Women in the Sciences

Chemistry at Wellesley: World-Class Research and Community Collaboration

"Students who collaborate on research projects are co-authors on faculty publications, and are often invited to attend scientific meetings with faculty members they are working with. People are shocked when they find out Wellesley students are undergraduates."
Nancy Kolodny
Cohen/Heller Professor of Chemistry

"Even the most senior faculty members teach introductory courses in the sciences," says Cohen/Heller Professor of Chemistry Nancy H. Kolodny. "I love teaching introductory courses because I enjoy seeing students become excited about chemistry, often for the first time. Students taking science courses work one-on-one with faculty members, many of whom are cutting edge researchers. No layers, such as graduate students or teaching assistants, separate them.

"Every week Biology Professor Mary Allen, Chemistry Professor Adele Wolfson, and I meet with all of our research students as a group. We participate in conversations about each other's research results from that week: what problems arose and how they were addressed and what suggestions we have for each other about new experiments. In this way we all gain a better understanding of the day-to-day progress of each project.

"Students who collaborate on research projects are co-authors on faculty publications, and are often invited to attend scientific meetings with faculty members they are working with. People are shocked when they find out Wellesley students are undergraduates."

At Wellesley, students learn how to function as professionals in the sciences. Many courses require oral reports and presentations. Even in introductory chemistry, students present wrap-ups of their lab work to their peers at the end of the year. "Just about every student knows Power Point better than I do!" Kolodny remarks. "We also teach students how to search the scientific literature using sophisticated computerized tools."

Being in the Boston/Cambridge area provides incredible benefits for the Wellesley scientific community. Many faculty members collaborate with local institutions, providing additional resources for students, including access to extensive equipment and laboratories, such as at Harvard Medical School. Boston also attracts many prestigious speakers and events that we can benefit from, scientific and otherwise.

"Last semester we took 50 science students to Boston to see the play 'Copenhagen,' which is about the two scientists responsible for the development of quantum mechanics and atomic weapons. Students were very excited about it, and it provoked some great discussions."