“Chemistry is perhaps its own worst enemy. By being so much a part of our everyday lives, it is pervasive yet also largely invisible.” - BBC News
The past couple of weeks have not been good for chemistry. Some of Britain’s high profile universities have decided to drop their courses in chemistry.
The Independent, UK had this story two weeks ago,
Exeter University said yesterday it would stop offering the subject, despite a 21 per cent increase in applications this year, with five applicants competing for every place.
This has not been the only hit for chemistry. Several other universities in the UK have also decided to reorganize their pure science offerings.
… Kent University has replaced its chemistry degrees with forensic science because of lack of interest in chemistry among applicants. This follows the closure of chemistry departments at King’s College London and Queen Mary, University of London.
The Royal Society of Chemistry fears more closures. Only 40 chemistry departments remain in British universities and the society predicts at best 20, and at worst six, will still be open in 10 years.
In the past decade 10 university chemistry courses have closed. Since 1997 the number of chemistry students has fallen from 7,490 to 5,735.
Chemistry is not the only pure science subject that is going through this flux. Just today, the BBC reported that Newcastle University has decided to close its pure physics courses citing funding cuts and lower application rates.
Chemistry was the subject that excited me the most during my years in high school. The fascination with colorful experiments in the lab and chemical reactions as the building blocks of life around us has since then played a big role in my career decisions. I am rather saddened by this trend but the hope is that this flux will be a good time for a re-assessment of the priorities in chemistry education. That in itself cannot be a bad thing and so I am waiting and watching how this plays out.
[Cross-posted at The Scientific Indian]