Chemistry

Description of the Major. Chemistry investigates the composition, properties, and changes of properties in substances and various elementary forms of matter. The study of chemistry gives students an opportunity to develop necessary modern knowledge and techniques with instrumentation.

The chemistry program at Westmont provides a broad knowledge of the field and includes six tracks.

The professional track, or Program A, leads to graduate study in chemistry and prepares students for challenging careers in teaching and research, industrial chemistry research and development, energy development, medicinal and pharmaceutical chemistry and related areas.

Program B, or the general track, is more flexible and allows students to go directly into laboratory work or to take additional courses in other disciplines for careers in environmental control, industrial chemistry, medical technology, food chemistry and agricultural chemistry.

The biochemistry track, or Program C, provides the basis for pre-medical, pre-pharmacy and pre-dental training or for graduate study in biochemistry, molecular biology, biomedical research or genetic engineering.

The chemical physics track, Program D, allows students to combine chemistry with a strong emphasis in physics and engineering. This track prepares students for graduate work in chemical physics or chemical engineering, or teaching chemistry and physics at the secondary level. All four tracks lead to the B.S. degree.

For students desiring a broader curriculum or a double major, the B.A. degree track allows the most flexibility. A four-year Fast-Track plan for obtaining a secondary teaching credential in chemistry is available using this track.

Students interested in chemical engineering have the option of the 3-2 program in which they receive a degree from the engineering school and a B.A. from Westmont. The benefits of receiving a liberal arts and sciences background and the more specialized training from a formal engineering school such as USC and Washington University can be beneficial for both the student and the employer. Since the 3-2 program has strict requirements, interested students must meet with a faculty of the department to plan the class schedules consistent with their goals.

Distinctive Features. Chemistry students at Westmont have many opportunities to use state-of-the-art instrumentation such as atomic absorption spectrometers, 300 MHz Fourier transform nuclear magnetic resonance spectrometers, FT infrared and ultraviolet-visible spectrometers, mass spectrometer, and gas and high performance liquid chromatographs. They learn glassblowing, analytical chemical techniques (including microcomputer applications), and advanced organic synthesis techniques. Chemistry at Westmont involves computer programming, interfacing computers to instruments, and computerized literature searches on current research problems. Each student in the B.S. program is required to do independent research with a faculty member and to complete a written thesis or publishable journal article.

Participating in an off-campus program is encouraged of all chemistry majors. The student may choose to do so during the fall of either the junior or senior year. The student should consult his or her academic advisor so that the required courses can be scheduled ahead of that off-campus semester.

Career Choices. A degree in chemistry can lead to many interesting and challenging careers, including: biochemist, chemical engineer, industrial or clinical chemist, college instructor, dentist, dietician, high school teacher, marine scientist, pharmacologist, physician, radiologic technician, nuclear medicine technician, forensic serologist, toxicologist, technical writer, patent lawyer, industrial hygienist, and industrial management.

B.S. Degree Major Requirements: 54-67 units

A. Professional Track (Program A)
Required Lower-Division Courses: 30 units

Recommended Lower-Division Courses:

Required Upper-Division Courses: 35 units

B. General Track (Program B)
Required Lower-Division Courses: 25-26 units

Required Upper-Division Courses: 29 units

C. Biochemistry Track (Program C)
Required Lower-Division Courses: 33-34 units

Required Upper-Division Courses: 33 units

D. Chemical Physics Track (Program D)
Required Lower-Division Courses: 39 units

Required Upper-Division Courses: 26 units

Recommended Course

B.A. Degree Major Requirements: 46-47 units

A. General Track
Required Lower-Division Courses: 25-26 units

Required Upper-Division Courses: 21 units

A four-year Fast-Track plan is available using this track that allows a student to receive a B.A. degree and a secondary teaching credential in chemistry. See the department chair or the education department for details.

B. Chemical Engineering 3-2 Program Track
Required Lower-Division Courses: 34 units

Required Upper-Division Courses: 21 units

Highly Recommended Courses:

Requirements for a Minor: 20 units

Required Lower-Division Courses: 8 units

Required Upper-Division Courses: 12 units

Lower-Division Course Descriptions

CHM 1 Introductory General Chemistry (4) Prerequisites: high school algebra and geometry. Three lectures and one four-hour laboratory per week. The periodic table, atomic structure, and other fundamentals of chemistry, including laboratory.

CHM 4 Chemistry, Culture and Society (4) Survey course that teaches the basic concepts of chemistry. Emphasizes the role of chemical principles as applied to nuclear and radiochemistry, agriculture and food, drugs, pollution, and other topics of current interest. Satisfies the physical science distribution requirement.

CHM 5, 6 General Chemistry I, II (4,4) Prerequisites: two years of high school algebra and one year geometry. Three lectures and one four-hour laboratory per week. Covers basic concepts of physical, inorganic, organic, analytical and nuclear chemistry.

CHM 5H, 6H General Chemistry I, II: Honors (4,4) Prerequisites: By invitation only and two years of high school algebra and one year of geometry, high school chemistry, previous or concurrent course in calculus. Three lectures and one four-hour laboratory per week. A survey of concepts in physical, inorganic, organic, analytical and nuclear chemistry. Examines each topic with more rigor than CHM 5, 6.

CHM 14 Scientific Glassblowing (1) Practical construction and repair of glass apparatus. One three-hour laboratory per week.

Upper-Division Course Descriptions

CHM 101, 102 Organic Chemistry I, II (4,4) Prerequisite: CHM 6. Three lectures and one four-hour laboratory per week. Preparation and properties of aliphatic and aromatic compounds, reaction mechanisms, organic synthesis, and qualitative organic analysis in theory and laboratory.

CHM 104 Advanced Inorganic Chemistry (4) Prerequisite: CHM 101. Descriptive chemistry of the elements, periodicity, atomic structure, bonding theory, coordination chemistry, acid-base theory, non-aqueous solvents, inorganic stereochemistry, bioinorganic, and organometallic chemistry.

CHM 113 Elementary Biochemistry (4) (See BIO 113)

CHM 121 Introductory Analytical Chemistry (3) Prerequisites: CHM 6. Two lectures and one four-hour laboratory per week. Theoretical background of quantitative analytical procedures, including statistics, gravimetry, titrimetry, potentiometry, and coulometry.

CHM 122 Advanced Analytical Chemistry (2) Prerequisites: CHM 121. Two lectures and one four-hour laboratory per week. Emphasis on instrumental methods of analysis including spectrophotometry, voltammetry, and gas and liquid chromatography.

CHM 125 Analog and Digital Instrumental Analysis (4) A laboratory course in analog and digital electronics: assembly language and microprocessors, computer interfacing, data acquisition by analog to digital conversion, and stepping motors. Two lectures and two three-hour laboratories per week.

CHM 130 Physical Chemistry I (3) Prerequisites: differential and integral calculus, college physics, concurrent enrollment in CHM 132. Classical equilibrium thermodynamics: applications of the first, second, and third laws to condensed and gas phases. Principles and applications of statistical thermodynamics.

CHM 131 Physical Chemistry II (3) Prerequisites: differential and integral calculus, college physics, concurrent enrollment in CHM 133. Postulates in quantum mechanics and application of the Schrodinger's equation to translation, rotation and vibration. Dirac notation, angular momentum, approximation methods, group theory, atomic and molecular structure, spectroscopy, and electric and magnetic properties. Dynamics and transport properties.

CHM 132, 133 Physical Chemistry Laboratory I, II (1,1) Prerequisite: Concurrent enrollment in CHM 130, 131, 135. One three-hour laboratory per week. Emphasizes thermodynamics, kinetics, electrochemistry, spectroscopy, quantum chemistry, and computer applications. Oral and written presentations of laboratory results are required.

CHM 135 Introductory Physical Chemistry (3) Prerequisite: CHM 6, 101, MA 9, concurrent enrollment in MA 10, PHY 21, 23, and CHM 132 or 133. Applications of physical chemistry to the life sciences. Thermodynamics, energy and the first law, entropy and the second law, free energy and bioenergetics, solar energy. Chemical and biochemical kinetics, biochemical spectroscopy, transport properties, macromolecules.

CHM 150 Special Topics (1/2-4) Prerequisite CHM 102; CHM 131. Topics include probability and statistics, applications of orbital symmetry, basic gas chromatography, organometallic chemistry of the transition elements, hard and soft acids and bases, applied problem solving, interpretation of infrared spectra, use of the chemical literature, electroanalytical chemistry, and a Lewis acid-base approach to chemical reactivity.

CHM 160 Advanced Organic Chemistry (4) Prerequisite: CHM 102. Corequisite CHM 131. Advanced topics in kinetics and mechanisms of organic reactions, stereochemistry, molecular orbital theory, photochemistry, organometallic chemistry, polymers, and natural products. Three lectures and one four-hour laboratory per week.

CHM 190 Chemistry Practicum (1) Supervised experiences in the chemistry department or in community and industrial facilities such as clinical or research laboratories. Generally one unit of credit per semester.

CHM 195 Seminar (2) Prerequisites: Senior standing or consent of instructor. Weekly reading and writing assignments, with discussion, on topics involving the nature of scientific knowledge, science and religion, the environment and stewardship, and ethics in science. A major research paper and oral presentation are given at the end of the course.

CHM 198 Chemical Research (2-4) Prerequisites: CHM 102, 125 or 131. Students work closely with a faculty person on original research projects. The results may be reported in research conferences and journal form for publication.