Chemistry Departments Try to Attract More Students by Retooling the Major
Universities begin to overhaul traditional curricula in science field that some worry is churning out too few graduates for nation’s needs
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Forget economics. Chemistry might be the real dismal science.
Undergraduate programs have been characterized for decades by rigid, yearlong sequences of organic, physical and biochemistry classes that emphasized rote memorization and taught about reactions in isolation. They left little room to pursue side passions—and attracted worrisomely few students, policy makers say.
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Chemistry is one of the three main arms of science, along with biology and physics. It can be defined as the study of matter – so that means what things are composed of and their structure, properties, and how that changes when placed in different situations.
The fact it is the study of matter at its most primordial level, means that there is much overlap between chemistry and other scientific disciplines. For example, the study of living organisms requires the study of matter's relationship with forces, so in some cases one cannot study chemistry, without relation to the other sciences.
Typical modules studied on a chemistry degree include organic chemistry, physical chemistry, analytical methods and maths in chemistry. In an undergraduate degree, students often choose electives in their first year, which will inform their dissertation topic and possibly lead to further study. Specialisations might be biochemistry, medicinal chemistry, astrochemistry and nuclear chemistry.
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