Education
Polymer education edges away from chemistry Polymer science programs are growing, albeit slowly, in U.S. universities, but mostly outside of traditional chemistry departments Rebecca L. Rawls C&EN, Washington Depending on whom you talk to, between 30 and 80% of chemists working in industry in the U.S. work on polymers. Most of them received very little, if any, formal training in polymers before they joined the work force because traditionally very few schools in the U.S. have offered courses in polymers. To most academic chemists polymers were "the 'junk' in the residue pot—not fitting simple concise molecular formulas, not being easy to crystallize and distill," as Dr. Paul J. Flory put it in his "Principles of Polymer Chemistry." In the early 1970's there were signs that this attitude might be changing. The National Science Foundation, after a workshop in polymer engineering held in 1972, issued a report calling for a strongly increased effort in polymer research and teaching to bring polymer education more in line with the importance of the polymer industry in the U.S. Throughout the early 1970's NSF worked at separating polymer research funding from that of chemistry in general, finally setting up a separate polymers program within the division of materials research in 1975. Such a sepa-
Flory: not much happening now
Polytechnic Institute of New York students study polymer extrusion methods
rate review of polymer research proposals, it was felt, would lead to more extensive funding of them. The American Chemical Society, too, through its Committee on Professional Training and several divisions concerned with macromolecules and education, began to call attention to the relative lack of training in polymers found in most chemistry graduates. After half a decade of consciousness raising, consensus among polymer educators on where polymer education stands today seems to be that programs in polymer education have grown since the beginning of the decade, but not much. Most of the increase has come from outside traditional chemistry departments—either in engineering departments such as materials science or chemical engineering, or in special polymer departments with names like macromolecular science or textile chemistry. The more optimistic educators consider the gradual development of multidisciplinary polymer research groups at various universities to be the beginning of a new and very positive period in polymer education, comparable to the period in the late 1950's and early 1960's when many of the established polymer programs were begun. Others are less sanguine. Although statistics to support positions are generally lacking, most observers of polymer education see only slight gains taking place in that field. One example is Dr. Paul J. Flory of Stanford University, Nobel Laureate in polymer chemistry in 1974. "I don't see much happening in
polymer education now," he says. "The field is gaining some emphasis in materials science and other engineering departments, but there's no overwhelming rush in this direction that I can see." The education committee of ACS's Polymer Division is currently in the process of updating its 1973 listing of schools in the U.S. that offer degrees in polymers. Although the data compilation will not be complete for several months, Dr. Eli M. Pearce of Polytechnic Institute of New York, who heads the project, says there has been some increase in the number of schools granting polymer degrees since 1973, but gains have been slight. There has been some increase in polymer education activities in recent years, but not of a major sort, says Dr. Charles G. Overberger, vice president for research at the University of Michigan and editor of the Journal of Polymer Science. Part of the reason for the slow growth, he says, is the financial constraint that faces higher education generally. For the past four years, money has been difficult to find even for continuing programs—and for new programs, practically impossible. "It's not difficult to see that even if schools wanted to expand in the polymer area, they couldn't," he explains. Most of the change that is taking place, according to Overberger, is occurring at the less prestigious universities. So far the "big name" schools, particularly in chemistry, are doing very little in polymer education. Pressure from employers, who are more likely to hire graduates with some background in polymers, may account for this discrepancy, he says. The most prestigious schools have less difficulty in placing their graduates and send
Bailey: chemists fill polymer jobs May 23, 1977 C&EN
19
Many recent polymer faculty additions went into departments other than chemistry Schools adding polymer faculty in chemistry
Schools adding polymer faculty in other departments
California State University, Fullerton Carnegie-Mellon City University of New York Clark Colorado State Florida Michigan Rutgers Tennessee Virginia Polytechnic Institute Wright State
Case Western Reserve Cincinnati Florida Illinois Maine Maryland Massachusetts Massachusetts Institute of Technology Minnesota Northeastern Northwestern Oregon State Pennsylvania State Stanford University of Southern California University of Southern Mississippi University of Washington
proportionately greater numbers to academic positions. Thus, they may be less sensitive to employer preferences. Without citing reasons, others, too, point out the lack of strong polymer programs at top university chemistry departments. A scan down the list of top chemistry departments in the U.S. today, says Dr. William J. Bailey, polymer chemist at the University of Maryland and president of ACS in 1975, would show hardly any of them with a single person in polymer chemistry. Harvard, the University of California, Berkeley, Massachusetts Institute of Technology—none of these schools has a polymer researcher within the chemistry department. The University of Illinois, Princeton, and MIT all had polymer chemists a decade ago, Bailey points out, but when these people left or retired they were not replaced, so that polymers are no longer included in these departments. When Flory, who is retiring, leaves Stanford later this year, that department will no longer have a polymer chemist, Bailey notes.
Bikales: replacing token scientists 20
C&ENMay23, 1977
Several of the schools Bailey cites do teach polymer science, but not within the chemistry department. The importance of this distinction is viewed differently by different observers. The perspective a person has on polymer research from within chemistry departments is rather narrow and makes the field look like it's in worse shape than it really is, in the view of Dr. Norbert M. Bikales, director of the polymers program at NSF. Bikales is himself a polymer chemist on a two-year leave from Rutgers University. He cites Rutgers as an example of what he believes is typical of many universities: Research and instruction in polymers take place in the chemistry, chemical engineering, materials science, and food science departments, with little coordination among these different areas. When all university science and engineering departments are considered, Bikales says, polymer studies are not in too bad a shape. Bailey, too, says that although polymer research is disappearing from chemistry departments, the number of faculty members studying polymers in all departments is probably not declining. What Bikales believes is happening is that the "token" polymer scientist once found at many universities, usually in the chemistry department, is gradually being replaced by a group of researchers, often from several different disciplines, who all work on polymers. Among others, he cites the University of Cincinnati, the University of Florida, the University of Illinois, MIT, and Virginia Polytechnic Institute as schools that have begun to establish this sort of polymer program. The obvious advantage of such programs is that they are permanent and do not depend on the career changes of an individual faculty member. They represent a more serious commitment to polymer research and education on the part of the university in many cases, he says. This trend is just beginning, he says, but it will continue. "I can't imagine that in 10 years
there will be any major research university in the U.S. without a strong program in polymer science, although not necessarily in the chemistry department," Bikales says. When polymer programs leave chemistry departments, they frequently find their home in engineering schools—a trend that causes some concern to many polymer chemists. "To be sure there are aspects of polymers that are properly dealt with in engineering departments," says Flory. "But these approaches miss or overlook the basic science side of the subject, which is certainly just as basic as many other branches of core chemistry or biology or other scientific fields. I think that it would be incorrect to advocate that the whole field can be handled adequately by engineering departments." Most polymer jobs are filled by chemists, Bailey argues. And, especially at the graduate level, if polymer courses are taught outside the chemistry department, it's very difficult for chemistry students to be able to take them. And since a large fraction of chemists who work in industry eventually end up working with polymers, he says, they should all have some exposure to such materials—something that is again difficult when the courses are outside the chemistry department. A number of programs are under way, many within ACS, to improve the position of polymer education within chemistry departments. One of the most far-reaching of these, according to Dr. Charles E. Carraher of Wright State University, chairman of the education committee of the ACS Division of Organic Coatings & Plastics, is a proposal to include a course in polymers as a recommended option for undergraduate chemistry majors. Under the proposal, the recommended guidelines for an ACS-certified undergraduate curriculum would include one course in either inorganic chemistry, biochemistry, or polymer chemistry. Since relatively few undergraduate chemistry departments are immediately able to offer a course in polymer chemistry, the effect of such a recommendation at first probably would be small, Carraher says. But it would es-
Polymer research funds shifting from chemistry department Department of first investigator listed 3
1975
Chemistry
37% 29%
Polymer science, textile chemistry
16
22
Chemical engineering
16
17
Materials science, 31 metallurgy, mechanical engineering, and others
33
1976
a Active research grants at end of fiscal year supported by the National Science Foundation Polymers Program. Source: National Science Foundation
University of Maryland polymer student works on synthesis reaction tablish the importance of polymer studies to education in chemistry. The proposal has met with some opposition within ACS, particularly from inorganic chemists, and has not yet been approved. Many polymer chemists believe that the resistance on the part of chemistry faculty members to include polymers in their departments comes mainly from their own lack of background in the field. "The best thing that could happen to stimulate polymer research would be to educate faculty [members] to the excitement of the field," Bikales says. A program to teach college faculty members how to incorporate polymers into their courses has been proposed by the combined education committees of the divisions of Polymer Chemistry and Organic Coatings & Plastics, headed by Carraher and Pearce. The program is seeking financial support. If successful, it could begin as early as next year. The main impetus behind the present real, albeit slow, growth of polymer programs, as well as any future expansion, apparently comes from industry. "If industry would speak out and say to chemistry departments, 'you are not preparing students to fit our needs,' then programs would change," says Dr. George B. Butler of the University of Florida's center for macromolecular science. Change would be occurring faster if industry could effectively support basic and applied research at universities, Overberger says. But over the long term, it is continued pressure from industry in the form of preferential hiring of graduates with a background in polymers that is responsible for the growth in polymer programs. Butler's own school offers an example of one type of polymer program developing today. At the University of Florida, polymer research and instruction resides in the center for macromolecular science, a group of about 15 faculty members from five departments including chemistry and chemical engineering. Begun in 1971, the center does not grant degrees; both students and faculty members remain formally associated with a more traditional department in the university. What the center does do is to coordinate a program of seminars in the field of polymers. Two
years ago this program was expanded to include course offerings that are taught jointly by chemistry, chemical engineering, and materials science faculty members. Two courses are offered now at the upper-undergraduate, first-year-graduate level. The center sponsors no cooperative research efforts, as yet, although this is a direction in which Butler would like to see it move. The center has about 15 students. Another fairly new program in polymers—formally established this year—is that of the University of Cincinnati. Here, too, degrees are granted by other departments, usually chemistry, chemical engineering, or materials science, with what is called a polymer option. The five faculty members who participate in the program cooperate to teach five courses in polymers, covering their chemical synthesis, physical and mechanical properties, characterization, and processing. Graduate students do research in the polymer area under the supervision of one of the participating faculty members. Undergraduates also are welcome to take the courses. So far, it is the chemical engineering undergraduates that seem the most interested, particularly those who have worked in industry as part of the
school's cooperative program. Between one third and one half of the chemical engineering undergraduates take some courses in the program. In its first year the program focused heavily on the engineering aspects of polymers. Ties to the chemistry department, however, are expected to increase next year, when a chemistry faculty member will join the participating faculty. Schools that have well-established polymer programs also are moving into new areas. Among these is Case Western Reserve University. Begun in 1963, the school's department of macromolecular science grants degrees within the school of engineering. The department gradually has grown to 13 faculty members of its own and four associated faculty from the chemistry department and one from chemical engineering. Changes occurring in the past few years include increasing emphasis on natural biopolymers and synthetic biomaterials for medical applications. Since 1974, the university has been granting undergraduate degrees in polymer science, making it one of a very few schools in the U.S. to do so. Another "old-time" school of polymer science that remains very active is Polytechnic Institute of New York. Claiming to be the first school in the U.S. to offer a degree in polymer science, PINY now has two graduate degree programs in the field. One leads to a degree in polymer chemistry and the second, begun about four years ago, to a degree in polymer science and engineering. This second program is considered a hybrid of polymer chemistry and polymer engineering. Current activities include a modular laboratory course in polymers for seniors and firstyear graduates that is being developed and a series of short courses for chemists already working in the polymer industry. These courses, now in their third year, cover such topics as the applications of thermal analysis to polymers. They are intended to provide the basic chemical background that industrial chemists may lack because they have not studied polyD
mer science.
Models help students at Case Western Reserve to understand polymer structure May 23, 1977 C&EN
21
