Program Overview

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Overview

The Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Graduate Program provides advanced, research-based education that will prepare students for a career in academic, industrial, or professional positions in British Columbia and beyond. The Program offers MSc and PhD degrees, with the option to transfer from the MSc into the PhD track during the second year. The bulk of the program is research-intensive and assessed by examination of a dissertation, although students starting in the MSc program are required to take six formal course credits, which are usually completed within the first two academic terms. Course topics include protein structure and function, gene regulation, epigenetics, membrane structure and function, cellular regulation, and bioinformatics. Students also present a departmental research seminar in each year of their program, contribute to peer-reviewed publications, and present their work at local, national, or international meetings.

What makes the program unique?

The Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology is home to more than thirty, highly funded, well-equipped, research groups, that seek to understand the molecular basis of multiples diseases, including diabetes, cardiovascular disease, autism, Alzheimer’s disease, retinal degenerative diseases, bacterial and viral infections, including COVID-19. The Department has a rich history and on-going record of exceptional academic and research excellence. The Department was home to Nobel Laureate, Michael Smith, and current members hold research chairs, Killam awards and are members of the Royal Society of Canada. While the majority of our research laboratories are located in the Life Sciences Institute and Michael Smith Laboratories on the Point Grey Campus, member labs are also found in the BC Cancer Research Centre, the Centre for Brain Health, the Centre for Blood Research, and the Child and Family Health Research Institute. Thus, our program offers trainees a broad range of research topics, world-class mentorship, and diverse training environments.

Quick Facts

• Faculty: Faculty of Medicine
• Academic Unit: Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
• Specialization: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
• Mode of delivery: In person at UBC Vancouver
• Program Components: Coursework + Thesis required
• Tuition (First Year):
  • Domestic: 5,626.02
  • International: 9,883.98
• Median Funding: 50% of students receive $36,758 or more funding per year in the first 2 years, before tuition and fees

Admission Information & Requirements

Check Eligibility

Minimum Academic Requirements

The Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies establishes the minimum admission requirements common to all applicants, usually a minimum overall average in the B+ range (76% at UBC). The graduate program that you are applying to may have additional requirements. Please review the specific requirements for applicants with credentials from institutions in:

• Canada or the United States
• International countries other than the United States Each program may set higher academic minimum requirements. Please review the program website carefully to understand the program requirements. Meeting the minimum requirements does not guarantee admission as it is a competitive process.

English Language Test

Applicants from a university outside Canada in which English is not the primary language of instruction must provide results of an English language proficiency examination as part of their application. Tests must have been taken within the last 24 months at the time of submission of your application.

• TOEFL: Test of English as a Foreign Language - internet-based
  • Overall score requirement: 106
  • Reading: 27
  • Writing: 29
  • Speaking: 24
  • Listening: 27
• IELTS: International English Language Testing System
  • Overall score requirement: 7.5
  • Reading: 7.0
  • Writing: 7.0
  • Speaking: 7.0
  • Listening: 7.0

Other Test Scores

Some programs require additional test scores such as the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) or the Graduate Management Test (GMAT). The requirements for this program are:

• The GRE is required by some applicants. Please check the program website.

Prior degree, course and other requirements

• All applicants have to submit transcripts from all past post-secondary study.
• Document submission requirements depend on whether your institution of study is within Canada or outside of Canada.

Meet Deadlines

• Program Name: Master of Science in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (MSc)
• Intake: September 2026
• Canadian Applicant Deadline: 15 January 2026
• International Applicant Deadline: 15 January 2026

Prepare Application

Transcripts

All applicants have to submit transcripts from all past post-secondary study. Document submission requirements depend on whether your institution of study is within Canada or outside of Canada.

Letters of reference

Applicants have to submit 2 references to apply to this graduate program. Please review our general information on reference letters, including the types of references (e.g. academic, professional) that you may be asked for and how the references will be collected.

Statement of Interest

Many programs require a statement of interest, sometimes called a "statement of intent", "description of research interests" or something similar.

Supervision

Students in research-based programs usually require a faculty member to function as their thesis supervisor. Please follow the instructions provided by each program whether applicants should contact faculty members.

• Applicants should browse faculty profiles and indicate in their application who they are interested in working with. No commitment from a supervisor prior to applying is necessary, but contacting faculty members is encouraged.

Tuition & Financial Support

Tuition

• Fees:
  • Canadian Citizen / Permanent Resident / Refugee / Diplomat:
    • Application Fee: $118.50
    • Tuition per year: $5,626.02
  • International:
    • Application Fee: $168.25
    • Tuition per year: $9,883.98
• Other Fees and Costs:
  • Student Fees (yearly): $1,144.10 (approx.)
  • Costs of living: Estimate your costs of living with our interactive tool in order to start developing a financial plan for your graduate studies.

Financial Support

Applicants to UBC have access to a variety of funding options, including merit-based (i.e. based on your academic performance) and need-based (i.e. based on your financial situation) opportunities.

Program Funding Packages

Successful applicants to this program will be provided with a base funding package of at least $34,000/year for each of the first two years of an MSc or four years of a PhD program. Students awarded major (i.e. greater than $15,000 per year), merit-based (for example: NSERC/CIHR CGS M, NSERC PGS D, or UBC Four-Year Fellowships) awards will receive a minimum of $37,000/year financial support.

Funding Statistics

Based on the criteria outlined below, 20 students within this program were included in this study because they received funding through UBC in the form of teaching, research, academic assistantships or internal or external awards with a mean of $36,304 and a median of $36,758.

Career Options

During the past year we undertook a detailed survey of all graduates who completed their graduate programs in the period from. Of the total of 138 graduates, we have tracked the career progress of more than 120 so far. Of this total, 35 have completed further training in graduate and postdoctoral positions, 20 have entered a professional program (mostly in Law or Medicine), 11 have progressed to a tenure-stream faculty position and 32 have full-time research positions in academia (8), industry (21) or government departments (3). Others have established careers in technical writing or management and the most recent cohort (13) are still at a very early stage of career development. Although we need to continue to track and refine our understanding of career outcomes, it is very clear that our programs enable our graduates to achieve career success in a number of academic, professional and commercial areas.

Enrolment, Duration & Other Stats

ENROLMENT DATA

• 2023:
  • Applications: 67
  • Offers: 18
  • New Enrolment: 16
  • Total Enrolment: 44
• 2022:
  • Applications: 87
  • Offers: 23
  • New Enrolment: 18
  • Total Enrolment: 41
• 2021:
  • Applications: 75
  • Offers: 15
  • New Enrolment: 11
  • Total Enrolment: 40
• 2020:
  • Applications: 60
  • Offers: 22
  • New Enrolment: 20
  • Total Enrolment: 39
• 2019:
  • Applications: 55
  • Offers: 12
  • New Enrolment: 12
  • Total Enrolment: 34

Completion Rates & Times

This program has a graduation rate of 86% based on 22 students admitted between 2015 - 2018. Based on 24 graduations between 2020 - 2023 the minimum time to completion is 2.05 years and the maximum time is 5.47 years with an average of 2.82 years of study.

Research Supervisors

Supervision

Students in research-based programs usually require a faculty member to function as their thesis supervisor. Please follow the instructions provided by each program whether applicants should contact faculty members.

• Applicants should browse faculty profiles and indicate in their application who they are interested in working with. No commitment from a supervisor prior to applying is necessary, but contacting faculty members is encouraged.

Sample Thesis Submissions

• Post-translational modifications regulate SNAT2/SLC38A2 in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma
• Examining the effects of short-chain fatty acids on microglial innate immune response
• The impact of the histone H2A and H2B loci on Ty1 retrotransposon targeting in Saccharomyces cerevisiae
• Strategies to limit L-lysine bioavailability for the treatment of neurometabolic disorders
• Investigation of the 2A peptide StopGo mechanism through the development of a high-throughput screen
• Proteomic impacts of agrochemical and pathogen exposure in highbush blueberry pollinating honey bees (Apis mellifera)
• From prediction to evaluation : immunogenicity of globally presentable peptides
• Investigating ligand interactions and dynamics on the membrane proteome through membrane mimetic thermal proteome profiling (MM-TPP)
• Identifying the key elements involved in cytosolic protein quality control
• Structural rationale for the contribution of the F486P mutation within the XBB.1.5 SARS-CoV-2 spike glycoprotein
• The role of filamin A in modulating platelet shape change
• In vitro production of multimeric and multispecific nanobodies with the peptidisc technology
• Probing the structural and kinetic interactions of ß-lactams with the essential penicillin-binding protein PBP1 of Staphylococcus aureus
• Crystal structure and bioinformatic analysis of SpoVD, a cortex-specific penicillin-binding protein from Clostridioides difficile

Related Programs

Same specialization

• Doctor of Philosophy in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (PhD)

At the UBC Okanagan Campus

• Master of Science in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (MSc)

Further Information

Specialization

Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Possible areas of research in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology include:

• control of gene expression in eukaryotes and bacteria
• structure and function of genes
• systems biology
• blood proteins
• the mechanism of the action of insulin
• membrane and membrane protein structure and function
• protein trafficking
• cell-surface receptors, signal transduction, and cell-growth control
• neural and retinal photoreceptor membranes
• lipid-based targeted delivery systems
• macromolecular crystallography and X-ray diffraction techniques for the characterization of enzymes and protein complexes
• metalloprotein structure and function
• mechanisms of enzyme activity
• mechanism of hemoprotein electron transfer
• structural analysis of proteins by nuclear magnetic resonance
• mechanisms of multi-drug resistance
• and cancer.

UBC Calendar

graduate-and-postdoctoral-studies/degree-programs/biochemistry-and-molecular-biology

Program Website

graduate-and-postdoctoral-studies/degree-programs/biochemistry-and-molecular-biology

Faculty

Faculty of Medicine

Academic Unit

Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology

Program Identifier

VGMMSC-CP

Classification

Natural sciences » Biological sciences » Biochemistry
Natural sciences » Biological sciences » Plant biology » Plant cell and molecular biology
Natural sciences » Biological sciences » Zoology » Animal cell and molecular biology

Student Testimonials

• Emily Yeh: Master of Science in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (MSc) - Investigating SETD2 germline mutations in contrasting neurodevelopmental syndromes
• Cal Rosete: Master of Science in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (MSc) - How Early Life Adversity Impacts Depression Symptoms Through Blood Brain Barrier Permeability to Immune Cells
• Olivier Hinse: Master of Science in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (MSc) - Hybrid antigenic peptides as a potential trigger of autoimmunity in rheumatoid arthritis