Chemistry Major (B.S.)

Chemistry Major (B.S.) Description

The B.S. Chemistry degree is certified by the American Chemical Society and provides a deep, rigorous experience that prepares students for graduate work or a career in chemical industry and related fields. The curriculum offers thorough training in the major fields of chemistry, covering analytical, inorganic, organic, and physical chemistry, as well as biochemistry. Students gain laboratory experience in molecular synthesis and characterization, analytical and instrumental methods, physical chemical measurements and data analysis, and spectroscopy. At the same time, the program requires students to participate in scientific inquiry, via both advanced laboratory experiences and independent research.

This is the suggested degree plan for B.S. Chemistry majors. A student can alter this plan in consultation with an academic adviser.

Required Courses

• Reason with Chemistry’s anchoring concepts: that matter consists of atoms that have internal structures that dictate their chemical and physical behavior; that atoms interact via electrostatic forces to form chemical bonds that chemical compounds have geometric structures that influence their chemical and physical behaviors; that intermolecular forces—electrostatic forces between molecules—dictate the physical behavior of matter; that matter changes, forming products that have new chemical and physical properties that energy is the key currency of chemical reactions in molecular scale systems as well as macroscopic systems; that chemical changes have a time scale over which they occur; that all chemical changes are, in principle, reversible, and chemical processes often reach a state of dynamic equilibrium; that Chemistry is generally advanced via experimental observations; and that Chemistry constructs meaning interchangeably at the particulate and macroscopic levels.
• Use Chemistry’s cross-cutting concepts to interrogate and explain phenomena: chemical identity (how do we identify chemical substances?); structure-property relationships (how do we predict the properties of materials?); chemical causality (why do chemical processes occur?); chemical mechanism (how do chemical processes occur?); chemical control (how can we control chemical processes?); benefits-costs-risks (how do we evaluate the impacts of chemically transforming matter?).
• Demonstrate the following general scientific practices when displaying knowledge of chemical ideas and concepts: asking questions; developing and using models; constructing explanations; planning and carrying out investigations; engaging in argument from evidence; analyzing and interpreting data; using mathematics and computational thinking; obtaining, evaluating, and communicating information OR demonstrate the following Chemistry core practices when displaying knowledge of chemical ideas and concepts (a) analysis: development and application of strategies for detecting, identifying, separating, and quantifying chemical substances (b)synthesis: the design of new substances and synthetic routes (c)transformation: controlling chemical processes for non-synthetic purposes.