letter to the editor
Challenges for the analytical chemistry curriculum I
n the March 2000 issue (Anal. Chem. 2000, 72, 173 A), Jeanne Pemberton wrote an editorial in which she describes the state of the undergraduate chemistry curriculum. As an industrial analytical chemist, I am compelled to add my voice to Jeanne’s and urge for a renewed emphasis on the education of undergraduates in the analytical process. Recently, we interviewed a set of B.S. degree candidates in the hopes of adding staff to our chemical analysis laboratory, which is responsible for failure analyses of materials, reliability assessments, and new materials applications development. Because recent graduates require a significant amount of training, we seek the most qualified individuals during the hiring process. We seek individuals with a solid basic chemical education, a familiarity with modern analytical instrumentation, and most importantly, an analytical approach to problem solving. During our recent interviews, it became apparent that the education of the recent graduates varied greatly depending on the institution they attended. Their exposure to the analytical process and their hands-on experience with instruments cover a wide gamut, from no exposure at all to thorough experience. In the worst cases, we interviewed students from a major university who had no instrumental instruction because the instrumentation course was not offered at the undergraduate level. Many of the employment opportunities for those with B.S. degrees in chemistry are in the analytical laboratory, in a very broad spectrum of industries. Most companies that hire new graduates understand that they will need to train these new employees and acquaint them with the various idiosyncrasies of their respective industries. However, employers depend on the university to supply them with graduates with an adequate background in chemistry and the analytical process. This expectation is not unreasonable. It is incumbent upon us as professionals, both in academic institutions and industry, to work together to provide students with the necessary instruction in chemical analysis to compete in the modern industrial environment.
Graduates need a solid background in basic chemistry, exposure to modern analytical equipment, and critical analytical thinking skills. Industrial analytical chemists must be involved in developing solutions to this problem. A partnership with industry can provide a university with additional resources and the student with analytical perspectives. David R. Smith Raytheon Missile Systems Bldg. 807/G8 P.O. Box 11337 Tucson, AZ 85734
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