CHEMISTRY 405-406/615-616

Course Description

This is a two-semester course sequence for chemistry seniors and second year graduate students. The course has two parts. The first part, which is offered during the Fall term, deals with student advising and counseling with respect to careers in chemistry, graduate education, preparation for and application to graduate school, and educational and professional opportunities and resources. At the conclusion of this component, students will be expected to be fully informed about the options available to them upon leaving Hampton, and will have developed concrete plans for pursuing the options of their choice.

The second part of the course sequence is offered in the spring term. It focuses on communication in science, emphasizing seminar and poster presentations. Each student is expected to make an oral presentation on a topic of interest employing all the modem tools and protocols used in scientific/professional meetings. Also, since at this point of their academic development students will have engaged in undergraduate research, each member of the class is required to participate in the university-wide Research Day Symposium by presenting a poster.

Upon completing the course sequence, the student will:

• Be more knowledgeable about careers in chemistry
• Be more knowledgeable about graduate education in chemistry and related disciplines
• Have concrete plans for future, including admission to graduate school, or

procurement of suitable employment.

• Know the relationship between writing and presenting scientific information
• Conduct scientific searches employing modern tools and technologies
• Know how to prepare scientific abstracts
• Know how to organize a scientific presentation
• Know how to prepare effective audio/visual materials for use in scientific presentation
• Be able to explain scientific concepts to an uninformed audience
• Know how to field and answer scientific questions concisely
• Be able to freely participate in scientific discussions

Course materials

There is no formal textbook for the course. However, pertinent handouts and references will be provided. The student is expected to be familiar with and use the internet, the library, and other resources available on campus and other facilities in the area.

Structure of the course

Coverage

The first component of the course is conducted during the fall semester. Discussions focus on career planning, graduate education, application to graduate schools, preparation for graduate record examination, and application for fellowships and scholarships for graduate school.

Student Responsibility:

Each student is expected to prepare a portfolio which will include:

• A statement of future plans, with emphasis on graduate school

• Plans for preparation for GRE
• Information on at least ten graduate programs of interest
• List and information on conferences and scientific meetings attended or to be attended
• Seminar topics for spring semester presentations
• Information on poster planned for spring semester
• Other career interests
• Scientific papers read

Two portfolios are expected, one in the fall and another in the spring semester.

Fall semester

Mid-term Evaluation: Preliminary review of portfolio

Final Evaluation:

Spring semester

Mid-term evaluation: Preliminary review of spring portfolio

Final evaluation:

• Seminar

• Poster presentation Quality of poster

Use of graphics and other tools

• Spring portfolio

All work will be submitted electronically as an attachment to e-mail to the professor (isai.urasa@hamptonu.edu), and through BlackBoard facilties as instructed.

Announcements will be posted on the departmental home page and via BlackBoard. The URL will be provided later in class. Other uses of the BlackBoard for the course will be discussed during the first class period.