When you enroll at Susquehanna, you’ll be paired with an advisor and application tool to guide you in your course planning and scheduling. The following is an excerpt from the complete course catalog. Enrolled students follow the requirements of the course catalog for the academic year in which they declare each major and/or minor, consult with their advisor(s) and the Academic Planning Tool.
Learning Goals
- Demonstrate the ability to apply appropriate chemical and physical models to make predictions or draw conclusions regarding chemical systems or phenomenon. Examples of chemical systems are compound formation (synthesis), energy transfer, equilibrium composition, various physical properties, chemical reactivity, etc.
- Demonstrate mastery of laboratory skills and execute common experimental techniques.
- Demonstrate the ability to design, prepare, execute and adjust experiments.
- Describe the theoretical and operational principles of common laboratory instrumentation such as NMR, FT- IR, UV-Vis, AA, fluorescence spectrometers, GC-MS, HPLC and electrochemical analysis instrumentation, as well as their typical uses, sensitivities and limitations. Interpret the data collected with such instrumentation.
- Find topic-specific chemical literature, interpret and evaluate chemical studies as described in scientific journals, and describe these conclusions through written and oral presentations.
- Analyze and interpret data to detect trends, evaluate the quality of data and reach scientifically valid conclusions.
American Chemical Society Accreditation
The department’s major in chemistry is accredited by the American Chemical Society.
Majors in Chemistry, Biochemistry and Chemical Physics
Susquehanna offers a Bachelor of Arts degree in chemistry and Bachelor of Science degrees in chemistry, biochemistry and chemical physics. Two biochemistry tracks are available: an ACS-Certified track and a Biology-Intensive track. The ACS-Certified track includes courses that cover properties of metals, spectroscopic techniques and instrumental methods that will prepare students for careers or graduate programs in the areas of biochemistry or biophysics. The Biology-Intensive track includes courses that will offer a solid foundation in chemical principles in addition to biological systems and will prepare students for careers or graduate programs in the biological sciences or biochemistry, or the health care professions. All required courses must be completed with a grade of C- or higher.
Double-counting restriction
Students may only pursue either a single major or minor offered by the Department of Chemistry.
Chemistry
The Bachelor of Arts degree in chemistry requires the following courses, with grades of C- or better:
4 General Chemistry I - choose from: CHEM-103 or CHEM-111
4 General Chemistry II - choose from: CHEM-104 or CHEM-232
4 CHEM-221 Organic Chemistry I
4 CHEM-222 Organic Chemistry II
4 CHEM-242 Methods of Chemical Analysis
4 CHEM-341 Physical Chemistry I
4 CHEM-342 Physical Chemistry II
4 CHEM-450 Advanced Inorganic Chemistry
4 PHYS-204 Introductory Physics I (Calculus-based)
4 PHYS-206 Introductory Physics II (Calculus-based)
4 Four semester equivalents of CHEM-505 Seminar
0-8 Mathematics through MATH-112 Calculus II
2 CHEM-400 Research Experience
2 CHEM-500 Problems in Chemistry and Biochemistry
Other chemistry courses selected to fulfill career goals.
The Bachelor of Science degree in chemistry with American Chemical Society certification
The Bachelor of Science degree in chemistry with American Chemical Society certification requires a minimum of 49 semester hours in chemistry. Students will meet the requirements for the degree by completing the following courses: all courses required for the Bachelor of Arts degree; CHEM-430 Instrumental Analysis, one biochemistry course from among CHEM-422 The Biochemistry of Nucleic Acids, CHEM-424 The Biochemistry of Metabolism or CHEM-426 The Biochemistry of Proteins and Enzymes; and one elective course from among CHEM-300 Topics in Chemistry, CHEM-302 Medicinal Chemistry, CHEM-303 Scientific Ethics, Blunders, and Fraud, CHEM-304 Pharmaceutical Chemistry, CHEM-305 Forensic Chemistry or CHEM-306 Nanoscience. In addition, students will complete a minimum of four semester hours of CHEM-400 during the junior and/or senior year (including the two semester hours required for the Bachelor of Arts degree) and either MATH-201 Linear Algebra or MATH-353 Differential Equations.
A student completing a double major that includes a Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry may replace CHEM-500 with a capstone in the second major.
Secondary Teaching Certification
The Chemistry Department offers secondary teaching certification for both chemistry and biochemistry majors.
Secondary Teaching Certification Coursework required by the state of Pennsylvania for admission to the teacher certification program includes successful completion of FYSE-100 or equivalent course (having learning goals related to English composition), at least 3 semester hours in British or American literature, at least 6 semester hours of mathematics coursework (or other courses which satisfy the Central Curriculum Analytical Thought requirement) and at least one 40-hour externship.
Education course requirements for secondary education are EDUC-101 Introduction to Education and Society, EDUC-250 Educational Psychology, EDUC-260 Introduction to Special Education, EDUC-270 Instruction of Exceptional Students, EDUC-330 Technology in Education, EDUC-350 English Language Learners: Theory and Instruction, EDUC-380 Instructional Design, EDUC-424 Methods of Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment in Teaching Science, EDUC-479 Principles of Learning and Teaching in Secondary Education, EDUC-483 Differentiated Instruction and Classroom Management in Secondary Education, and the EDUC-500 Student Teaching Package (EDUC-501, EDUC-502, EDUC-503, and EDUC-600).
In addition, secondary education chemistry students complete all of the usual requirements for the chemistry or biochemistry major, except for CHEM-400, and CHEM-500 (which is fulfilled with EDUC-500 Student Teaching Package.) While not required, it is recommended that secondary education students complete at least 2 semester hours of CHEM-400condary education students complete at least 2 semester hours of CHEM-400.
Honors in Chemistry
The departmental honors program encourages and recognizes superior performance in chemistry. To graduate with honors in chemistry, candidates must do the following:
- Maintain at least a 3.25 cumulative GPA overall and a 3.50 cumulative GPA in chemistry courses (plus biology courses for biochemistry majors),
- Petition the research advisor in writing by the third week of their final semester. The research advisor will make a request on behalf of the honors candidate to the department chair.
- Upon departmental approval, submit an acceptable written thesis based on a minimum of 4 semester hours of CHEM-400, completed during the junior and/or senior years, and CHEM-500 (or BIOL-510 and BIOL-511, if approved by Chemistry Department), and
- Pass an oral thesis defense.