Undergraduate Courses
Courses for First-Year Students
Here is a listing of the chemistry courses for first-year students, and the semesters in which the courses are offered.
CHEMISTRY 21L (NS) (Fall), 22L (NS) (Spring). PRINCIPLES OF CHEMISTRY. An introductory course in which students attend three lectures, and one four hour discussion/laboratory per week. Lecture classes, involving about 200-300 students, emphasize selected points from the weekly reading assignments. Discussion/ Laboratory classes, involving about 15-16 students, are used to discuss homework assignments; guided inquiry laboratory exercises are used to give students "hands on" experience in chemistry. Laboratory work includes both qualitative and quantitative analysis. Recommended prerequisites: a Math SAT score of 610 or greater, or permission of the Director of Undergraduate Studies. Chemistry 21L (or its equivalent) is a prerequisite to Chemistry 22L.
CHEMISTRY 23L (NS) (Fall). ACCELERATED GENERAL CHEMISTRY. Students attend two lectures, one recitation, and one four hour laboratory per week. Lecture classes involving 100-150 students are used to emphasize selected points from the weekly reading assignments. Recitation classes involving about 25 students are used to discuss homework assignments. Lab classes involving about 20 students are used to give students "hands on" experience in chemistry. Covers in one semester the major topics of Chemistry 21L and 22L and hence covers two years of high school chemistry in one semester. The course is intended as a rapid, structured review of general chemistry for students who have had AP chemistry in high school and have earned a score of 3, 4, or 5 on the Chemistry AP examination. Laboratory work includes both qualitative and quantitative analysis using a guided inquiry approach. Students may receive credit for only one of the following: Chemistry 22L or Chemistry 23L. Prerequisites: math SAT score of 610 or greater; a score of 3, 4, or 5 on the Chemistry AP examination; or the consent of the Director of Undergraduate Studies. First year students who experience difficulty in Chemistry 23L may request placement in Chemistry 21L anytime during the first month of the course, but incur the loss of credit for Chem 19.
CHEMISTRY 26S (NS, EI ,R) (SPRING). INTRODUCTION TO RESEARCH IN CHEMISTRY. Active participation in a chemistry (or chemistry related) research project, and accompanied seminar classes covering methods of research, scientific ethics, and communication of results. Prerequisites: Chemistry 23L or Chemistry 151L, and the consent of the Director of Undergraduate Studies.
CHEMISTRY 83 (NS, STS) (FALL or SPRING). CHEMISTRY, TECHNOLOGY, AND SOCIETY. Designed primarily for non-scientists, this course involves two lectures each week and no laboratory. Critical thinking skills are emphasized rather than math skills. Starting at the "Big Bang", the first part of the course utilizes an evolutionary approach to provide a broad survey of science with emphasis on chemistry and biochemistry. The remainder of the course utilizes the science background attained in the first part of the course to examine current and proposed technologies and their impacts on the environment and society. Throughout the course, students systematically research and critically evaluate web sources on a proposed technology of their choice. After evaluating benefits and risks of the proposed technology, students prepare a written report consisting primarily of a well-supported argument, for or against, adopting the new technology.
CHEMISTRY 151L (NS) (Fall), 152L (NS) (Spring). ORGANIC CHEMISTRY. Students attend three lectures and one four-hour discussion/laboratory each week. First year students are placed in a separate section, Chemistry 151L.003 in which there are about 70 first year students in the lecture class. In Chemistry 152L, first year students attend lecture sections with more advanced students where the class size is about 200-250. In both Chemistry 151L and 152L the laboratory section involves about 15 students. Prerequisites: Chemistry 19, 22L, or 23L for Chemistry 151L. Chemistry 151L is a prerequisite for 152L. First year students who experience difficulty in Chemistry 151L may request placement in Chemistry 23L anytime during the first month of the course without penalty.