Chemistry

When choosing your first chemistry course, you should first decide if you want to eventually study chemistry at a more advanced level. Students who want to study chemistry to fulfill a science laboratory curricular exploration requirement can opt for Chemistry 113. Students who want to become a science major or prepare for medical school should start at either Chemistry 122 (for students with little or no high school background), or 123 or 128 (for students with good high school background but no AP or IB credit). Chemistry 123 and 128 also fulfill the science laboratory curricular exploration requirement.

If you had chemistry experience in high school and you did not take the AP or IB exam, you should take the self-administered Chemistry Placement Evaluation. This will enable you to decide whether to start at Chemistry 122 or at Chemistry 123 or 128. Do not take this test "cold," because you might do poorly on some problems that you would quickly grasp with a little review. Feel free to use a textbook when taking the exam and work some practice problems so that the exam truly reflects your capability in chemistry.

Students with no high school chemistry experience and students with low Placement Evaluation scores should take Chemistry 122. Chemistry 122, An Introduction to Chemistry, is designed to prepare students with little or no prior work in chemistry to take Chemistry 123 or Chemistry 128. Chemistry 122 is normally offered only once per year, so students who want to take this course are strongly encouraged to enroll at the first possible opportunity.

The first chemistry course that counts towards the chemistry major and that enables students to continue at a more advanced level in chemistry is either Chemistry 123, Principles of Chemistry, or Chemistry 128, Principles of Environmental Chemistry. Although taught from slightly different perspectives, all sections of Chemistry 123 and Chemistry 128 will cover the fundamental topics that are necessary for further work in chemistry, biology, geology, or medicine.

A section of Chemistry 123 with problem solving is also periodically offered for students who wish to further develop their general analytical and critical thinking skills. This smaller section will have additional class meetings for problem solving and review. Chemistry 123 with problem solving is appropriate for students who would like to have more scheduled time to work with a faculty member on developing their scientific reasoning skills and understanding of the foundations of chemistry.