Module Outline

The aim of the course is to prepare students for ‘life as a professional chemist’ and will incorporate specific chemical skills as well as other transferable skills. The course is designed to meet UCL goals of a ‘Connected Curriculum’ in developing research-led teaching. Additionally, employability and connection of chemistry to the real world will be embedded within this course.

Module Aims

At the end of the module students should be able to:

Adopt the essential skills of a professional chemist, including keeping a lab book, carry out risk assessments, considering ethical and environmental impacts of chemical research and performing searches of the scientific literature and referencing.
	Adopt and apply different ways of different ways of visualising and presenting molecular structure and chemical bonding.
	Appreciate applications of chemistry in the real world, through interaction with professional societies and the Careers Service.
	Develop key transferrable skills, including use of chemical databases, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Equation Editor and ChemOffice.
	Interview staff members about their research and present it as a recorded presentation.
	Understand the importance of risk assessment for laboratory practicals and maintain an accurate record in their laboratory notebook..
	Collect experimental data and perform calculations and analysis of this data; follow synthetic procedures and characterise end product; present the data clearly and interpret what it means.
	Understand how to develop and present a technical argument in a piece of scientific writing.
Teaching and Learning Methods

Lectures: The topics will be introduced through a blended delivery of asynchronous videos with online activities, and support hours.

Workshops: Your learning is supported by workshops on graphs, CVs and molecular symmetry. Workshops are an opportunity to receive feedback on your understanding of the module material, hence preparation and active participation is essential if you wish to derive the most benefit. Workshop attendance is monitored and compulsory.

Self-study: In addition to timetabled hours, it is expected that you engage in self-study in order to master the material. This can take the form of practicing example questions (workshop questions, additional questions available on Moodle); participating in peer marking, preparing for laboratory sessions and writing up reports and further reading in textbooks and online.

Laboratories: From your Lab_14 work, you will be required to write up three lab reports. These practicals support understanding of the A-level and Chemical Foundations materials as well as teaching essential skills for a practicing chemist. As laboratory skills are an essential aspect of this programme, engagement with the practical work is monitored and compulsory.

“Meet Your Academic” presentation: In groups of 3, you will interview an allocated staff member about their research and present a pre-recorded talk on that topic.