Chemistry

<p>How is the chemistry program at Oxy? Is it strong? How big is the department? A lot of research opportunities? Thanks. Feel free to tell me more!</p>

<p>The chem program is very good, as is bio-chem. The department has nine professors and three adjuncts for about 55 students. All of the professors are very smart (though some of them are more interesting than others), and generally teach classes directly tailored to their areas of interest and research. All of the full time professors run research groups and have their own labs for that purpose. The classes are difficult, and Organic can be crowded by Oxy standards because it’s a requirement for Kinesiology and Bio, but otherwise they’re pretty small. Upper division classes are usually about ten to fifteen students and generally have more flexible meeting times as they’re usually 2-3 hour seminars, rather than straight lecture. </p>

<p>Chem major’s are required to do directed research for a year in order to graduate, but I’d say most do it for three years or so. It’s pretty much expected that a chem major will join a research group around Sophomore year that they’ll work with during the school year and usually over the summer. Most can get funding for the summer from the URC (Undergrad Research Center, which has a campus wide competitive application process), or else form their research mentor’s grants. The URC also helps in getting researchers grant money for during the school year. The department is almost done establishing a separate endowment just for student research. So, yeah, there are a lot of opportunities for research, and it’s really the crucial element of chem education at Oxy. </p>

<p>The most common complaint a lot of students in the department have is that the chem building is old and needs a renovation. If you have any more questions let me know!</p>

<p>About how large is the average lower division class? The class size of the upper division classes sounds awesome. So it seems like it is easy to find a research position on campus? Are the grads of Oxy’s chem department well prepared for grad school? How much time do you spend on studying as a chem major, how much free time do you have? How competitive is Oxy?</p>

<p>And a random other question, if I decide to apply ED, will there be less chance of getting a merit scholarship than if I apply RD?</p>

<p>Lower division classes are 20-30 people, depending on the subject (GenChem I and both Ochem classes are on the larger side, GenChem II to the smaller). It is very easy to find a research position on campus, though competition to get into some groups is more competitive than others. I’d say everyone is well prepared for grad school insofar as everyone who has appplied has gotten into one of their top three choices for either med school or grad work in chem/biochem. Some people are taking gap years to continue research or just to get work experience. </p>

<p>Study time is very much a personal thing and very dependent on subject. Ochem is much harder for some people than Physical or Inorganic, and vis - versa. Problem sets included, I’m probably studying 6 hours a week on just chem, plus another 5-12 hours of research depening on how I’m structuring that week. As far as free time goes, I generally have Friday afternoon/evenings and all of Saturday to do whatever (as long as there isn’t a test forthcoming), assuming I work all of Sunday. But in general, I’ve got a couple free hours every day to do something/hang out/ read.</p>

<p>Competition at Oxy is a very funny thing. The college’s official pedagogical view point is that student’s learn best through collaboration. So, for instance, everyone in your first semester Cultural Studies Program class (CSP’s are a set of classes for first-years that fall outside of generally defined majors that are meant to expose you to a broader world view and give professors an opportunity to teach a subject that is not part of the stricted curriculum. My first semester CSP was an analysis of genocide in the 20th century tuaght by a German Studies prof.) will live in the same dorm specifically so you can work together and discuss the class. For the most part, at least in Chem, the problem sets we’re given aren’t supposed to be solvable by one person alone, so most nights about half the class will meet in a common room in one of the dorms, talk about the approaches we all took, and then try to solve out the rest of the set. In that respect, Oxy is a very non-competitive place. </p>

<p>At the same time, people are still vying for the top spots on exams, and the high grade in a class is important if only for bragging rights. There is competition to get into certain research groups. In most respects it’s like a very friendly rivalry; everyone wants to be the best, but no one is too bummed if their friends get that honor over them (assuming they’re doing well in the class). The most competitive things are the major research grants that come from outside donors (Norris Foundation, Howard Hughes Medical, Goldwater Fellowships etc) that have major money and a certain amount of prestige attatched to them.</p>

<p>I couldn’t tell you about RD vs ED scholarships. I don’t know if we have many merit scholarships, I think most are need-based. I Hope this helps some!</p>

<p>Thanks! Your info is very helpful!</p>

<p>One more question. I understand that Oxy students can go take classes at Caltech. How often do people do that, and is it helpful?</p>

<p>So, the way classes at CalTech work is that if there’s a class offered at one institution that isn’t offered at the other then a student can enroll in the class at the other campus. That said, very few people do this. Mostly it’s the commute and the fact that both campuses seem to offer the classes that are wanted/needed, however it’s also an issue that CalTech is on quarters and Oxy on semesters, which complicates things a lot.</p>