Chemistry

Description of Major
The chemistry curriculum focuses on the structure of matter and the conditions required for
material change. It is designed to prepare students for graduate study in chemistry or related
fields or for a career in the chemical industry, or in secondary school teaching.
Skills
A liberal arts education and study in a particular major will lead to the acquisition of a group of
skills which enable one to solve problems, communicate effectively, and perform complicated
tasks. These skills are essential in any career. The following is a list of important and
commonly agreed upon career skills identified by UMM chemistry faculty as a part of the
project to Improve Public Understanding of Liberal Learning (IMPULL). The skills are those
which all or most students studying chemistry are likely to acquire through classroom
instruction, co-curricular or extra-curricular activities.
Leadership/Management Skills:
- judging
- applying data
- organizing
- managing time, energy and resources
effectively
- conceptualizing
- ability to work self-directedly
- analyzing
- identifying the critical issues and making
decisions quickly and accurately
Communication/Writing Skills:
- comprehending written material
- speaking effectively to groups
- demonstrating premises and reasoning
to their conclusion
- listening objectively
- summarizing
- written linguistic skills in foreign
language
- writing effectively
- describing objects or events with a
minimum of factual errors
- writing factual material clearly and
concisely
- ability to articulate - reporting accurately
Instructing/Educational Skills:
- explaining - ability to hear and answer questions perceptively
Research/Analytical Skills:
- sorting data and object
- cataloging information
- understanding and using organizing
principles
- manipulating information using expertise
in mathematics
- reading calculations
- gathering information
- reviewing large amounts of material and
extracting essence
- using a variety of sources of information
- designing an experiment, plan or model
that systematically defines a problem
- using laboratory techniques
- identifying information sources
appropriate to special needs or problems
- compiling and selecting information
- applying information creatively to solve
specific problems
- evaluating information against
appropriate standards
- using library and research facilities
- organizing and classifying using numbers
as a reasoning tool
- breaking down principles into parts
- perceiving and defining cause and effect
relationships
- applying appropriate methods to test
the validity of data
Artistic/Creative Skills:
- dealing creatively with symbols or - visualizing spatial relationships images
- illustrating, displaying, creating two or three dimensional images
Technical/Manual Skills:
- using tools
- setting-up
- operating machinery - using computers
- assembling
- making models
- doing detailed and accurate work
- operating complicated electronic equipment
Skills Peculiar to the Chemistry Discipline:
- the use of conceptual models
Jobs Obtained by UMM Chemistry Graduates
Studies conducted by the UMM Career Center have shown that graduates obtain jobs that are
both related to their major and jobs that may not be formally related to the major. About 75%
of the chemistry graduates from 1964-1998 said there job was in the same field or related to
their undergraduate major. Other studies have shown that liberal arts graduates find
employment that makes use of their skills, special knowledge, values, and interests, even
though the employment field may not be related to their academic major. Listed below are
some jobs obtained by UMM chemistry graduates:
Analytical Chemist Architectural Historian Attorney
Biochemist
Biophysical Chemist Biotechnology Scientist Business Manager Chemical Analyst Chemical
Engineer Chemical Sales Chemist
Chiropractor
College Professor
Commodity Broker
Community Outreach Worker Computer Administration Computer Programmer Computer
Systems Analyst Corporate Staff
Crime Lab Analyst
Dentist
Development Scientist Electrochemist
Engineer
Environmental Consultant Environmental Engineer Environmentalist
Fisheries Biologist
Fisheries Specialist Gastroenterologist
Gene Therapy Research Scientist Hospitality Manager
Industrial Hygienist Laboratory Manager Law Clerk
Librarian
Manager, Scientist Manufacturing Engineer Mass Spectrometrist Mechanical Engineer Medical
Director
Medical NCO, Military Molecular Orbital Theorist Nephrologist
Network Analyst
Nuclear Chemist
Optical Technician
Optometrist
Pathologist
Pediatrician
Pharmaceutical, Analytical Chemist Pharmaceutical Regulations Pharmaceutical Research
Pharmaceutical Sales Rep. Pharmacist
Pharmacy Technician Physician
Plastics Technologist Podiatrist
Postdoctoral Associate
Power Plant Chemist
Product Development Chemist Product Manager
Production Supervisor
Program Manager
Project Analyst
Psychiatrist
Quality Analyst
Quality Assurance Manager Quality Assurance Specialist Radiologist
Registered Nurse Research Associate Research Director Research Chemist Research Scientist
Research Technician Sales-Marketing Science Teacher Scientist
Service Engineer Software Engineer Soil Scientist Support Scientist Surgeon
Systems Analyst Teacher
Technical Manager Technical Project Leader Technical Service Technical Specialist Training
Director Veterinarian
Vice President of Operations Youth Minister
There are many occupations that do not require a specific undergraduate major; they are
often learned as a result of on-the-job training rather than prior education. What is sought
among prospective employees is the development of certain skills and abilities that can be
developed not only through an academic major but through courses taken as part of one's
general education, and through internships, directed studies, tutorials, seminars, study
abroad, work-study and summer employment, and volunteer experiences.
Chemistry (Adobe Acrobat Supplement) CSI: Ewing
Graduate/Professional Schools in Chemistry FSU Match Major Sheets