Twenty-two students at Columbus State University recently visited Coca Cola’s headquarters in Atlanta to meet a panel of seven chemists in various roles.  They had the opportunity to network with the professionals over lunch and learn about their diverse backgrounds and how they have evolved in their roles as chemical specialists at Coca-Cola which ranged from aquatic chemistry at the Georgia Aquarium to growing mosquitoes at the CDC. The trip was part of CHEM 1715, an introductory chemistry seminar, which allows students to explore the many career options available within chemistry.
 
“I wanted to answer the questions that I couldn’t answer for my parents when I was an undergraduate student,” said Dr. Kerri Taylor, CSU chemistry professor who started the course in an effort to show students what they can do with a chemistry degree. “It’s a way for students to jump start their professional life. It’s a living users’ manual for actively utilizing chemistry in real life.”
 
The course has been offered to freshmen and sophomores at CSU for the past three years. This semester’s course included four field trips and eleven guest speakers. Students also read chemical journals on unusual tasks involving chemistry, and they are paired with junior and senior chemistry student mentors to help maneuver through these first years at CSU.
 
“This class definitely has given me more insight into what I can do with my major,” said Claudia Watson, a CSU sophomore double-majoring in chemistry and psychology. “Chemistry is more than becoming a doctor or pharmacist, and this class exposed me to other careers. I came into this class with the intention of being a medicinal chemist. Now there is a possibility that might change. It opened up more options for me to explore.”
 
First year chemistry major Kristina Armstrong agrees. “Taking this class has taught me how there is so much more around us than what we see on the surface. For example, at Coca-Cola we learned about how intricate the chemistry is for Coca-Cola beverages. This class has opened my eyes to so many different paths I could go down with chemistry.”
 
Transportation expenses associated with these field trip for CHEM 1715 are financially supported by CSU’s Quality Enhancement Plan, a university wide plan for improving student learning over a five-year period. CSU’s current QEP: We Solve It! is focused on fostering students’ creative real-world problem solving skills.