Chemistry Major
The major is recommended for students planning careers in chemistry. It is suitable preparation for graduate study in chemistry or medical school and for work as a professional chemist. The curriculum includes related courses in mathematics and physics as well as core courses and a concentration in chemistry.
Students must also complete the Undergraduate Registration Requirement and the degree requirements of their home school.
NOTE: This Catalog describes Weinberg College BA requirements that pertain to students who matriculated at Northwestern after spring quarter 2023. Refer to the Archives if you are following BA requirements described in the 2018-2019 through 2022-2023 editions.
| Course | Title |
|---|---|
| Department Courses (16.7–18.04 units) | |
| 14.7–16.04 core units providing a solid basis in chemistry | |
| CHEM 110-0 & CHEM 131-0 & CHEM 141-0 & CHEM 132-0 & CHEM 142-0 | Quantitative Problem Solving in Chemistry and Fundamentals of Chemistry I and Fundamentals of Chemistry Laboratory I and Fundamentals of Chemistry II and Fundamentals of Chemistry Laboratory II |
| or CHEM 151-0 & CHEM 161-0 & CHEM 152-0 & CHEM 162-0 | General Chemistry I and General Chemistry Laboratory I and General Chemistry II and General Chemistry Laboratory II |
| or CHEM 171-0 & CHEM 181-0 & CHEM 172-0 & CHEM 182-0 | Advanced General Inorganic Chemistry and Advanced General Inorganic Chemistry Laboratory and Advanced General Physical Chemistry and Advanced General Physical Chemistry Laboratory |
| CHEM 220-0 | Introductory Instrumental Analysis |
| CHEM 217-1 & CHEM 237-1 & CHEM 217-2 & CHEM 237-2 & CHEM 217-3 & CHEM 235-3 | Accelerated Organic Chemistry I and Accelerated Organic Chemistry Laboratory I and Accelerated Organic Chemistry II and Accelerated Organic Chemistry Laboratory II and Accelerated Organic Chemistry III and Organic Chemistry Lab III |
Students who complete the non-majors organic sequence CHEM 215-1, CHEM 215-2, and CHEM 215-3 with associated labs, and decide later to major in chemistry, are permitted to use these courses in place of CHEM 217-1, CHEM 217-2, and CHEM 217-3 and associated labs. | |
| CHEM 333-0 | Inorganic Chemistry |
| CHEM 342-1 & CHEM 342-2 & CHEM 342-3 | Thermodynamics and Quantum Mechanics and Spectroscopy and Kinetics and Statistical Thermodynamics |
| CHEM 350-1 & CHEM 350-2 & CHEM 350-3 | Advanced Laboratory 1 and Advanced Laboratory 2 and Advanced Laboratory 3 |
| 2 courses from one of these concentration areas: | |
| Related Courses (Units depend on mathematics courses taken.) | |
| BIOL_SCI 301-0 | Principles of Biochemistry |
| or BIOL_SCI 241-0 | Biochemistry, Molecular and Cell Biology for ISP - 2 |
| MATH 220-1 & MATH 220-2 | Single-Variable Differential Calculus and Single-Variable Integral Calculus |
| or MATH 218-1 & MATH 218-2 & MATH 218-3 | Single-Variable Calculus with Precalculus and Single-Variable Calculus with Precalculus and Single-Variable Calculus with Precalculus |
| MATH 230-1 & MATH 230-2 | Multivariable Differential Calculus and Multivariable Integral Calculus |
| or MATH 281-1 & MATH 281-2 | Accelerated Mathematics for ISP: First Year and Accelerated Mathematics for ISP: First Year |
| or MATH 285-2 & MATH 285-3 | Accelerated Mathematics for MMSS and Accelerated Mathematics for MMSS |
| or MATH 290-2 & MATH 290-3 | MENU: Linear Algebra and Multivariable Calculus and MENU: Linear Algebra and Multivariable Calculus |
| or MATH 291-2 & MATH 291-3 | MENU: Intensive Linear Algebra and Multivariable Calculus and MENU: Intensive Linear Algebra and Multivariable Calculus |
| PHYSICS 125-1 & PHYSICS 125-2 & PHYSICS 125-3 & PHYSICS 126-1 & PHYSICS 126-2 & PHYSICS 126-3 | General Physics ISP and General Physics for ISP and General Physics for ISP and Physics Laboratory for ISP and Physics Laboratory for ISP and Physics Laboratory for ISP |
| or PHYSICS 135-1 & PHYSICS 135-2 & PHYSICS 135-3 & PHYSICS 136-1 & PHYSICS 136-2 & PHYSICS 136-3 | General Physics and General Physics and General Physics and General Physics Laboratory and General Physics Laboratory and General Physics Laboratory |
| or PHYSICS 140-1 & PHYSICS 140-2 & PHYSICS 140-3 & PHYSICS 136-1 & PHYSICS 136-2 & PHYSICS 136-3 | Fundamentals of Physics and Fundamentals of Physics and Fundamentals of Physics and General Physics Laboratory and General Physics Laboratory and General Physics Laboratory |
Concentration Courses
- Areas of concentration draw upon courses within the department as well as in other departments.
- Concentration courses are typically taken during the final year of undergraduate study.
- The concentration areas, along with eligible courses, are:
Biochemistry
| Course | Title |
|---|---|
| CHEM 305-0 | Chemistry of Life Processes |
| CHEM 314-0 | Principles of Chemical Biology |
| CHEM 316-0 | Medicinal Chemistry: the Organic Chemistry of Drug Design and Action |
| CHEM 432-0 | X-Ray Crystallography |
| BIOL_SCI 361-0 | Protein Structure and Function |
Environmental Chemistry
| Course | Title |
|---|---|
| CHEM 306-0 | Environmental Chemistry |
| CHEM 393-0 | Green Chemistry |
| CHEM 445-0 | Advanced Physical & Analytical Chemistry 1 |
| CIV_ENV 260-0 | Environmental Systems and Processes |
| CIV_ENV 314-0 | Organic Geochemistry |
| CIV_ENV 365-0 | Environmental Laboratory |
| CIV_ENV 367-0 | Chemical Processes in Aquatic Systems |
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Only applicable when class topic is "The Chemistry and Materials of Alternative Energy"
Inorganic Chemistry
| Course | Title |
|---|---|
| CHEM 302-0 | Principles of Inorganic Chemistry |
| CHEM 411-0 | Organic Spectroscopy |
| CHEM 432-0 | X-Ray Crystallography |
| CHEM 433-0 | Structural Inorganic Chemistry |
| CHEM 434-0 | Inorganic Chemistry |
| CHEM 435-0 | Advanced Inorganic Chemistry |
Organic Chemistry
| Course | Title |
|---|---|
| CHEM 309-0 | Polymer Chemistry |
| CHEM 310-1 | Physical Organic Chemistry I |
| CHEM 310-2 | Physical Organic Chemistry II |
| CHEM 313-0 | Advanced Organic Chemistry 1. Advanced concepts of organic reactivity and selectivity in synthesis. |
| CHEM 314-0 | Principles of Chemical Biology |
| CHEM 316-0 | Medicinal Chemistry: the Organic Chemistry of Drug Design and Action |
| CHEM 319-0 | Advanced Organic Synthesis - Concepts and Applications |
| CHEM 410-0 | Physical Organic Chemistry |
| CHEM 411-0 | Organic Spectroscopy |
| CHEM 412-0 | Organometallic Reaction Mechanisms |
| CHEM 415-0 | Advanced Organic Chemistry |
Physical Chemistry
| Course | Title |
|---|---|
| CHEM 442-1 | Quantum Chemistry |
| CHEM 442-2 | Quantum Chemistry |
| CHEM 443-0 | Kinetics and Spectroscopy |
| CHEM 444-0 | Elementary Statistical Mechanics |
| CHEM 445-0 | Advanced Physical & Analytical Chemistry |
| CHEM 448-0 | Computational Chemistry |
Materials/Nanotechnology
| Course | Title |
|---|---|
| CHEM 307-0 | Supramolecular Design of Materials and Nanostructures 1 |
| or MAT_SCI 336-0 | Synthetic Design of New Materials |
| CHEM 308-0 | Design, Synthesis, and Applications of Nanomaterials |
| CHEM 309-0 | Polymer Chemistry |
| MAT_SCI 201-0 | Introduction to Materials Science and Engineering Principles |
| MAT_SCI 301-0 | Introduction to Materials Science and Engineering Principles |
| MAT_SCI 331-0 | Soft Materials |
| MAT_SCI 376-0 | Nanomaterials |
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Students may not count both CHEM 307-0 and MAT_SCI 336-0 toward their Chemistry major.
Self-designed Concentration
If the concentrations above do not meet their interests, students may design a concentration with approval of the Director of Undergraduate Studies in Chemistry. A concentration may consist of 2 courses from the areas above or with a common theme.
Honors in Chemistry
Majors who have done outstanding work in the classroom and research laboratory may be eligible for graduation with honors in chemistry. Students who intend to submit a senior thesis should send an e-mail message (including the name of the research adviser) to the director of undergraduate studies by fall of senior year. To be eligible for honors, a student must meet minimum GPA requirements, engage in original research during at least two quarters of CHEM 399-0 Independent Study, and write a senior thesis on this research. The CHEM 399-0 credits are not required for and do not count toward the chemistry major.
Students whose theses and grades meet department criteria are recommended to the college for graduation with honors. For more information consult the Director of Undergraduate Studies in Chemistry and see Honors in the Major.