Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry

Hoffman (Chair), Gibson, Hagan, Kneas, MacKay, Rood

The Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at Elizabethtown College is a community of learners—students, faculty, and staff—dedicated to furthering an understanding of chemistry and its role in the world around us. Our departmental mission is to sustain an engaging and supportive learning environment and offer relevant programs in chemistry and biochemistry that advance our undergraduate students’ pursuit of career and life goals.

For more information, please visit the Department’s website or check your course syllabi, which are available through the course instructor or at the High Library.

Chemistry courses contribute to both the liberal arts component and the professional component of the balanced studies that Elizabethtown seeks to foster. Students may choose chemistry or biochemistry as a major area of study leading to a career that requires a detailed knowledge of chemistry, as a coherent minor area of study, as an elective course or courses, or as part of their Core Program requirements.

Students majoring in chemistry or biochemistry typically go on to graduate studies in chemistry or biochemistry, to the study of medicine, to hospital or industrial laboratories, to secondary education, or to business positions in the chemical and pharmaceutical industry.

Professional Accreditation

The Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry is on the approved list of the American Chemical Society Committee on Professional Training.

Majors Offered

The Department offers majors in Biochemistry (American Chemical Society Certified degree) and Chemistry , with five possible chemistry concentrations. The five concentrations are: the American Chemical Society Approved Professional Chemistry curriculum (American Chemical Society Certified degree), the Secondary Education Certification , the Chemistry Management curriculum, the Chemical Physics curriculum, and the Forensic Science curriculum.

Cooperative Programs with Other Institutions

The Chemistry and Biochemistry Department participates in the Premedical Primary Care Program with Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine and the Osteopathic Medicine/B.S. 3+4 or 4+4 Program with Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine (Emphasis in Chemistry/Biochemistry) .

Minors Offered

The Department offers minors in Biochemistry and Chemistry . These minors prepare students to apply chemical concepts and practices in their major discipline. The Department also participates in the General Science Minor .

Additional options may be tailored to the student’s needs in consultation with the student’s advisor and the Department Chair. Students planning much work in chemistry should consult with a Departmental advisor as early as possible to plan the sequence of courses in chemistry, mathematics, physics, and biology that will be to their greatest advantage. Many upper-level chemistry courses have calculus and physics courses as prerequisites. The sequence in secondary education also requires early planning to ensure proper spacing of education courses.

Honors in the Discipline

The Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry participates in the College Honors in the Discipline Program. For guidelines, students should consult the Department Chair.