As a senior chemistry major at Wagner College, my senior reflective tutorial was taught by Dr. Wendy deProphetis, who did a superb job of preparing students for success in any area of chemistry or the health professions. For chemistry majors, this course helps students improve the skills necessary for success in the field, which they have developed throughout their four years at Wagner.

The tutorial involves giving several presentations — some based on literature research, and a final presentation based on the student’s personal research experience. I found these presentations particularly helpful for increasing my comfort and confidence when addressing a group. Since I want to continue my chemistry education by pursuing a Ph.D., the presentation skills I have developed in my senior RFT will be especially important when I have to introduce my work to a research committee.

In addition to presentations, two major papers were written in the course. The first paper was a literature review, which required students to research a topic of interest in the field of chemistry, using scholarly, peer-reviewed journal articles as the main reference sources for the paper. The second and final paper of the course was based on each student’s personal research experience. The format of each paper mirrored articles in the Journal of the American Chemical Society, which I found to be excellent preparation for future articles that I will be working on while in graduate school. Also, since students gave presentations on their papers, it was an excellent way to make fellow classmates aware of what everyone had worked on throughout their senior year. Overall, I felt this senior reflective tutorial was an excellent way to tie in all the knowledge chemistry students acquire throughout their time at Wagner, and it served as an excellent preparation for the professional world.

Dr. deProphetis also played a large role in my internship experience, due to her connection with Liberty Science Center and her previous work in chemical education. While I was in her organic chemistry class, I was made aware of a program in which Wagner College interns would work in collaboration with Liberty Science educators to develop materials science lessons geared toward middle-school children. My interest in science and teaching made the program especially appealing, and I found the experience very rewarding. I worked with others to create 45-minute lessons that we taught in various middle schools in New Jersey. In addition to the lesson plans, we also worked on a nanotechnology workbook for middle-school students, which is awaiting publication. As interns, we also had the opportunity to lead various table-top demonstrations at the Liberty Science Center for children and their parents. While this internship did require a significant amount of work and time, the teaching experience and knowledge I gained in return was well worth it, as it inspired me to pursue a career as a chemistry professor.

My senior thesis paper was based on the laboratory work I had done throughout the summer prior to senior year. I had worked under the guidance of Dr. deProphetis in the hopes of synthesizing a piece of a cyclacene, which serves as a functional unit of a carbon nanotube. The area of nanotechnology seemed interesting to me, and that interest served as my primary motivation in choosing this topic. Prior to starting this research, I was not aware of what a cyclacene was and did not know anything about its relationship to the field of nanotechnology. I also learned how to perform several experimental techniques that I wouldn’t have otherwise learned in an undergraduate science lab. As with all organic synthesis research, this work required a great deal of time and patience. Although the ultimate goal of synthesizing a cyclacene was not achieved, some progress was made in the overall reaction scheme, and juniors have taken over the project in hopes of making continued advancements.