, or popular music & culture, a half-course music or non-music elective and a half-course elective from outside the Don Wright Faculty of Music. Bachelor of Music students also receive weekly hour-long lessons plus regular masterclasses and ensemble experience.

In the Bachelor of Music (Honours) programs, a specific area of study is normally selected towards the end of the first year, when the student has had the opportunity to assess particular strengths and interests. It is also possible to continue in a general Bachelor of Music program without selecting a specific concentration.

The study of philosophy helps students improve analytical and critical reading, writing and reasoning skills through an examination of the works of historical and contemporary philosophers. The ultimate goal of this study is a better understanding of issues fundamental to ourselves and to our world, including the structure of reality, the nature of knowledge, truth, rationality, value and moral obligation, and the existence of God. While the study of these problems is interesting in its own right, it also enhances the prospects of students wishing to pursue further studies in journalism, public policy, law, business, education or medicine, among other disciplines. Philosophy at Western is also home to the internationally renowned Rotman Institute of Philosophy and the Centre for Digital Philosophy.

Don’t you love to dig into an idea until you really understand where it comes from and what it connects with? That’s what we do in Classics. The ancient Mediterranean world lives on in our modern experience. We see it in sports, medicine, sexuality, law, and politics—everywhere, really. We dive into the language, literature, philosophies, and archaeology of the Greek and Roman world.

Language is the chief means which members of the human species use to communicate with each other. Its scientific and humanistic study is called linguistics. The history of linguistics goes back to ancient times, and during the 19th and 20th centuries it flourished and came to be associated most strongly with the scientific study of individual languages of the world as well as with the search to identify those traits which are common to all languages.

The study of linguistics is indispensable for anyone interested in a particular language or in a discipline with a focus on language in general. Students in many different fields of study find that linguistics makes an interesting and engaging elective or optional course (when combined with the discipline of language study, it is excellent preparation for law school, for example). In terms of careers, this means that anyone interested in language teaching of any sort (such as a Bachelors of Education, or TESL certification), in communicative disorders (including both Audiology and Speech Pathology), in translation or in interpreting should be sure to include some linguistics courses in their undergraduate preparation. The addition of linguistics, the scientific study of language, further enhances your academic program with critical and analytical skills, while contributing to your better understanding of human language (English, French and others), not simply from a grammatical or spoken perspective but also from a scientific approach.

Whether taking a medication to treat a disease, driving a car, or playing on our smartphones, chemistry has an immense impact on all aspects of our daily lives. Chemistry, also known as the central science, is the study of materials at the atomic and molecular level, and in particular, their properties, composition, and reactions. Since all materials are composed of atoms and molecules, a thorough understanding of chemistry is crucial to the understanding of all other physical and biological sciences, ranging from astronomy to medicine, to zoology. Phenomena such as global warming, the health effects of trans fats, and the efficiency of hybrid vehicles, can all be explained by chemical principles. Accordingly, chemists contribute substantially to the discovery and development of new technologies, be they environmental, medical, or transportation, to name a few.

Physics and astronomy involve the study of matter, forces, and energy as they relate to the understanding of our environment from Earth to the distant reaches of the universe. The Department of Physics and Astronomy at Western studies natural phenomena such as star formation, the Earth’s atmosphere, and meteors as well as applications of physics to medicine in the form of imaging, and radiotherapy and technology -specifically, nanofabrication, optoelectronic devices, and biomaterials.