Wayne County Today

In awarding accreditation, ASBMB praised Wooster’s biochemistry and molecular biology program for the use of active learning pedagogies throughout the curriculum and the multitude of research opportunities for all students. The program was also commended for the high research activity of the faculty.

Mark Snider, the Robert E. Wilson Professor of chemistry and program co-chair of biochemistry and molecular biology, prepared the application and had gathered a significant amount of information about faculty, alumni, curriculum, enrollment, student research activities, faculty research activities, student participation in meetings, laboratory equipment and instruments, facilities, funding, and staffing. “A particularly unique emphasis in the biochemistry and molecular biology program at Wooster is our research-based curriculum, best highlighted by our 300-level research-based course, where our students apply current techniques in biochemistry and molecular genetics as part of a full-fledged inter-disciplinary research project,” he said.  “The opportunity we give our majors to design their own senior thesis project by writing a research proposal through the Introduction to Independent Study (BCMB 401) course is also an important distinction of our program.”

In addition to senior Independent Study, students also have opportunities to do summer research on campus or during external internships and off-campus research experiences at biotechnology companies, universities, and health professional schools.

 “Accreditation by the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology is an outstanding recognition of the high caliber of our program,” Snider said. “Students can be assured that at Wooster we are teaching the fundamental concepts and critical reasoning skills that are expected in the scientific workplace and professional schools. They are also getting excellent experience in communication, teamwork, safety, and ethics,” he said.

Graduates of the program also will have the opportunity to gain certification of their degree through the ASBMB certification exam, which is only available to students in ASBMB-accredited programs.

Wooster’s biochemistry and molecular biology program is one of approximately 100 programs nationwide that has received ASBMB accreditation since 2013. The importance of accreditation is that it creates a set of quality standards for all institutions of higher learning, maintains private sector confidence, and makes transferring credits easier.

Original source can be found here.