Departments & Programs
Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology
Bachelor of Science in Environmental Chemistry, non-A.C.S. Certified
With increased awareness of climate change and the impact of human endeavors on nature and human health, the Environmental Chemistry B.S. degree will provide curriculum that examines the environment at a molecular level. Lectures and laboratory courses and a broad selection of required courses in chemistry, geology, and biology are included.
Students who want to pursue an Environmental Chemistry major will find careers in applied fields, especially in industrial or manufacturing settings, analyzing chemicals and their impact on the environment. Additional paths for environmental chemists are in government agencies and for those who want to pursue teaching or fundamental research.
Degree Requirements
First-Year Experience Course Beginning freshmen and transfer students with fewer than 19 credit hours are required to take SCI-I 120 Windows on Science (1 cr.) or an equivalent first-year experience course.
Area I English Composition and Communication Competency See the School of Science requirements under “Undergraduate Programs” in this bulletin. The second semester of English composition may be satisfied only by ENG-W 150, ENG-W 230, ENG-W 231, ENG-W 270, ENG-W 320, or ENG-W 350.
Area II World Language Competency No world language proficiency is required for a Bachelor of Science degree.
Area IIIA Arts and Humanities, Social Sciences, and Cultural Understanding Competencies See the School of Science requirements under "Undergraduate Programs" in this bulletin.
For the most current list of courses in the areas of Arts and Humanities, Social Sciences and Cultural Understanding, please refer to the IU Indianapolis General Education Curriculum.
Area IIIC Life and Physical Sciences Competency BIOL-K 101, BIOL-K 103, BIOL-K 341, GEOL-G 107, GEOL-G 306, GEOL-G 406, PHYS-P 201 and PHYS-P 202.
Area IIID Analytical Reasoning Competency MATH-I 231 and MATH-I 232 (or equivalent introductory calculus sequence). One computer programming course is also required.
Note: Computer Science CSCI-N 100 level courses do not count for any credit toward any degree in the School of Science. Also, CSCI-N 241 and CSCI-N 299 do not count in Area IIID, but may count as general electives.
Area IV Chemistry Concentration Requirements CHEM-C 105, CHEM-C 125, CHEM-C 106, CHEM-C 126, CHEM-C 294, CHEM-C 310, CHEM-C 311, CHEM-C 341, CHEM-C 342, CHEM-C 343, CHEM-C 344, CHEM-C 325, CHEM-C 326, CHEM-C 360, CHEM-C 420, CHEM-C 421, CHEM-C 484, and CHEM-C 495. A total of 42 credit hours of chemistry courses are required. The Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology requires a minimum grade of C in all chemistry courses (C- grades are unacceptable).
Bachelor of Science: Sample Program, Environmental Chemistry Major - Non-A.C.S. Certified (120 cr. required)
Freshman Year
| First Semester | |
| CHEM-C 105 Principles of Chemistry I | 3 |
| CHEM-C 125 Experimental Chemistry I | 2 |
| BIOL-K 101 Concepts of Biology I | 5 |
| GEOL-G 107 Earth and Our Environment | 3 |
| MATH-I 231 Calculus for the Life Sciences I | 3 |
| SCI-I 120 Windows on Science | 1 |
| Total | 17 |
| Second Semester | |
| CHEM-C 106 Principles of Chemistry II | 3 |
| CHEM-C 126 Experimental Chemistry II | 2 |
| BIOL-K 103 Concepts of Biology II | 5 |
| GEOL-G 117 Earth and Our Environment Lab | 1 |
| MATH-I 232 Calculus for the Life Sciences II | 3 |
| ENG-W 131 Reading, Writing and Inquiry I | 3 |
| Total | 17 |
Sophomore Year
| Third Semester | |
| CHEM-C 341 Organic Chemistry I | 3 |
| CHEM-C 343 Organic Chemistry Laboratory I | 2 |
| BIOL-K 341 Principles of Ecology and Evolution | 3 |
| PHYS-P 201 General Physics I | 5 |
| 2nd Written Communication Course | 3 |
| Total | 16 |
| Fourth Semester | |
| CHEM-C 342 Organic Chemistry II | 3 |
| CHEM-C 344 Organic Chemistry Laboratory II | 2 |
| CHEM-C 294 Cornerstone in Chemistry | 1 |
| PHYS-P 202 General Physics II | 5 |
| COMM-R 110 Fundamentals of Speech Communication | 3 |
| Total | 14 |
Junior Year
| Fifth Semester | |
| CHEM-C 310 Analytical Chemistry Lecture | 3 |
| CHEM-C 311 Analytical Chemistry Lab | 1 |
| STAT-I 301 Elementary Statistical Methods | 3 |
| Arts & Humanities/Social Science (choose from list) | 3 |
| General Elective | 3 |
| Total | 13 |
| Sixth Semester | |
| CHEM-C 325 Intro to Chemical Instrumentation | 3 |
| CHEM-C 326 Intro Chemical Instrumentation Lab | 2 |
| CHEM-C 484 Biomolecules and Catabolism | 3 |
| GEOL-G 306 Earth Materials | 4 |
| Arts & Humanities/Social Science (choose from list) | 3 |
| Total | 15 |
Senior Year
| Seventh Semester | |
| GEOL-G 406 Introduction to Geochemistry | 3 |
| Computer Programming (approved course) | 3 |
| Arts & Humanities/Social Science (choose from list) | 3 |
| Cultural Understanding (choose from list) | 3 |
| General Elective | 3 |
| Total | 15 |
| Eighth Semester | |
| CHEM-C 360 Introduction to Physical Chemistry | 3 |
| CHEM-C 420 Environmental Chemistry | 3 |
| CHEM-C 421 Environmental Chemistry Lab | 1 |
| CHEM-C 495 Capstone in Chemistry | 1 |
| General Electives | 5 |
| Total | 13 |
The Department will not grant credit for a course when considerable duplication of course content may occur with another course taken. In general, credit will be allowed for the higher-level course, but not for the lower-level course. The following listings are considered to be duplications (lower-level courses listed first):
- CHEM-C 360 and CHEM-C 361
- MATH-I 231 / MATH-I 232 or MATH-I 241 / MATH-I 242 and MATH-I 165 / MATH-I 166
- PHYS-P 201 / PHYS-P 202 and PHYS-I 152 / PHYS-I 251
- PHYS-I 100 or PHYS-I 200 and PHYS-P 201 or PHYS-I 152
For example, if a student has earned credit in MATH-I 165 / MATH-I 166, the student will receive no credit for MATH-I 231 / MATH-I 232, even if earned previously. Note: MATH-I 165 / MATH-I 166 will satisfy the calculus requirement for the Environmental Chemistry major, as it is considered a more comprehensive calculus sequence.
On occasion, a student who initially enrolled in the B.S. in Chemistry program decides to transfer to the pre-professional B.A. in Chemistry program, having already taken one or more of the above-listed higher-level courses. A higher-level course will always substitute for a lower-level course to satisfy the requirement.
