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Important inquiries and advising information for students

For questions about course registrations and submission of request forms (departmental, FAS and lab exemptions), please contact Lisa Montesano, the undergraduate program assistant, at chemistry.reception@concordia.ca

For questions about course selection, program progress and other advising issues, please contact Dr. Gregor Kos, the undergraduate student advisor, at chembiochem.advising@concordia.ca.

To book an appointment with the Undergraduate Advisor, please use the online booking form.

For any Co-op and C.Edge inquiries, please contact Dr. Xavier Ottenwaelder at dr.x@concordia.ca or you can go to the following pages:  

Chemistry Co-op

Biochemistry Co-op

Welcome to all new students! For your interest, please see the student orientation presentation which contains helpful information as you start your studies here at Concordia.

The following are links to summary documents describing, for each program:

  • The required courses with an indication of when they are offered
  • Typical sequences followed by program students
  • A flowchart showing the prerequisite sequences
 
 
 

To help you plan your own schedule, we have created a fill-in form. Scheduling your courses is your responsibility. However, if you need to meet with an advisor to discuss your program and course selections, please be sure to fill in the appropriate checklist beforehand in order to save time:

Biochemistry checklist
Chemistry checklist

Graduation requirements

Departmental

Certain student requests are handled internally in the Department:

  • Add or remove a Minor
  • Change program (Major, Specialization or Honours)
  • Change program to Chemistry or Biochemistry from another department.

IMPORTANT

Honours programs - You must be in Acceptable Standing, your GPA must be at least 3.3 in program courses, and Department Permission is required.

Major and specialization programs - You must be in Acceptable Standing, your GPA must be at least 2.0 in program courses, and Department Permission is required.

(To change to a program given by another department, students must see an advisor in that department.)

  • Waive course prerequisites

Fill in a departmental student request form

  • Request a lab exemption if you are repeating a course taken no more than 2 years ago for which you passed the lab component (policy).

    Please note. There are strict deadlines for applications from registered students because labs start in the second week of term:

    • Summer term courses: May 
    • Fall term courses: September 
    • Winter term courses: January 
    • *Note the deadline for Summer 2024 term is TBD.  Once completed, please send form to chemistry.reception@concordia.ca.                                                                                     

Fill in a departmental lab exemption request form.

Note: Depending on your browser configuration, you may have to save the blank form, fill in the saved copy, and then re-save it to preserve the information you entered. Here is how to fill in PDF forms

  1. Make sure you have a recent version of Acrobat.
  2. Click on the link to open the form in your browser.
  3. Right click on it and save it somewhere convenient.
  4. Open it using Acrobat.
  5. Fill it in.
  6. Click the "Sign" button (top right). A side panel should open.
  7. Click "Signed. Proceed to Send".
  8. Click "Save a copy".
  9. Print or send the saved copy after making sure it is still filled in

Please make sure you do not e-mail a blank form!

Faculty

Certain student requests are handled by the Faculty of Arts and Science, but require a departmental advisor's signature for processing. For more information and forms, see the faculty web site. Such requests include:

  • Late registration, late withdrawal, or late discontinue
  • Credit overloads
  • Extention of late completion deadline
  • Transfer of external credits
  • Course substitutions
  • Remove exemptions
  • Retain credit
  • Waive 24-credit rule
  • Waive general education requirements

If you think you have done one or more program courses elswhere, which have not already been recognised as part of your admission conditions, and you wish to apply for transfer credit for them, you need to fill in the application form from this link, and provide the department with as much information about the courses as possible.

A brief calendar description is usually not adequate. Return the form and supporting materials to the departmental office.

CHEM 419 (Independent Study) or CHEM 450 (Honours Thesis)

These forms are available from the Departmental Office SP-201-01 or from the files below:

 

If you are Chemistry student, choose one of these two options:

CHEM 419 (CHEMISTRY SPECIALIZATION)

CHEM 450 (HONOURS CHEMISTRY)

 

If you are a Biochemistry student, choose one of these two options:

CHEM 419 (BIOCHEMISTRY SPECIALIZATION)

CHEM 450 (HONOURS BIOCHEMISTRY)

Most professors in the Department require students taking their courses to attend a seminar and take a Moodle quiz about plagiarism and other forms of academic dishonesty: we call this “CHEM 101”.

Plagiarism and other forms of academic dishonesty

The academic code of conduct can be found in of the University Calendar. Any form of unauthorized collaboration, cheating, copying or plagiarism which are suspected will be reported, and the appropriate sanctions applied.

The seminar the Department offers is a clear and fair opportunity to learn what our faculty regards as academic misconduct. Failure to take part in this learning opportunity and thus ignorance of these regulations is no excuse and will not result in a reduced sanction in any case where academic misconduct is observed.

The Academic Code for students taking chemistry or biochemistry courses

As part of most courses given by the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, you are required to:

  • Attend a Chemistry and Biochemistry seminar on the academic conduct code and the appropriate use of information sources. One or several are given around the second or third week of each term.
  • Pass the Moodle CHEM 101 22xx quiz associated with this seminar (note: the passing grade for the quiz is 100%).
    NoteThis is NOT the University's quiz you may have done on your Student Hub. This is also NOT the quiz in the “Academic Integrity” link offered in the top menu on every Moodle site. The correct quiz is at the bottom of the specialized Moodle site created by the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry (CHEM 101 22xx), and you cannot take it until after you have attended a CHEM 101 seminar.

The aim of this seminar is to clarify the academic conduct code in terms of what practices will be considered unacceptable with regards to work submitted for grading in Chemistry and Biochemistry courses. You are only exempt from CHEM 101, if you have completed both the seminar and the quiz within the past five years. If this is the case, you will find your ID number on the compliance list. It is updated towards the end of each term. Open the file and make sure that you are looking at the file time period that ends with the term before the current term (for example, if you are wondering whether you must take CHEM 101 for a course in Summer 2024, the file should read “S2019 - W2024”). If your ID number is not on the list, you are required to repeat the seminar and/or quiz. If the file shows an older term period, you either are looking to soon, or you need to clear your browser data and try again. If your ID is there but you did not get 100% on the quiz, see items 8 and 9 in the FAQ below.

This short seminar (less than 1 hour) will be held at the following times and locations. Note that late-comers will not be admitted.

*THE SIGN-UP PROCEDURE FOR SUMMER 2024 WILL BE COMMUNICATED BY E-MAIL TO ALL SUMMER STUDENTS*

 
Date (SUMMER 2024) Time Place
Thursday, May 23rd 19:30 - 20:30 zoom - online
FALL 2024 TBA in August    

 

If you do not complete this course requirement, at the discretion of your professor, your final grade for the course may be lowered by as much as one full letter grade with an incomplete notation until such time as this requirement is completed. Please refer to the undergraduate calendar and the FAQ below for details on removal of an incomplete notation.

**The SUMMER 2024 quiz closes at 23:55 on Sunday, June 9, 2024.

Frequently Asked Questions

  1. I keep trying the quiz but I can never get 11/11. Is there something I am doing wrong, or is there a bug in the quiz?

    You have probably not read any of the warnings (and there are several) about questions with two acceptable answers. For such questions you must select both these answers to get full marks. It is possible to check more than one box.

  2. When I finished the quiz, I think it told me I got 11/11 but now I am no longer sure. Is there any way I can check my mark?

    Yes, just go back to the quiz and you can view the record of your score(s) and even your answers, with the feedback, at each attempt.

  3. The grade I got in my CHEM course is much lower than I expected. Is it because I did not get 100% on the quiz?  

    Possibly, but you would also have received an INC notation if that was the issue. There may be many other reasons, so please check with your course instructor/professor.

  4. I got 10.7/11 on the quiz. Surely that is good enough?  

    No, it is not. If it is a CHEM course requirement, you have to get 100%. The consequences of a misunderstanding of what is, and what is not, permitted under the University's Academic Code of Conduct can be very serious. We want to make sure you know all the rules.

  5. I received an INC grade on my transcript last term because I had not attended the seminar. What must I do to get it removed?  

    You will have a chance to attend one of a number of seminars in the coming term. You must attend one, and inform your professor when you have done so. You will also have to apply for a "late completion grade" at  Registrar's Services (Birks Student Service Centre, online form at this link:  scroll down to the "late completion (INC)' entry on the site):  your Professor(s) cannot put through a grade change unless you have completed this formality (which will cost $30 per course). Check the deadlines, which are reproduced below from the University calendar: it may already be too late. If so, see question 7 below.

  6. Deadlines for late-completion application (read the list entries:  if your CHEM course was in the Fall, the deadline to apply for late-completion is the following Feb.1):

    Fall term: February 1st 
    Winter term: May 15th 
    Summer term: September 1st

  7. I received an INC grade on my transcript last term because I had not done the quiz. What must I do to get it removed?  

    You must get yourself registered to do the quiz: contact Prof. H.M. Muchall, but read first question 9 below. Then, do the quiz as soon as possible, and inform your Professor when you have achieved 100% (11/11). You will also have to apply for a "late completion grade" at Registrar's Services (Birks Student Service Centre, online form at this link:  scroll down to the "late completion (INC)" entry on the site):  your Professor(s) cannot put through a grade change unless you have completed this formality (which will cost $30 per course). Check the deadlines in question 5 above: it may already be too late. If so, see question 7 below.

  8. I only just noticed that I got an INC on my transcript, and the deadline for late completion has passed. What can I do now?  

    You will have to get permission from the Faculty of Arts and Science (Student Services) before Registrar's Services will allow you to apply late for a "late completion grade".  Contact Prof. H.M. Muchall to request teh details to prepare an Arts and Science Student Request (you must not try to submit a student request yourself).

  9. I did the seminar and quiz a year ago. Must I do them again?  

    No, you have to have done both within the last five years. In that case, you can find your student ID on this regularly updated list, with a blank entry under "quiz". If your "quiz" entry is not blank, you attempted the quiz but did  not pass it (you did not get 100%), and you will have to do the quiz again:  see question 9 below. You will also have to retake the seminar, if  your CHEM 101 attempt dates more than one term back.  If you are not on this list, then you've lost track of time, and you did it more than five years ago. In that case, you will also have to do both seminar and quiz again.  Remember to make sure you are working with the correct posted compliance list: open the file and check the time period. It must end with the term before the current term (for example, if you are wondering whether you must take CHEM 101 for a course in Summer 2024, the file should read “S2019 - W2024”).

  10. I did the seminar in a previous term, but not the quiz, and now I cannot access it.  What must I do?

    The quiz always closes at the quiz deadline.  You should e-mail Prof. H.M. Muchall who can confirm that you attended the seminar in the previous term and then register you for the quiz. If you attended the seminar earlier than the previous term, you first must repeat the seminar before you receive quiz access.  Please be sure to include your student ID number in your e-mail.

  11. I have forgotten if I already did the seminar and/or quiz. How can I find out?

    If you cannot remember whether you did these, you probably cannot remember what was covered either and should probably do them again! But see question 8 above on how to find out.

  12. I am an engineering student taking one pre-requisite CHEM course. Surely I do not have to do the seminar and quiz?

    Oh yes, you do!

These are courses given only occasionally, and which are not described in the Undergraduate Calendar. 

For additional details on time and location, please consult the Class Schedules

FALL 2024

**CHEM 426/626              REACTIVE INTERMEDIATES
Prerequisite:  CHEM 293 previously or concurrently
This course offers an introduction to reactive intermediates with an emphasis on structure and stability as found in modern (physical) organic chemistry. While the focus is on radicals and carbenes, carbocations are discussed near the end of the term. The material covered is relevant to chemistry and biochemistry.
Students who have received credit for 293 or for this topic under a CHEM 498 number may not take this course for credit.

 

##CHEM 476/676                  Structure and Function of Biomembranes
Prerequisites: BIOL 266; CHEM 375 previously; or permission of the Department
This course discusses what is known about how the membranes of biological organisms are assembled and the roles that these membranes play in a number of important processes. Emphasis is placed on the transport of proteins to and through biomembranes and the roles that membranes play in metabolite and ion transport. Where applicable, the significance of these processes is illustrated by examining the roles of membranes in health and disease.
Students who have received credit for this topic under a CHEM 498 number may not take this course for credit.

 

CHEM 477                ADVANCED LABORATORY IN BIOCHEMISTRY
Pre-requisites:  CHEM 271, 375
Theory and practice of techniques in enzymology and protein chemistry including steady-state and stopped-flow enzyme kinetics, ligand binding, immunological techniques, proteomics, computer modelling, and chemical modification of proteins.  Tutorials and laboratory.

 

CHEM 498/610                  ADVANCED DATA ANALYSIS
Prerequisites: CHEM312 previously or concurrently; or permission of the Department
Presents current methods of univariate, multivariate data analysis and experimental design. The introduction will cover the use of R and how prerequisite statistics knowledge is conducted in R. You will explore your own experimental data or data provided to obtain answers to research questions in a hands-on approach. Focus will be on the validation of models and a discussion of their limitations. The section on experimental design will introduce students to current methods using Modde software. Applications will be illustrated through discussion of the peer-reviewed literature, published methods and results.

 

## 400 - LEVEL BIOCHEMISTRY COURSES
**ORGANIC REPLACEMENT

WINTER 2025

**/## CHEM 425/625               NUCLEIC ACID CHEMISTRY
Prerequisites: CHEM 221, 222, 271
This course introduces students to various topics in nucleic acid chemistry. The topics include nomenclature, structure and function of RNA and DNA; techniques and methods to investigate nucleic acid structure; DNA damage and repair; interaction of small molecules and proteins with nucleic acids; oligonucleotide-based therapeutics (antisense, antigene, RNA); synthesis of purines, pyrimidines and nucleosides; and solid-phase oligonucleotide synthesis.
Students who have received credit for this topic under a CHEM 498 number may not take this course for credit.

 

**CHEM443/643               ORGANOMETALLIC CHEMISTRY
Prerequisite/Corequisite:  The following courses must be completed previously: 
CHEM 341. The following courses must be completed previously or concurrently: CHEM 324. If prerequisites are not satisfied, permission of the Department is required.
This course covers the structure and properties of organometallic compounds, their main reactions and their application in catalysis and organic chemistry.
Students who have received credit for this topic under a CHEM 498 number may not take this course for credit.

 

CHEM 458/658                   AQUATIC BIOGEOCHEMISTRY
Prerequisites:  CHEM 217, 218 and 312, or with permission of the instructor
.
The major aim of this course is to present a quantitative treatment of the variables that determine the composition of natural waters. Chemical equilibrium is the central theme of the course, but consideration is also given to kinetics, steady‑state and dynamic models. Related themes include global chemical cycles, air and water pollution, as well as current research topics in water chemistry and chemical oceanography.

 

##CHEM473/670               PROTEIN-PROTEIN INTERACTIONS
Prerequisite/Corequisite:  The following courses must be completed previously: 
CHEM 271CHEM 375. If prerequisites are not satisfied, permission of the Department is required.
This course provides an advanced examination of current topics in research related to understanding protein‑protein interactions in vitro and in vivo. Topics may include biological roles of protein‑protein interactions; evolution of protein‑protein interactions and correlated mutations; stable vs. transient interactions and their biological significance; interactomics; structural characteristics of protein‑protein interaction interfaces; targeted disruption of protein‑protein interactions and drug design; experimental approaches to measuring protein‑protein interactions.
Students who have received credit for this topic under a CHEM 498 number may not take this course for credit.

 

CHEM 498 – From Adsorbents to Catalysts: The Chemistry and Application of Porous Materials
Prerequisites: CHEM 222 and 241. (242 and 341 are recommended but not required)
This course gives an overview of functional porous materials including porous carbons, porous organic polymers (POPs), zeolites, covalent–organic frameworks (COFs), and metal–organic frameworks (MOFs). Recent literature will be used to highlight potential applications and key advances relevant to each class of porous materials. Topics include: synthetic techniques commonly utilized in the field of porous materials such as de novo methods (solvothermal, mechanochemical, electrochemical), and post-synthetic approaches (metal exchange, ligand exchange); nomenclature and topology; and a brief introduction to various characterization methods including gas adsorption, X-ray crystallography, thermogravimetric analysis, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and infrared spectroscopy.

 

## 400-LEVEL BIOCHEMISTRY COURSES
**ORGANIC REPLACEMENT

Below you will find some sample, recent course outlines to help guide you in selecting courses. Since professors and instructors change, do not use them for professor/instructor information. The professor or instructor teaching that course can be searched in this link.   

Course No:            Course Title:

CHEM 203            Forensic Analysis  
CHEM 205            General Chemistry I 
CHEM 206            General Chemistry II   
CHEM 208            Chemistry in our Lives
CHEM 209            Discovering Biotechnology
CHEM 212            Analytical Chemistry for Biologists
CHEM 217            Introductory Analytical Chemistry I - GK
CHEM 217            Introductory Analytical Chemistry I - YG                 
CHEM 218            Introductory Analytical Chemistry II
CHEM 221            Introductory Organic Chemistry I
CHEM 222            Introductory Organic Chemistry II                
CHEM 234            Thermodynamics                  
CHEM 235            Physical Chemistry II:  Kinetics of Chemical Reactions
CHEM 241            Inorganic Chemistry I: Intro to Periodicity and Valence Theory
CHEM 242            Inorganic Chemistry II: The Chemistry of the Main Group Elements
CHEM 271            Biochemistry I
CHEM 293            Spectroscopy and Structure of Organic Compounds
CHEM 298 (203)   Forensic Analysis
CHEM 312            Intermediate Analytical Chemistry
CHEM 324            Organic Chemistry III:  Organic Reactions
CHEM 325            Organic Chemistry IV: Organic Structure and Stereochemistry
CHEM 333            Introduction to Quantum Theory
CHEM 341            Inorganic Chemistry III:  The Transition Metals
CHEM 375            Biochemistry II
CHEM 424            Organic Synthesis
CHEM 425            Nucleic Acid Chemistry   
CHEM 426            Reactive Intermediates
CHEM 427            Advanced Topic in Chemistry - Polymer Chemistry and Nanotechnology
CHEM 431            Computational Chemistry for Chemists and Biochemists
CHEM 443            Organometallic Chemistry
CHEM 451            Nanochemistry
CHEM 470            Environmental Biochemistry
CHEM 477            Advanced Laboratory in Biochemistry
CHEM 495            Advanced Molecular Characterization
CHEM 498            Noncovalent Interactions
CHEM 498            Green Chemistry
CHEM 498            Chemical Biology of Natural Products
CHEM 498U          Advanced Bioanalytical Chemistry

 

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