Program infrastructure must receive strong institutional support to provide sustainability through inevitable changes in faculty, leadership and funding levels.

Physical Plant

  • Laboratory spaces for research and instruction in the chemical sciences must be suitable for their purpose and must meet applicable government regulations. 
  • Properly functioning and appropriate fume hoods, safety showers, eyewashes, first aid kits, and fire extinguishers must be readily available. 
  • Construction or renovations of laboratory facilities must conform to appropriate safety regulations as mandated by government.
  • Complying with regulations is a legal requirement.

Chemical Information Resources

  • A program must provide immediate institutional access to no fewer than 9 current and archival, peer reviewed journals whose subject matter spans the chemical sciences.
    • At least three of these journals must have a general focus.
    • At least one must come from each area of ABIOP: analytical chemistry, biochemistry, inorganic chemistry, organic chemistry, physical chemistry, and chemistry education.
  • The library must provide timely access for articles not available on site.
  • Programs must provide students with access to technical databases including structure based searching.

Laboratory Safety Resources

Program must be conducted in a safe environment that is consistent with the following features:

  • There must be a written chemical hygiene plan consistent with local, regional, or national standards.
  • A mechanism for harmonizing this plan with the teaching and research activities of the program is required for the establishment of a safety culture.
  • Laboratory safety plans need to recognize hazards encountered in teaching and research activities.
  • Hazardous waste management must be part of the chemical hygiene plan and adhere to local, regional, or national regulations regarding hazardous waste management and laboratory safety. This includes maintence of proper facilities for chemical waste disposal and personnel to address this task.
  • Appropriate personal protective equipment must be readily available to students, staff, and faculty.

Instrumentation

NMR

Programs must have a functioning NMR on site that is available for use by undergraduate students. If the on-site instrument does not meet all of the program's research needs, stable arrangements must be made with near by sites to provide ready access to appropriate NMR instrumentation. The NMR instrumentation supports the instructional and research needs of the program.

Other Instrumentation

Instruments from at least four of the following five categories must be on site and used by undergraduates:

  • Optical Molecular Spectroscopy
  • Optical Atomic Spectroscopy
  • Mass Spectrometry
  • Chromatography and Separations
  • Electrochemistry

Programs must maintain an additional complement of instruments adequate to support curriculum, including undergraduate research.

Instrument Maintenance

The institution must maintain the instrumentation in adequate operating condition.


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Contact the ACS Approval Program
cpt@acs.org

Phone: 202-872-4589 | Fax: 202-872-6066
Mail: Office of Professional Training
American Chemical Society, 1155 16th St., NW, Washington, D.C. 20036