Seminar Course for First-year Students in Physical Chemistry

University of Colorado at Boulder

Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry

What is the issue we are trying to address?

Weekly seminars bring together students and faculty to learn about the latest research being done in our field. Our physical chemistry faculty has created a seminar course to improve student participation in the seminar and in our faculty-student community.

How do we know that this is an issue?

In previous years, the physical chemistry seminar has had problems with attendance, comprehension (tested by cumulative exams), and student participation in the post-seminar discussion.

What is the change or innovation that is intended to address this issue?

The seminar now has a mandatory 2-credit course component for first-year students in physical chemistry. Before the seminar, students read papers (hand-picked by lead faculty) related to the speaker's research, prepare questions for the speaker, and meet with the speaker and lead faculty for a discussion of the speaker's research. Students are expected to attend and take an active role in the seminar (e.g., invite and host speakers).

Why did we select that approach?

The idea for a seminar course came up in the context of faculty discussions on alternatives to formal coursework for our students. New students are often unfamiliar with the vast array of technical methods used in our field. A course that introduces students to the seminar topics, prior to the actual seminar, with an emphasis on discussion, seemed like a natural choice for improving student participation and the overall educational experience of the seminar.

What is the intended effect of the innovation?

The seminar course is intended to improve student participation in and comprehension of our divisional seminar and to give students more opportunities to interact with department faculty and other leaders in our field.

What data or evidence will demonstrate the effect of our innovation?

Informal interviews with both student and faculty participants suggest that the seminar course, particularly its interactive format, is well liked. Cumulative exams will continue to be used as a measure of student comprehension.