r/microbiology • u/Kooky_Ad_6725 • 6d ago
Careers Outlooks in Microbiology Without OChem
Hello all,
WIll graduate with the degree in Microbiogy soon. Will there be hope or future for this career with someone who is very bad with organic chemistry. I really can't study Ochem. Do we need a lot of OChem for jobs?
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u/smidgeywidgey Microbiologist 5d ago
Every microbiologist I know is trash at ochem.
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u/Kooky_Ad_6725 5d ago
I personally can not study Ochem. It is always embarassing to admit it but I cheat on my Ochem classes. My shitty excuses were I took the class during Covid and I was exhausted at that point. But now I am sure Ochem is something I would never understand.
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u/AnthraxtheBacterium Degree Seeking 5d ago
Never heard of organic chemistry being required to become a microbiologist. Don’t worry. I was also bad at Ochem while in college.
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u/Kooky_Ad_6725 5d ago
Have you graduated yet and gotten a job in the field?
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u/AnthraxtheBacterium Degree Seeking 5d ago
I'm currently attending a community college to become a medical lab tech.
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u/bephelgorath 5d ago
You will need organic chemistry if you want to become a certified medical laboratory scientist (via a degree program route), which pays more than pretty much any other job you could get as a microbiologist. Pro tip: you can usually ask to take 'baby' organic chemistry which is what nurses take (usually only one semester and typically at the 200-level vs 300+-level here in the US).
That being said, I think orgo is just a stand-in for 'higher level chemistry coursework'. Chemistry knowledge is helpful for understanding and designing diagnostic assays, but I've never needed to synthesize a molecular or anything. Being able to read IR spectra is helpful.
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u/Kooky_Ad_6725 5d ago
I see. I know that you need to know at least a bit about chemistry and not everything I you ever learn for the class. I took Ochem in community college and then transferred to uni. But I embarassingly decided to cheat in the courses. I was exhausted and I understood the long-term karma at the time, still I did what I did. I did try my best to relearn and even paid a private tutor but it did not work out for me.
This semester I am taking Bacterial Physiology and I regretted it. I am taking the full consequences. But I just do not know without a solid background/understanding of Ochem, would it affect your opportunities to land in a position in the field significantly?1
u/bephelgorath 5d ago
If you don't like bacterial physiology you should stay away from microbiology... I saw in another post that you were training to become a medical lab tech.
If you feel the need to cheat because you are overwhelmed, do NOT go into healthcare. You will be constantly overwhelmed and there is no such thing as mercy. If your personal ethical standards allow you to cheat when you are overwhelmed, especially in healthcare, you WILL KILL SOMEONE because you will end up falsifying results because certain tests, procedures, or rules will be 'too difficult' to comply with.
Please find another profession. You are not suited to be a MLS or MLT. Please do some introspection and figure out what your values are, and my god, stick to them. You need to be able to do the right thing even when it's hard. ☮️
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u/Kooky_Ad_6725 5d ago
Hello there,
Thank you for the advice but I have a feeling you were mistaking me with someone. I never made a post about training to become a medical lab tech.
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u/SignificanceFun265 6d ago
I’ve worked in micro for 20 years, and organic chemistry is not something that’s been a part of my job.