Course Catalog

Undergraduate study in chemistry provides students with the background to pursue numerous career paths and interests. These possibilities include graduate school, employment in a wide variety of industrial research positions, chemical sales and management, professional programs such as medical school and law school, art conservation, science policy, journalism, and forensics. The overall goal of the chemistry curriculum at Saint Vincent is to provide students with a solid foundation in various areas of modern chemistry so that they can pursue a variety of career possibilities. The chemistry program at Saint Vincent is approved by the American Chemical Society.

The Chemistry Department offers students the possibility to earn a B.S. degree in Chemistry, Biochemistry, or Environmental Chemistry. Students receiving the B.S. degree in Chemistry are certified by the American Chemical Society. Minors in Chemistry and Biochemistry are also offered. Specific requirements for each of these programs can be found below.

Students may also obtain certification in Secondary Education by receiving a major in Chemistry and a minor in Secondary Education. Interested students may consult the “Teacher Preparation” section and the requirements for Secondary Education under the Education Department.

No matter which degree program a student chooses, he or she will find the following features common to all of the programs offered by the Department.

• The three majors offered by the Chemistry Department build on a common core of chemistry courses (general, organic, physical, analytical, and biochemical).

• These degree programs differ mainly in the courses taken by students in their junior and senior years. Topics found in these majordependent courses include inorganic, polymer and materials chemistry, physical organic, biochemistry and environmental chemistry.

• There exists a continuous focus on writing as a tool for thinking and a critical skill for chemists to develop. All of the Chemistry faculty have participated in the Interdisciplinary Writing Program at Saint Vincent.

• The Chemistry faculty believe that proficiency in a particular discipline is best accomplished when set in the broad context of liberal arts. Therefore, the degree programs in the Chemistry Department include courses in the humanities, social sciences and other natural sciences.

• The curriculum strongly emphasizes a laboratory experience that reflects chemistry as it is currently practiced. Several of the upper-level laboratory courses are taught as “integrated labs,” providing faculty and students the flexibility to explore the interdisciplinary nature of chemistry.

• The courses in the Chemistry Department build toward the senior research project, which serves as a “capstone experience” for students. In preparation for their senior research project, students prepare a proposal for original research during the spring semester of their junior year. The research project is then conducted by the students in their senior year under the guidance of one of the Chemistry faculty members. The research project provides the student with a first-hand experience of the nature of scientific investigation. Upon completion of their project, the students write a thesis and present their results to an outside audience, typically at a National Meeting of the American Chemical Society.

Environmental Science

Students who are interested in a multidisciplinary environmental major should consider the environmental science major. All environmental courses are listed under the Environmental Science program.

Teacher Preparation
Requirements for Certification in Chemistry (7-12):
See the Education Department for teacher certification requirements in Secondary Education. Interested students must contact the Chairperson of the Education Department and confer with their academic advisor. All programs begin in the sophomore year by registering for ED 100: Foundations of Education.

Chemistry (B.S.)

Requirements for a Bachelor of Science Degree in Chemistry
(See Core Curriculum requirements.)

Chemistry Major Requirements (66 credits):

*General Chemistry I & II with Laboratory fulfill the Natural Science core requirement. Calculus I fulfills the Mathematics core requirement.

Electives 10 credits

Requirements for a Minor in Chemistry (26 or 27 credits):

Typical Freshman Schedules
Chemistry (B.S.)

All students will take one three (3) credit course designated as a Freshman Seminar which will satisfy a Core Curriculum requirement.