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Frequently Asked Questions about the Cornell College
Chemistry Department
How big will my introductory classes be?
Is help available when I need it?
Is the one-course-at-a-time schedule a good way to study
chemistry?
How do the labs work?
Are your students well prepared for graduate or medical
school?
Are there opportunities to do research in your department?
What about internships?
How big will my introductory classes be?
At Cornell, all of our courses are capped at 25 students. Many of our
classes are actually much smaller than that. Close relationships that
develop with their professors are repeatedly cited by our students as
being the most important factor in their satisfaction with Cornell. With
our small class sizes, we certainly get to know our students well. This
is particularly nice when students need letters of recommendation and
have developed strong working relationships with several faculty members.
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Is help available when I need it?
We teach only one course at a time, so much of that time is devoted exclusively
to the students in that course. We are in contact with our students several
hours each day. We typically have daily office hours and, in practice,
our students come for help pretty much any time they need it. We also
provide tutors for additional help, free of charge.
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Is the one-course-at-a-time schedule a good way
to study chemistry?
We believe that it is. It allows us to present the material in a seamless
fashion without interruption. The schedule allows us to tailor our class
time for group activities or class discussions that don't need to be cut
short for other classes. Students never have to "blow-off" one
class in order to study for another. Other difficult courses such as calculus
or physics never interfere with chemistry. The students never have to
worry about multiple exams in one day. One of our favorite things is having
the flexibility to give un-timed exams.
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How do the labs work?
Our schedule allows us the ability to customize our lab time for each
course. For example, in some of the introductory chemistry courses we
typically have lecture in the morning with lab two afternoons a week.
Other courses may be taught with more of a workshop format where we will
have a bit of lecture and then immediately go to the lab to get some practical
experience with the topic, followed by a return to the lecture room to
talk about our results. In the Organic Chemistry sequence, we have two
terms of lecture and one term of lab as separate courses. This allows
us time to spend the entire day with our lab activities. The advanced
courses mix lecture and lab time as needed to best suit the course.
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Are your students well prepared for graduate or
medical school?
Absolutely. Our alums have very high rates of acceptance into professional
schools and do particularly well once they get there. Our graduates tell
us that they are very happy with their Cornell education and they feel
that they were better prepared for graduate or medical school than many
of the other students there.
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Are there opportunities to do research in your
department?
The department maintains a long tradition of summer research. Students
and faculty have the opportunity to take part in a ten-week session of
very intense laboratory research each summer. This research is supported
by the college as well as by external grants.
The one-course-at-a-time schedule also offers unique opportunities to
conduct research during the academic year. Month-long independent study
projects are undertaken by students on a wide variety of topics of interest
to the students and faculty. Previous projects have included extensions
of summer research projects as well as projects dealing with the development
of new undergraduate laboratory exercises, the exploration of new dyes,
and even the chemistry of photography.
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What about internships?
The one-course-at-a-time schedule allows for the opportunity to do month-long
internships away from campus. Our Career Services Office provides personalized
service for students looking for assistance finding employment or internships.
For help locating internship positions or with job searching, visit the
Cornell College Office of Career Services.
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