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Required Courses for Major

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Chemistry Major, B.S. Course Catalog

About this Program

If you intend to pursue a post-graduate degree or employment in higher education, K-12, government or the nonprofit sector, our B.S. in Chemistry will help you achieve your goal. Because MSU Denver is among the most affordable four-year universities in the nation, you can obtain your Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry here without breaking the bank.

Concentration :

  • ACS Certification: The with American Chemical Society (ACS) certification means that you have passed exams in every facet of Chemistry and in the instrumentation and techniques used in practical laboratories. With ACS certification you will be considered immediately employable as a technical analyst in a wide range of industry careers.
  • Chemistry Major, B.A. with Secondary Science Teacher Licensure Concentration

Facilities and Resources

Housed in the state-of-the-art Science Building on the Auraria Campus adjacent to downtown Denver, MSU Denver’s Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry has nine teaching labs, three research labs, a classroom/laboratory dedicated to the Criminalistics program and a microscope room that doubles as research space for the department’s faculty. The department has optimum instrumentation including the following:

  • GC-FID, flame AA and ICP spectrometers
  • fluorimeter and UV-Vis systems
  • PCR thermocyclers, gel boxes and gel imaging systems
  • Bruker 300 MHz NMR
  • polarized light and comparison microscopes
  • dedicated cold room

Career Opportunities for Our Graduates

Chemistry Header

Your Chemistry degree from MSU Denver will open up numerous opportunities in research and development, quality control/regulatory, manufacturing, law and policy and academia.

As a chemist, you can anticipate a median salary of $72,610; the job outlook is for 3 percent growth from 2014-2024 (Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Outlook Handbook).

Typical career opportunities for chemists include:

  • Research chemist
  • Analytical chemist
  • Research associate
  • Chemist
  • Lab technician
  • Professional research associate
  • Clinical technician

If you hold the B.S. in Chemistry with the Criminalistics concentration, you may find employment with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Drug Enforcement Administration, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Customs and Armed Services Laboratories, among others. Forensic science technicians earn $56,320 and the field is expected to grow 27 percent from 2014-2024.

For a postsecondary chemistry teacher, the annual median salary is $72,420 with a 13 percent growth rate between 2014-2024 (BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook).

Featured Faculty

April Hill

Associate Professor and Director of Criminalistics April Hill has collaborated with the Denver Museum of Nature & Science on several projects, including analyzing residues in ancient Mayan beer vessels to recreate an authentic Mayan beer and performing a demonstration of the Marsh Test for arsenic which was featured in the museums recent Poisons exhibit. Her development of an innovative method for teaching Chemistry to blind and low-vision students was awarded a ChemLuminary Award from the American Chemical Society and has been published in the Journal of Chemical Education.

Josh Martin

Associate Professor Josh Martin runs a research group focused on photochemical and photophysical properties of biologically relevant systems. They use both spectroscopic and theoretical techniques to examine the utility of intrinsic probes, the role of the local solvent environment, and photoinduced electron- and energy-transfer processes in peptides and proteins.

Alumni at Work

Many MSU Denver Chemistry alumni are employed with private, state and local laboratories, including:

  • Environmental Protection Agency
  • Coca-Cola Bottling Co.
  • Hazen Research
  • North Dakota State Crime Laboratory
  • Salt Lake City Police Department
  • Washington State Patrol Crime Laboratory
  • Douglas County Sheriff’s Office
  • Boulder County Coroner’s Office
  • CoorsTek

MSU Denver Chemistry alumni have been accepted for post-graduate study at:

  • Washington State University
  • University of Colorado Boulder
  • University of Maryland Baltimore County
  • Colorado State University

Honors

Chemistry Program Honors

Program Accreditation

Chemistry Program Accreditation

The MSU Denver Chemistry and Biochemistry curriculum is approved by the American Chemical Society and follows the guidelines of the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology.

Contact the Department of Chermistry and Biochemistry

Office Campus Location:

Science Building, Room 3062

Hours:

Monday-Friday – 8:30am-4:30pm

Phone:

303-615-0345