Summary

Chemistry looks at how and why substances react together and the use that can be made of this to enhance our lives - from fighting disease to conducting electricity. It is a core science subject that requires descriptive and analytical skills. This two year course gives you an excellent grounding in the three main areas chemistry: physical chemistry, organic chemistry and inorganic chemistry.

As practical work is a key feature of the course, you will be taught in a well-equipped and refurbished specialist laboratory You will cover a range of topics that will help you develop your knowledge and skills in this subject area.

During your first year you will study a variety of topics including atomic structures, oxidation and reduction, patterns and trends of the Periodic Table and organic chemistry.

The second year builds on and develops your knowledge from year one and covers topics such as equilibria and gases, reaction rates and the fundamental laws of energy change.

To help extend your experience beyond the course content, we aim to provide a variety of additional learning experiences. As part of this, you will have the opportunity to attend exciting trips relating to the subject. In recent years these have included visits to an industrial chemistry plant, the Royal Society Summer Science Exhibition, chemistry lectures in London and a Spectroscopy showcase at the University of East Anglia (UEA). Alongside this, there will also be opportunities to attend sessions run by academics from places such as the UEA that will give you a rare opportunity to experiment with new equipment to enhance your skills. Chemistry is a hard subject but very worthwhile if you enjoy the subject and are interested in understanding ‘why’ and ‘how’ not just ‘what’.

Successful completion of this course will allow you to understand abstract ideas, make connections between different concepts and solve problems. To be successful, you will need to have achieved good GCSE grades in Maths. Biol