Professional skills in chemistry and chemistry-based technology curricula

Whether you call them “soft skills,” “higher order skills,” “employability skills,” or “student skills,” they are the skills that take students beyond chemistry knowledge into the world of chemical professionals. Here are some resources that may help you incorporate these skills into your curriculum.

Reports and papers

• Two-Year College Chemistry Landscape 2013 data tables and reported practices
  See what practices survey participants particularly helpful in the teaching and assessment of professional skills.
• Journal of Chemical Education
  Search for ideas on how faculty at two- and four-year institutions incorporate soft skills into the classroom.
  

Access to chemical literature

• ACS Open Access Initiatives
  Find out how ACS makes chemical literature more accessible
  

ACS Webinar® recordings

• Write Well and Prosper – Science Writing Tips (ACS members only)
  
• Tips for Creating High Impact Scientific Poster Presentations (ACS members only)
  
• The Transition from Graduation to a Career in Industry (ACS members only)
  
• The Introverts (and Shy Guys and Gals) Guide to Success in Science and Leadership (ACS members only)
  

Student skills supplements to the ACS Guidelines and Evaluation Procedures for Bachelor’s Degree Programs

• Chemical Information Skills
• Teaching Professional Ethics
• Preparing a Research Report
• Laboratory Safety
• Development of Student Skills in a Chemistry Curriculum

Other resources

• Assessing Skills at Northern Essex Community College*
• CATEP Employability Skills Super-Set*
• Development of a Curriculum to Teach the “Soft Skills” Necessary for the Future Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Laboratory Technician Workforce*

*This resource is available outside of ACS and is provided for informational use only. Listing of a product or service on this website does not constitute an endorsement by ACS.