St. Bonaventure University Biochemistry students who take the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (ASBMB) certification exam continue to score well above the national average of the 1,000 college students annually taking the exam.

Of the four SBU biochemistry majors who took the exam last spring, two achieved Mastery level and two achieved Proficiency.

“Since the Biochemistry Program was first accredited by the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology in 2018, our students have been taking this exam in the spring of their junior or senior year. Overall, more than 80% of our students have achieved either Mastery (used to be called Certification with Distinction) or Proficiency (used to be called Certification),” said Dr. Xiaoning Zhang, Biology professor and director of the Biochemistry program at St. Bonaventure.

“For the same time period (2018-2024), only 43% of all the students in the U.S. who took the exam achieved either Mastery or Proficiency,” she added.

St. Bonaventure senior Tessa Fabiniak was initially wary of taking the exam as a junior, but Zhang had reassured her that she would be prepared.                                    

“I left the exam feeling as if it was quite easy, which I think is a clear testament of the Biochemistry program here at SBU,” Fabiniak said.

She said St. Bonaventure’s focus on research definitely prepared her for the critical thinking and analysis skills that she used on this exam and many others, including the MCAT.

“I have fallen in love with research thanks to the requirements of the program, so much so that I intend to continue research in the natural sciences throughout my career in medicine. These skills not only set me up for success on the ASBMB exam, but I anticipate that they will continue to help me succeed throughout medical school and beyond,” she said.

Fabiniak, who is from Williamsville, New York, plans to pursue a medical degree at George Washington School of Medicine and Health Sciences after graduation.

The other three SBU students who took the exam this year – Madelyn Dziezgowski, Serena Fan and Shannon Heinig – graduated in May.

The certification exam is designed to test students’ knowledge and understanding of the core competencies in biochemistry and molecular biology developed by the ASBMB and its members. Questions have been structured to assess these concept areas at different levels of cognitive skills and abilities.

To achieve a score of Proficiency or Mastery, a student must demonstrate both a breadth and a depth of knowledge – together with the ability to clearly express this knowledge in response to the exam questions. The ASBMB scores the exam using five categories: Emerging Proficiency, Developing Proficiency, Approaching Proficiency, Proficiency, and Mastery.

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About the University: The nation’s first Franciscan university, St. Bonaventure University is a community committed to transforming the lives of our students inside and outside the classroom, inspiring in them a lifelong commitment to service and citizenship. Out of 167 regional universities in the North, St. Bonaventure was ranked #6 for value and #14 for innovation by U.S. News and World Report (2024).

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