Facilities | Faculty | Opportunities | Courses | Scholarships | Outcomes
The Chemistry Department at Moravian College focuses on providing students with a fundamental understanding of the concepts of chemistry and their applications to advanced problems. The program emphasizes exploration of chemical principles through hands-on experience with chemical instrumentation beginning in the general chemistry course. All students have the opportunity to work with faculty members an original research projects that range from theoretical to physical chemistry to biochemistry.
The Moravian chemistry major provides a firm foundation for medical school as well as for careers in the chemical and pharmaceutical industries. In conjunction with the teacher certification program, chemistry majors can qualify for secondary school certificates in chemistry and general science. The department offers additional advanced chemistry courses, including research experiences, that prepare students for graduate study in chemistry and lead to a Moravian bachelor's degree that is certified by the American Chemical Society.
Collier Hall of Science offers excellent facilities and equipment. The Chemistry Department currently maintains a GC-MS system, FTIR and UV-VIS spectrophotometers, an NMR spectrometer, electroanalytical instrumentation, gas chromatographs, and an HPLC system, as well as on-line chemical literature search capabilities through the STN System. In addition, chemistry students and faculty have access to X-ray diffraction and Mössbauer equipment maintained by the Physics Department and a low temperature laboratory, and electrophoresis and cell culture facilities maintained by the Biology Department.
A National Science Foundation Instructional Laboratory Instrumentation (NSF-ILI) grant made to the Moravian College Science Division in April 1993 provided funds for our gas chromatograph/mass spectrometer and a unique electronic instrumentation network that facilitates the use of science division instruments in teaching and research laboratories across the science division. The Moravian College Scientific Instrumentation Network (MOCOSIN) links all division instrumentation with Sun, Macintosh, and PC workstations, and file servers to allow efficient "off-line" analysis of instrumental data. MOCOSIN has allowed all science departments to expand their use of top line instruments in introductory and intermediate level courses. Another NSF-ILI grant received by the Chemistry Department in May of 1995 allowed the purchase of laser fluorescence equipment that is used in physical chemistry and physics courses as well as undergraduate research projects in chemistry and physics.
Many students participate in research with faculty through the Honors program, independent study, or summer research projects. Potential on-campus projects include chemical and enzyme kinetic studies, organic or inorganic syntheses, molecular orbital calculations, or spectroscopic or electrochemical studies of reaction intermediates and mechanisms. Students have also been involved in field study projects at Bethlehem Steel, AT&T, and Baker Instruments laboratories. The department encourages students to get involved in original research during their years at Moravian.
Cross-registration with member institutions of the Lehigh Valley Association of Independent Colleges enables students to take courses in polymer chemistry, engineering, and other specialties. In addition, Moravian College offers formal cooperative bachelor's degree programs with Lafayette College, the University of Pennsylvania, or Washington University (St. Louis) that can lead to degrees in chemical or biochemical engineering. The Moravian Chemistry Department also sponsors an American Chemical Society student affiliate chapter that is active in sponsoring guest lectures, receptions and field trips to local industrial and government laboratories.
Recent chemistry graduates have taken several career paths. Most have either taken technical or sales positions in chemistry-related industries, continued their study of chemistry in graduate school, or gone on to medical school, but a few have pursued careers in law or computer industries. A 1989 graduate recently received an M.D. from Jefferson University and a 1995 graduate is working toward an M.D. at the University of Pittsburgh. Three 1990 graduates have technical positions at Merck, Sharp & Dohme while two 1994 graduates are doing research at Air Products and Chemicals. Two 1992 graduates are working toward Ph.D. degrees in chemistry at Lehigh University. One 1994 graduate is pursuing a Ph.D. program in analytical chemistry at the University of Arizona and another an M.S. in chemical engineering at Washington University in St. Louis. Two 1995 graduates have begun work toward the Ph.D., one in chemistry at Penn State and the other in environmental chemistry at the College of William and Mary. Other graduates in the last ten years have accepted chemical positions at Hoffmann-LaRoche, Rohm & Haas Co., Hercules Co. Inc., L'Oreal Cosmetics J.T Baker, Inc., Pfizer Inc. and several other chemical and pharmaceutical companies; others continued their studies at Penn State, Ohio State, Lehigh, Rensselaer Polytechnic, and Temple among other schools. Chemistry pre-medical students have attended medical schools such as Jefferson, the University of Cincinnati, the University of Michigan (veterinary medicine), and the New Jersey School of Medicine. Overall, approximately 35% of the Moravian chemistry graduates have earned doctoral degrees in science or medicine.
For further information on scholarships and chemistry programs and opportunities, prospective students may contact
Dr. R. Daniel Libby, Chair
Department of Chemistry
Moravian College
1200 Main Street
Bethlehem, PA 18018
(610) 861-1436 Voice
(610) 861-3197 Fax
Internet: merdl01@moravian.edu