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Overview
Chemistry is the study of how substances behave and how their properties are changed. Understanding chemistry is essential to many other fields of science such as biology, geology and medicine. The chemistry field includes many sub-specializations including analytical chemistry, biochemistry, inorganic chemistry, organic chemistry and physical chemistry. Other more specialized areas are spectroscopy, photochemistry, and biomedical aspects of biochemistry.
At BGSU, undergraduate chemistry students are encouraged to assist faculty members and graduate students by working in the laboratory on specific chemistry research problems. This work often leads to publications in professional journals and presentations at regional or national meetings. Students have opportunities to work with highly sophisticated equipment such as NMR spectrometers, mass spectrometers, gas and liquid chromatographs, ultracentrifuges, computer-assisted instrumentation, and laser equipment. With a photochemical sciences emphasis at the graduate level, undergraduates also have the opportunity for training in this area.
Career Opportunities
Careers in chemistry are numerous and varied. Graduates have exciting employment opportunities at many different levels. Chemists work on environmental problems; develop new processes, products and materials; develop new drugs and therapies; study biochemical processes in living systems; and discover the molecular basis for diseases such as cancer.
They also assist law enforcement agencies through analysis of DNA, blood, fibers and other materials. Some chemists study air pollution and reactions in the upper atmosphere. Others teach at the high school and college level. There is a continuous need for chemistry graduates.
At BGSU the Department of Chemistry faculty prepares students to be professional chemists and biochemists. Chemistry is an essential science in the health professions, and students who wish to enroll in medical or dental school need a minimum of two years of chemistry, preferably biochemistry. Though the job market for bachelor’s degree chemists is strong, most graduates pursue advanced degrees in chemistry, biochemistry, or in the health professions.
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