Undergraduate Study in Chemistry

Introduction

An education in chemistry provides a basic foundation for a wide range of careers. By building on a firm grounding in a physical science, a student becomes especially well-qualified for direct employment or for graduate and professional study in many areas of both basic and applied sciences. The Department of Chemistry at Rutgers-Camden has a small yet very research-active faculty, and all undergraduates are encouraged to participate in some research. Please see the the graduate program page for more details on research interest.

Grant funding of undergraduate and graduate research in the Department totaled more than a half million dollars for 1995, one million for 1996, and and 2.5 million in 1997. The research laboratories where undergraduates participate have undergone over a million dollars worth of renovations during the summer of 1996. The first and second year teaching labs were completely renovated in 1997. The upper level and research labs were extensively renovated in 2001, including new accommodations for GC-MS, a new Biochemistry research lab, and a multifacited lab for common instrumentation in the Physical Chemistry, Analytical Chemistry, and Biochemistry instructional lab courses. Equipment currently used in the department includes a 300MHz NMR spectrometer, a 2-D FTIR spectrometer, UV-VIS spectrophotometers, single-crystal and powder X-ray diffractometers, and Silicon Graphics, SUN and Compaq-Alpha workstations.

The Rutgers-Camden Chemistry Department is accredited by the Committee on Professional Training of the American Chemical Society. This is the major professional organization of chemists in the United States with more than 100,000 members. However, it is not a typical department in a state university. External reviewers have said that one must compare Rutgers-Camden Chemistry to small, exclusive liberal arts colleges to measure the level of student-faculty involvement in research. Yet, the research projects themselves are at a very high university level.

The Chemistry Major

The Department of Chemistry offers a broad and comprehensive program of study, which includes a traditional curriculum and three other options for a major in chemistry. The various options permit students to select an area of concentration that reflects their particular interests and career goals. The Department also offers an honors program for eligible students.

The four choices leading to the chemistry major are the 1) Traditional Program, 2) the American Chemical Society Certificate Program, 3) the Biochemistry Program, and 4) the Chemistry-Business Option Program.

For details on the programs and the minor that the Chemistry Department offers, please consult the College catalog. || Click here. ||