Explore how life works at the most basic level, from a biochemical, cellular and molecular perspective. You’ll gain a broad and rigorous foundation in the Life Sciences. A flexible upper division means that you can focus on your own areas of interest for your future career, or build your program to meet your needs for medical, dental, or veterinary school.
Molecular Biology and Biochemistry,Bachelor
Molecular Biology and Biochemistry,Bachelor
About
Requirements
Entry Requirements
SFU General requirements
You will need to meet SFU’s general admission requirements as these apply to all programs. Faculty and program specific admission requirements are listed separately.
- English language requirement
- Quantitative and analytical skills requirement
- Graduate high school
- Have a minimum of five approved academic Grade 12 courses, including English Studies 12 or equivalent
- Have a minimum grade of 70% or higher in Language Arts 11, English 12, or equivalent
Admission is based on an evaluation of all approved academic Grade 11 and 12 courses, including any specific course requirements set by the faculty or program to which you are applying.
A comprehensive list of approved academic Grade 11 and 12 courses considered in the admission evaluation is available on the Approved Academic courses page.
Equivalent AP or IB courses may be used in place of required courses listed below.
Admissions
Understanding Early and Standard Admission Evaluation
Your application will be automatically considered for both Early Admission and Standard Admission, if you meet the corresponding conditions below. If you are currently completing high school, your application will be reviewed multiple times as new grade information is received through the BC Ministry of Education’s Student Transcript Service (STS). At each review, your admission evaluation will be based on all approved academic Grade 11 and 12 courses reported through STS at that time.
To be eligible for admission, you must be enrolled in a minimum of five approved academic Grade 12 courses. While you may not be registered in all five at the time of application, it is your responsibility to ensure your final course selection meets faculty and program requirements.
You will need to review the admission criteria for your intended program to confirm that you meet both general and faculty-specific requirements.
Early Admission
Early admission is based on strong academic performance in all approved Grade 11 courses, as well as any Grade 12 courses available at the time of evaluation. Offers of admissions at this stage are limited and typically extended to applicants with high academic standing. Early admission decisions are usually released between November and January.
At each review, your application will be evaluated using all approved Grade 11 and 12 courses reported through STS at that time.
To be considered for early admission, applicants must complete their application as early as possible, prior to the end of January.
Early Admission Course Requirements
Applicants must meet the requirement of completing five approved Grade 12 courses. It is each student’s responsibility to review the admission requirements for their chosen faculty or program, as some may have specific Grade 11 and Grade 12 course requirements.
Be sure to enroll in courses that fulfill both general admission criteria and any program-specific requirements. Early admission decisions will use only your reported Grade 11 and Grade 12 marks. They will not include current Grade 12 courses. All offers will be conditional upon SFU receiving your final Grade 11 and Grade 12 marks via STS in July and August.
Standard Admission
Standard admission is based on all approved academic Grade 11 and Grade 12 (or equivalent) courses. Applicants must be enrolled in a minimum of five approved academic Grade 12 courses. Some faculties and programs have specific course requirements, and it is important to ensure your course selection meets both general and program-specific requirements. Standard admission decisions are generally released between February and April.
Confirming Your Admission
To learn more about how to fulfill any admission conditions and accept your offer, refer to the conditional offers page on the SFU website.
Required Courses
Grade 11
- Two of:
- Chemistry 11
- Life Sciences 11
- Physics 11
Grade 12 (at least 5 approved academic courses)
Equivalent AP or IB courses may be used in place of the following courses.
- One of:
- English Studies 12
- English First Peoples 12
- At least two of:
- Anatomy and Physiology 12
- Calculus 12
- Chemistry 12
- Physics 12
- All:
- Pre-Calculus 12
- Additional course(s): See SFU's approved academic course list
All BC and Yukon Approved Academic High School Courses
SFU maintains a list of Senate-approved academic Grade 11 and Grade 12 courses, which forms the basis for admission evaluations. This list outlines the courses considered in both early and regular admission assessments across all faculties.
The most up-to-date and complete version is available on SFU’s website: Approved Academic High School Courses.
English Program Requirements
English language requirement
English is the language of instruction at SFU. All applicants, regardless of country of origin or citizenship status, will be required to have demonstrated competence in the English language prior to admission. Competence is required in all four of the following skills: listening, reading, speaking, and writing.IELTS
Requirement type:
International English Language Testing System (IELTS - Academic)
IELTS One Skill Retake results are not accepted.
Please note that SFU typically receives IELTS results in 2-3 weeks following your test date. Please ensure you leave adequate time for SFU to receive your results prior to your deadline.
Minimum score:
Overall 6.5 with no part less than 6.0
How to submit results:
For information on sending results from the British Council visit takeielts.britishcouncil.org
TOEFL
Requirement type:
Test of English as a Foreign Language internet based test (TOEFL iBT)
In order to satisfy the requirement, scores must be achieved in a single test. TOEFL MyBest (super-scored) or TOEFL Essentials results will not be used. TOEFL iBT Home is accepted.
Minimum score:
Overall score 88 with no part less than 20
How to submit results:
Results must be sent from ETS-TOEFL. For more information visit www.ets.org/toefl
PTE
Requirement type:
Pearson Test of English (PTE)
Minimum score:
Overall score of 65, and a minimum score of 60 in the Communicative Skills, including: Listening, Reading, Speaking, Writing
How to submit results:
Results must be sent from MyPTE account. For more information visit www.pearsonpte.com/help-center/scoring
Duolingo
Requirement type:
Duolingo English Test (DET)
Only accepted from students in countries where no other English proficiency test is available.
Minimum score:
Overall score of 125
How to submit results:
Results must be submitted through your Duolingo account. Send results to Simon Fraser University, Undergrad englishtest.duolingo.com/applicants
Career
What are my career possibilities?
- Agronomist
- Animal Scientist
- Bacteriologist
- Biochemist
- Bioinformatician
- Biomedical Researcher
- Consultant
- Data Analyst
- Fish and Wildlife Technician
- Food Technologist
- Forensic Biotechnologist
- Forensic Specialist
- Genetics Counsellor
- High School Teacher
- Instructor (college, university)
- Laboratory Manager
- Molecular Biologist
- Pharmacist/Pharmacy Assistant
- Public Health Microbiologist
- Quality Assurance Technician
- Quality Control Microbiology Analyst
- Research Assistant
- Laboratory Technician (research, clinical, pharmacy, government)
- Sales Representative
- Science Writer/Journalist
- Technical Analyst
- Technical Writer
- Toxicologist
- Virologist
Note: This list is not exhaustive. Some careers listed may require further education, training, designations and/or experience.
Students graduating with an MBB degree may pursue further studies in Graduate School or Professional Schools (eg. Medicine, Dentistry, Pharmacy, Veterinary, Law)
Potential work environments
- Biotechnology and energy firms
- College, university, private School
- Crime labs or other forensic science lab
- Diagnostic & quality testing Labs
- Fish and wildlife industries
- Government agencies (municipal, provincial, federal)
- Hospitals and other health care agencies
- Industrial/chemical manufacturing companies
- Inspection & monitoring agencies/boards
- Microbiology consulting firms
- Mining companies
- Non-profit organizations
- Pharmaceutical companies
- Public & private research fields (agricultural, chemical, environmental)
- Publishing agencies (newspaper, magazine, book, online)
- Science-specific recruitment agencies
- Technical supply companies
- Water testing/treatment organizations
Not sure where to start? Career Services can help you explore your options and create possibilities.
Fee Information
Tuition Fee
CAD 1,215Application Fee
CADMolecular Biology and Biochemistry,Bachelor
Simon Fraser University
Canada,
Burnaby
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