Materials Chemistry MChem (Hons)

In the first two years of your degree (known as sub-honours) you will take the required modules in Chemistry alongside modules in at least one other subject.

Typically, you will take one or two Chemistry modules per semester during your first two years, and four to six per semester during your third, fourth and fifth years

1st Year

Students will take the following compulsory first-year modules:

• Introduction to Inorganic and Physical Chemistry: covers the origin of the elements, atoms and the Periodic Table, shapes and properties of molecules, chemistry of the elements, properties of solutions, thermochemistry, thermodynamics and kinetics.
• Inorganic and Physical Chemistry 1: covers bonding in simple molecules, inorganic solids, chemistry of the first row transition metals, properties of solids, states of matter and introductory spectroscopy.
• Organic and Biological Chemistry 1: covers the structure, stereochemistry and nomenclature of simple organic compounds, fundamental organic reaction mechanisms, organic functional groups and their reactions, introductory bioorganic chemistry, and organic spectroscopy.

Students will take the following compulsory second-year modules:

• Inorganic Chemistry 2: covers metal complexes and organometallics, descriptive transition-metal chemistry, atmospheric chemistry, solid-state chemistry and descriptive main-group chemistry.
• Organic Chemistry 2: covers carbon-carbon bond formation, interconversion of functional groups, aromatic and heteroaromatic reactivity, mechanistic biological chemistry and organic spectroscopy.
• Physical Chemistry 2: covers quantum mechanics, thermodynamics and electrochemistry, kinetics, molecular spectroscopy and diffraction and mathematical tools for chemistry.

If you decide to take Materials Chemistry in your third year, you choose from a wide variety of advanced options, including modules ranging from physical inorganic chemistry to quantum theory of atoms, molecules and solids.

Here is a sample of Honours modules which have been offered in previous years:

• Statistical Mechanics and Computational Chemistry
• Introduction to Analysis of Materials
• Quantum Theory of Atoms, Molecules and Solids
• Chemistry of Materials.

During fourth year, you will have the opportunity to work on a placement outside St Andrews for a whole year. This is a great chance to gain experience in industry and to add value to your CV at the same time.

Typically, you may join a research and development group within a company and receive a salary for the duration of your placement. It is also possible for the placement to be carried out in an overseas academic institution.

The School will assist students in applying for an 8 to 13-month placement in a leading industrial research laboratory. The School has links with large and small companies of different types, including:

• AstraZeneca (UK)
• BASF (Germany)
• BP (UK)
• DSM (Amsterdam, Netherlands)
• GlaxoSmithKline (UK)
• Johnson Matthey (UK)
• Novartis (Basel, Switzerland)
• Roche (Basel, Switzerland)
• Rolls Royce (UK)
• SINTEF (Norway)

Alternatively, you have the choice to complete the MChem without doing an external placement, and will take lecture and practical modules during your fourth year Honours programme at St Andrews instead.

5th Year

During fifth year, you will take advanced research-led modules in your chosen speciality. Advanced modules offered in the past include:

• Nanostructured Materials
• Processing of Materials
• Energy Conversion and Storage
• Surface Chemistry and Heterogeneous Catalysis
• Chemical Applications of Electronic Structure Calculations.

Students will also undertake a substantial research project in their final year on a topic chosen in consultation with academic staff. The project aims to develop your skills in experimental design and problem-solving, the evaluation and interpretation of data, and communications skills.