Integrating Professional Skills into Undergraduate Chemistry Curricula

From students to professional chemists... Navigating the professional world as a chemist or biochemist requires specific professional skills. There are some resources that will help students learn these skills, but it's often difficult to utilize these in real-world situations. Underserved groups often aren't given tips and tricks to help them move forward, and the lack of resources can put individuals at a real disadvantage upon graduation. In order to increase the accessibility of these services and support students' development for a productive career, programs should work to integrate and scaffold professional skills experiences within the curriculum. This book explores the current need for professional skills curricula. It offers detailed examples, tips for learning opportunities, and assessment methods for academics and professionals working with students studying chemistry. The contributors of this volume discuss the importance of increasing accessibility to services like these and ways programs can provide students with everything they need in their curriculum.

Kelly Y. Neiles (Ph.D., The Catholic University of America) is Associate Professor in, and Chair of, the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at St. Mary's College of Maryland. In Spring/Summer 2020, she was Theodore Ashford Fellow for the American Chemistry Society Division of Chemical Education Examinations Institute. She received the Homer L. Dodge Award for Excellence in Teaching by a Junior Faculty Member from St. Mary's, where she leads institutional level curricular change and assessment efforts including her work as a co-leader for the Council on Undergraduate Research Transformations Project (NSF-DUE Award #1625354). Pamela S. Mertz (Ph.D., Mayo Graduate School) is Professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at St. Mary's College of Maryland. She has played an instrumental role in planning, developing, and implementing the biochemistry curriculum at St. Mary's. Mertz is a department co-leader with Neiles for the CUR Transformations Project, and she served as a South East Regional Director for the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Student Chapters from 2013-2020. She was recently elected Chair of Educational and Professional Development committee, where she will serve for three years. She served on the steering committee for an ASBMB sponsored grant, "Promoting Concept Driven Teaching Strategies in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology through Concept Assessments" (NSF-RCN-UBE Award #0957205). Justin D. Fair (Ph.D., University of Connecticut) is Professor in the Madia Department of Chemistry at Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP). He teaches graduate and undergraduate organic chemistry. include graduate and undergraduate coursework in Organic Chemistry. He is a recipient of his University's Distinguished Service Award (2017), IUP's Research Institute Investigator Award (2018), and two Teaching Excellence awards. Fair has authored more than 15 publications and presented over 50 presentations resulting in grant funded projects and IUP's Professional Teamwork and Leadership minor (NSF-DUE Award #1625429). Prior to IUP, Fair was a Nuclear Medical Science Officer in the U.S. Army. He is now a member of the Indiana County Technical Rescue and Hazardous Materials Response Team.