Chemistry Department
The Chemistry Department - Rockville Campus offers a wide array of courses to meet the needs of chemistry/biochemistry majors, life science majors, pre professional and public health/allied health programs, and non-science majors.
There are also opportunities to gain research experience through coursework or internships.
We invite you to stop by our department offices anytime to meet our dynamic and devoted faculty and staff to discuss your options to academic success.
For more information, please email the Chemistry Department.
See Chemistry Guided Placement for guidance.
Complete the Chemistry Course Override request formnew window.
Instructions to get started in ALEKS and low-cost access code. (PDF, )
Meet Our faculty and Staff
Degrees and Certificates
Courses by Subject
Chemistry Department Information
- University of Maryland Department of Chemistry and Biochemistrynew window: Offers BS degree in Chemistry and BS degree in Biochemistry (ACS certified)
- Sample plan leading to a degree in CHEMnew window
- Sample plan leading to a degree in BCHMnew window
- UMBC Department of Chemistry and Biochemistrynew window: Offers BS degree in Chemistry (ACS certified); BA degree in Chemistry; BS in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and BA in Chemistry Education
- University of Baltimore – BS in Forensic Studiesnew window
- UMD Shady Grove – BS in Fermentation Science new window
Student Resources
Designed for the student that would like to experience a ‘mini’ independent research project to complement and expand on the regular course curriculum. Students take the regular chemistry course and work on an independent research project under the mentorship of a faculty member. An honors module can be taken with any chemistry laboratory course: CHEM 131, CHEM 132, CHEM 135, CHEM 203, or CHEM 204.
Prerequisites:
- Minimum GPA 3.2, 12 MC credits (including ENGL101 or ENGL101A) and instructor permission
The following projects were conducted by various faculty advisers and chemistry students in previous honors modules.
CHEM 131HM
- Factors Affecting the Copper Concentration in Brewed Tea: Craig Benson
- Determination of Heavy Metals in Canned Vegetable Fluids: Craig Benson
- Correlation of Bone Density and Calcium Content among Different Livestock: Craig Benson
- Dissolution rates of "slow-dissolve" iron dietary supplements: Craig Benson
CHEM 203HM
- Green Synthesis and 2D NMR analysis of esters: Laura Anna
CHEM 204 HM
- Microwave-Assisted Esterification Reactions: Rachel Ndonye
Introduction to Research, SCIR 297, is designed for the promising science, engineering, or mathematics (SEM) student who would like to build upon general SEM skills learned from general courses in order to generate competency in scientific critical thinking and research. This course enables SEM students to pursue research topics of their own choosing with the guidance and supervision of an assigned faculty member. Students should have a strong interest in SEM and be committed toward completion of a multi-semester and interdisciplinary-spanning research project. Projects will not duplicate curriculum content, but will expand on that content. May be repeated for a maximum of six credits with consent of department. The course is two credit hours, and is a one-hour discussion, and three hours laboratory each week.
Prerequisites:
- Minimum GPA of 3.0; BIOL 150, CHEM 131, MATH 180, and instructor approval
- For more information on the Honors Module, undergraduate research opportunities and available instructors, please contact the department
CHEM 099 – Introductory Chemistry (PDF, )
CHEM 105 – Chemistry and Society (PDF, )
CHEM 106 – Chemistry and Society Laboratory (PDF, )
CHEM 131 – Principles of Chemistry I (PDF, )
CHEM 132 – Principles of Chemistry II (PDF, )
CHEM 135 – General Chemistry for Engineers (PDF, )
CHEM 150 – Essentials of Organic and Biochemistry (PDF, )
CHEM 203 – Organic Chemistry I (PDF, )
CHEM 204 – Organic Chemistry II (PDF, )
These rooms support laboratory instruction in a year long sequence for general chemistry. Laboratory experiments cover measurements, synthesis, gas law relationships, activity series of cations, line spectra, and molecular geometry, Le Chatelier's principle, acids and bases, Beer's law, thermodynamic properties and Ksp, electrochemistry, and kinetics.
These rooms support laboratory instruction in a year long sequence for organic chemistry. Laboratory experiments cover physical properties of organic compounds, using IR and proton NMR spectroscopy in compound identification, stereochemistry and molecular models, simple and fractional distillation, gas chromatography (GC), thin layer chromatography (TLC),and column chromatography, synthesis or various organic compounds, using C-13 NMR spectroscopy in compound identification, and recrystallization.
The following instrumentation is available for the organic lab experiments:
- 90 MHz and 45 MHz NMR
- FT/IR and FT/IR with ATR
- Gas Chromatograph with autosampler
- Gas Chromatograph with FID gas station
- Polarimeter
This room provides space for faculty and students to work on research projects, new laboratory experiments, and demonstrations for lecture and lab.
In addition to the instrumentation mentioned above, the instrumentation room and project lab contain the following instrumentation available for faculty and student research projects:
- HPLC with conductivity detector, UV/Visible detector, autosampler, and liquid chromatography
- UV-visible spectrophotometer
- Gas Chromatograph/Mass spectrometer
- Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer
- Micro Spin ESR (Electron Spin Resonance)
- X-ray defractometer
- magnetic susceptibility balance
- glove box
- muffle furnace
- stopped flow spectrometer
- spectrofluorometer
- capillary electrophoresis
Noncredit Courses and Training
Find out about WDCE's noncredit Life Sciences and Life Science Leadership Programs. MC offers a wide variety of noncredit classes designed to help you upgrade your skills, pursue career training, or learn something new.