Faculty Opportunity in Chemistry

The successful candidate for this position will teach organic chemistry lecture and laboratory courses at both foundational and advanced levels, as well as a course in the Sciences component of the Liberal Arts Core Curriculum. Representative course descriptions can be found in the catalog. There may be opportunities to contribute to general chemistry lecture and laboratory courses.

The normal teaching load at Colgate is five course credits per academic year. Lecture classes count for one course credit, and instructional lab sections count for one-half credit. The department offers some half-semester (seven week) lecture and lab courses that also count for half a teaching credit, and faculty earn a half teaching credit for supervising senior research projects (a requirement for all senior majors). The five courses are divided roughly evenly between the two semesters.

General chemistry and organic chemistry are taught in multiple sections, with each lecture class having 25-40 students and each lab section having 15-20 students. Our upper-level courses are generally much smaller, with typical enrollments ranging from 3-25 students. Upper-level lab courses are usually limited to 8 students. The department typically graduates a total of 20-30 chemistry and biochemistry majors each year. The student to faculty ratio at Colgate is 9:1.

Colgate does not offer regular courses in the summer. The summer months are reserved for research. Generous funding is available to allow Colgate undergraduates to work full-time in our labs during the summer; typically, most faculty members in the department have 2-4 students for 8-10 weeks. A highlight of the summer is the annual Tetrahedrathalon, the department’s picnic and sports outing.
 

We understand that many competitive candidates have not had extensive teaching experience as graduate students or as post-doctoral fellows, and may never have had full responsibility for a course. Perhaps they have served as a TA in recitation sections or labs, or mentored undergraduates in a research setting. Colgate provides a good deal of support for new faculty (and established faculty as well).

Chief among the support for teaching is the Center for Learning, Teaching, and Research, which sponsors many events including lunchtime teaching tables, symposia on teaching and learning, reading groups, and informal breakfasts to discuss pedagogy. Colgate’s Faculty Development Council oversees the allocation of funding for professional development for teaching and pedagogy, course development, and faculty travel related to course and professional development. There are many opportunities to meet with other faculty members, both within the department and outside, particularly during the faculty-wide retreat every spring to discuss the Liberal Arts Core Curriculum. Senior colleagues mentor pre-tenure members of the department and lend advice or a sympathetic ear. Chemistry department staff members are available to help prepare materials for the instructional laboratories, as well as for in-class lecture demonstrations.

The teaching statement (1-2 pages) is an excellent vehicle for you to share your ideas about teaching and the experiences you have had that will inform how you would teach at Colgate. We understand that you may not have had full responsibility for a course, but tell us about the teaching that you have done and what you learned from it. Feel free to highlight any workshops or training on teaching and learning that you have completed. Let us know why you want to teach in an undergraduate setting. We are eager to learn more about your experiences, interests, and how you plan to build on them in your classes at Colgate. Be sure to tell us about your preparation for teaching organic chemistry advanced classes and labs, especially any experiences and/or other qualifications that may not be listed on your CV.

Each professor in the department has a dedicated research laboratory. New faculty members are able to equip their lab with start-up funds from the university. The chemistry department stockroom maintains a large inventory of communal research supplies that are purchased using the department’s annual budget. The university’s Environmental Health and Safety Office stocks many common chemicals and solvents that are also generally purchased using department funds. The “Facilities” link on the department’s webpage lists some of the major shared equipment that is readily available. There are no “user fees” applied to the use of any department equipment.

In addition to funds for research supplies and chemicals, the chemistry department also receives institutional support for some major and minor equipment as part of our annual budget. The department is served by an administrative assistant, an instrument technician, and a stockroom supervisor. Colgate operates a dedicated science library.

Colgate provides annual funds to each faculty member for professional needs. Faculty members receive up to $2250/year to cover travel to conferences, professional books, professional society memberships or other expenses related to scholarly work. Additional funds of up to $1000 are available to support travel to conferences outside of the United States. Modest additional funding for laboratory research supplies/equipment or research travel is available via application to the Colgate Research Council.

Colgate has a generous sabbatical program, including a four-course pre-tenure leave, which is typically taken in the 4th year of teaching, after successful passage of the pre-tenure review. Post-tenure, faculty earn sabbaticals at the rate of 0.5 SLA (Scholarly Leave Account) credits for every 2 semesters taught. Faculty may also receive SLA credit for mentoring research students in the summer. Faculty members apply to take a sabbatical and typically use 2 to 3 SLA credits for a one-semester sabbatical or accumulate 5 SLA credits to take a two-semester sabbatical.

Every chemistry and biochemistry major completes a yearlong senior research project, but students as early as their first year might also work in a lab and receive student wages or academic credit. Funding is available from a variety of sources including the Division of Natural Sciences and Mathematics, endowed departmental student summer research funds, the Faculty Research Council, and through external grants. Typically ~200 undergraduates across all disciplines conduct summer research at Colgate. In the chemistry department, there are often about 30 students engaged in research during the summer.

Although external research funding is not a requirement for tenure, Colgate expects that new faculty members will establish active research programs that will be attractive to external funding agencies and that faculty will apply for funding. Colgate has a grants office to assist faculty in identifying potential funding opportunities and submitting competitive grant proposals. Faculty members in the department have had very good success over the years securing funds from many foundations and government agencies.

Your proposed research plans (typically ~5 pages) should be written for a non-specialist, while including sufficient detail to show that the research is well thought out. The research plans should be ambitious and address a significant area of chemistry. Your research plans should also be mindful of Colgate’s undergraduate setting, taking into consideration ways in which students can be involved in the proposed research.