Even if this is the first time you've heard of biophysics, you could probably have a good guess at what it's all about. You could oversimplify it and say that it's just an interdisciplinary field combining biology and physics, but there's much more to it.
Let's find out what biophysics is, how it differs from physics, where and how you can study it, and what jobs you can get!
Defining Biophysics
While saying that biophysics is a combination of biology and physics is a start, it doesn't immediately give you an idea of what biophysics is or what somebody in that field would study.
Physics, after all, is the study of almost everything since it's the study of matter and how it behaves, and almost everything we know of is made up of it. As biology is the study of living things and organic systems, it still mightn't be clear what a combination of the two would study.
With biophysics, the focus is on interactions within cell systems and principally DNA, RNA, and proteins. It also looks at how biological machines work through a physics lens.
The field also covers the crossroads where physics meets biology in terms of experimental techniques and approaches. Many different imaging techniques are possible thanks to physics, allowing biophysicists to understand better the systems mentioned earlier.
Biophysics also extends into medicine. This is sometimes called medical physics, but applying physics to healthcare, which is arguably a branch of biology, too, is very common, especially when it comes to imaging, radiology, and nanomedicine. Generally, however, biophysics looks to understand how it all works whereas medical physics looks for practical solutions to apply to the human body.
Even though biophysics could be considered a specialist branch of physics or biology, there are also options for specializing in biophysics. These subfields include molecular biology, computer science, neuroscience, pharmacology, and even quantum biology!
How Does Biophysics Differ from Physics?
At its core, biophysics is simply applying physics to biological systems to understand them and by that definition, biophysics is physics. That said, while there would be a lot of common ground between what a physicist knows and what a biophysicist knows, it's in the differences between biophysics and physics that things become interesting.
For one, every field benefits from interdisciplinary study and collaboration. Biology has been able to advance and innovate thanks to physics and by using the techniques and principles commonly found in physics, our understanding of biological systems has improved.
It's unlikely that the average physicist would often deal with biological systems unless they were working in the field of medical physics and even then, they'd be focused more on the pragmatics of using physics for something like imaging or nanomedicine.
While it can be useful to consider biophysics a specialist branch of physics and to imagine that biophysicists take their learnings from a background in physics to apply them to biological systems, the transfer of knowledge can go both ways.
Biophysics has inspired physics concepts like the theory of complex systems in which systems can have emergent properties that aren't necessarily part of the individual components and can only exist through the interactions of the individual components within the larger and more complex system.
Where are the Best Places to Study Biophysics?
If you're interested in going to school to study biophysics, you'll not be spoilt for choice for colleges offering a biophysics major. However, that doesn't mean that there aren't any excellent schools for those looking for careers in biophysics.
Some schools will only offer a handful of biophysics classes as part of another major, but let's see some of the best schools that offer biophysics courses and majors from a mix of private and public universities and undergraduate and graduate offerings.
Northeastern University
Northeastern University in Boston, MA, offers two different biophysics degree programs. Like many other schools in this list, the number of biophysics graduates is often in single figures.
Georgetown University
Georgetown University in Washington, DC, also has a reputable biophysics degree program and one worth considering if you're looking for a career in biophysics.
University of California – Berkeley
Berkeley is a public university offering two different programs in biophysics. It had a higher number of biophysics graduates than the other two schools we've seen so far, but we're still talking about single figures.
Brown University
Brown in Providence, RI, offers a couple of biophysics programs, too. It's a private university and has produced a handful of biophysics graduates recently.
University of Pennsylvania
There's only one biophysics degree program currently available at this large private university in Philadelphia, PA, but it's still worth considering.
University of California – Davis
In the small suburb of Davis, CA, you could study one of two biophysics degree programs at this public university.
University of California – San Diego (UCSD)
UCSD is the first university on our list to have produced more than 10 biophysics graduates in a year. It offers two biophysics degree programs like many of the other schools listed here.
Columbia University in the City of New York
At the business end of our list is Columbia University. The biophysics program at this school comes highly recommended. This is another one that still produces very few biophysics graduates, though.
Are you starting to see the trend?
Cornell University
Cornell is one of the best schools in the country for studying biophysics. While located in the small city of Ithaca, NY, you'd be wise to consider studying one of the two available biophysics courses.
Duke University
The last and best-ranked school for biophysics in the USA is Duke University. There are two programs available like many of the other colleges we've seen and this school in Durham, NC, produces the same small number (less than 10) of biophysics graduates.
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Though the number of biophysics graduates is low, there are some really good schools out there. | Photo by Chuck Givens on UnsplashSo while we've seen some really good schools, the commonality is that they all have very few biophysicists coming out of them. This is both a good and a bad thing. It means that those who graduate majoring in biophysics are part of a very specialized group, which bodes well for careers in biophysics.
However, it could also suggest that biophysics is a difficult subject to cover and few students are choosing to major in it and are picking easier options.
Let's see how difficult biophysics is to study!
Is Biophysics Difficult to Study?
Firstly, I think we need to remind ourselves that difficulty is relevant and sometimes, we'll find we have an aptitude for certain things and find them easy. If you've always done well in science, you're far more likely to excel in biophysics than somebody who always preferred liberal arts.
What we can say with some certainty is that biophysics degrees are a lot of work. Biophysics tends to rank quite highly against other majors in terms of hours spent preparing for class each week.
The complexity comes from the fact that biophysics is interdisciplinary and students majoring in it will have to regularly attend classes in both fields.
You should also recognize that this is an undergraduate degree in a scientific field so naturally it's no walk in the park and requires several years of study across several fields and a lot of time preparing for class.
In addition, you may consider enrolling in online physics tutoring to get additional help on specific biophysics topics with which you are having difficulty.
What Biophysics Jobs Are There?
If you're thinking about taking biophysics classes or even private biophysics lessons, you're probably wondering what kind of work you could do with it.
Fortunately, there are plenty of biophysics jobs and a range of careers in biophysics that you could consider once you've graduated college.
Where you go when you graduate is the first big decision you need to make. Your first decision will be whether or not you stay in academia or leave college. In specialist scientific fields like biophysics, it's common for graduates to stay in school to complete a master's degree or even a Ph.D.
If you're staying in school, your next choice is whether you stay at your current school or move elsewhere. As you've seen, there are several good colleges to choose from and they all have interesting options for further study.
If you're done with school and want to head out into the real world, there are plenty of jobs you can do with a major in biophysics. Many graduates start careers in scientific fields, the pharmaceutical industry, government agencies, biomedical engineering, or clinical research.
The number of different jobs you can do with a degree in biophysics is too long to list here but to put it simply, the interdisciplinary nature of biophysics is its biggest strength. The fact that you'll have a good understanding of physics, biology, and maybe even a bit of chemistry, will put you in a good position for many different lines of work.
You'll also be one of the few students who majored in biophysics, which means you'll stand out when you apply to jobs and they see “biophysicist” on your résumé!
Ready to learn more? Find a physics tutor near me easily when you search on Superprof.
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