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1
Introduction
Chemistry graduate education is under considerable pressure. Phar-
maceutical companies, long a major employer of synthetic organic chem-
ists, are drastically paring back their research divisions to reduce costs.
Chemical companies are opening new R&D facilities in Asia rather than
in the United States to take advantage of growing markets and trained
workforces there. Universities, especially public universities, are under
significant fiscal constraints that threaten their ability to hire new faculty
members. Future federal funding of chemical research may be limited as
the federal budget tightens. All of these trends have major consequences
for the education of chemistry graduate students in U.S. universities.
To explore and respond to these intensifying pressures, the Board on
Chemical Sciences and Technology held a workshop in Washington, D.C.,
on January 23-24, 2012, entitled “Graduate Education in Chemistry in the
Context of a Changing Environment.” The workshop brought together
representatives from across the chemical enterprise, representing leaders
and future leaders of academia, industry, and government. The goal of the
workshop was not to come to conclusions but to have an open and frank
discussion about critical issues affecting chemistry graduate education,
such as the attraction and retainment of the most able students to gradu -
ate education, financial stressors on the current support model and their
implications for the future model, competencies needed in the changing
job market for PhD chemists, and competencies needed to address societal
problems such as energy and sustainability. The ultimate objective was to
capture ideas and opinions as input to the National Science Foundation
1
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2 CHALLENGES IN CHEMISTRY GRADUATE EDUCATION
(NSF), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and other organizations in
shaping current and future programs. The report summarizes the views
expressed by workshop participants, and while the committee is respon-
sible for the overall quality and accuracy of the report as a record of what
transpired at the workshop, the views contained in the report are not
necessarily those of the committee.
ORGANIZATION OF THE REPORT
This report of the workshop is organized into six chapters. Chapter 2
summarizes several presentations that focused on the challenges facing
graduate chemistry education. Chapter 3 examines what the goals of
chemistry education have been and how those goals might change in the
future. Chapter 4 looks at the skills chemistry students acquire in gradu -
ate school. Chapter 5 explores how the structure of graduate education
could change to meet future goals and impart necessary skills. Each of
these chapters contains both summaries of the presentations made dur-
ing the workshop and points raised during the discussion sessions held
throughout the workshop. Finally, Chapter 6 compiles the suggestions
for changes in and comments on graduate education described in ear-
lier chapters as a way of summarizing the many ideas raised during the
workshop.
Although not comprehensive, this report provides readers with an
overview of several topics discussed at the workshop: (1) the challenges
facing graduate chemistry education, (2) goals of chemistry education,
(3) skills students acquire and would benefit from acquiring in graduate
school, (4) how the structure of graduate education could change to meet
future goals, and finally, (5) suggestions for change raised by individual
workshop participants. This report does not contain any findings or rec -
ommendations related to these topics, as this was not part of the state-
ment of task. This report summarizes presentations given at the workshop
and the views expressed by workshop participants.
QUESTIONS TO BE ANSWERED
In his introductory remarks at the workshop, Joe Francisco, William
E. Moore Distinguished Professor of Chemistry at Purdue University, who
was chair of the committee for the workshop, said that U.S. graduate edu-
cation has served as a global model for developing the best-prepared and
most innovative chemists in the world. U.S. graduate programs continue
to attract the best talents from around the globe. They provide employees
for companies, universities, government laboratories, and other institu -
tions in the United States and abroad.
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3
INTRODUCTION
However, he noted that the context for graduate education in chemis -
try is changing. The chemical enterprise has become more global. Chemis-
try graduate programs in other countries are becoming more competitive
in attracting students and producing research results. These changes have
profound implications for U.S. graduate programs.
Francisco listed a number of questions that could be addressed at the
workshop.
• Do U.S. graduate programs need to do more to prepare students
to be more competitive in a global chemical enterprise?
• Do educators know what industry is looking for in the new doc-
toral recipients that it recruits?
• What are the perspectives of students coming into these programs?
• Is the depth of training of graduate students more important than
broader preparation? For example, do graduate students need
more training in being able to communicate with people who
do not have science backgrounds and with people from other
cultures who speak languages other than English?
• If graduate training becomes broader, what will be given up, and
will this compromise the quality of training?
• Do present-day graduate students need to be prepared for non-
traditional jobs, especially given that many are interested in
becoming entrepreneurs and others have been unable to find
traditional jobs?
• Are graduate programs in chemistry contributing to societal
needs on a local, regional, national, and global level?
• How can the diversity of chemistry graduate students be
increased?
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