http://www.chem13newsexam.uwaterloo.ca/chem13news.html

The Exam

Details of the time and place of the exam are available from the Head of Chemistry in your Ontario high school (or from Chem 13 News, Department of Chemistry, University of Waterloo, in case of any difficulty).

The exam, which is multiple-choice, is not to be considered as anything but a selection mechanism for assistantships and scholarships. Specifically, it is not used as a criterion for admission to university studies. We do not show or give results to any admissions committee.

The exam will cover material that a well-read senior high school chemistry student is likely to have come across in the course of studies. Students may expect to find a few probing and demanding questions on some of the main topics of high school chemistry. Certain mathematical skills closely related to the study of chemistry will be tested, and there will be a few questions on chemical topics not normally covered in high school. The Chem 13 News EXAM consists of 40 multiple-choice questions, some easy, some tough, under the general headings: Organic, Equilibria, Kinetics, Oxidation-Reduction, Bonding, Structure, Reactions, Solutions, Gases, and a general knowledge of current affairs.

Who May Write?

The competitive examination for the awards may be written by any high school student. The exam is intended for students who are completing, or have recently completed, their second high school chemistry course (about 200 instructional hours). Most such students will be in their final pre-university year.

Administration

The administration of the awards and the exam are the responsibility of Dr. C. Bissonnette of the University of Waterloo; his decision is final.

We reserve the right to restrict the number of prizes and awards offered outside Ontario.

All correspondence about the exam, exam results and prizes should be addressed to Dr. C. Bissonnette, Department of Chemistry, University of Waterloo, Waterloo ON N2L 3G1.

Prizes

Prizes are given to the top five percent of students whose exam performance is best, whether or not they're planning to go to a university. The 2010 prize was a multicoloured T-shirt.

Cost

A charge of $3.00 is made for each exam ordered (the minimum order is 5 copies), plus courier or postal costs of $10.00 per school in Canada; $15.00 outside Canada. Above 100 copies, contact us for reduced rates. [The courier or postal cost we charge is to help cover the expenses of sending both the exam order and the exam results.]

Information about ordering and about previous years' exams will be mailed automatically at the beginning of February 2011 to all teachers/schools who used the exams last year. Additional information and sample exams can be found at: http://www.chem13newsexam.uwaterloo.ca

Orders must be placed by a teacher at a school address, unless otherwise authorized.

Research Assistantships

The Chem 13 News Research Assistantships are a set of awards established by the Department of Chemistry of the University of Waterloo in 1970. The awards bear the name of a publication for Ontario high school chemistry teachers, Chem 13 News, prepared at, underwritten by and distributed from the University of Waterloo.

The awards are an expression of our concern that well-qualified and strongly-motivated students should devote themselves to the study of chemistry, pure or applied.

They provide an opportunity for a student in Year 1 to engage in chemical research by spending some time on a regular basis in a laboratory with a professor and a research group. We think that the awards will help to develop, much more rapidly than is otherwise likely to occur, an understanding of chemical investigation, to which studies in chemistry often lead.

High School students are selected for Chem 13 NewsResearch Assistantships on the basis of academic performance in high school and the Chem 13 News exam, scheduled to be written on Thursday, May 12, 2011.Research Assistantships are available only to Canadian citizens and permanent residents of Canada.

Value and Conditions of the Awards

The Chem 13 News Research Assistantships consists of$1000 payable at $500 per term, for part-time (3-4 hours per week) research in the Chemistry Department at Waterloo during Year One of the student's Chemistry program.

Awards are for one year only. However, upper year awards are also available based upon student performance at Waterloo.

Award holders, because of their experience with a research group, may find it easier to obtain subsequent summer employment in the department.

A Chem 13 News Research Assistantship may be held only by a student registered in an Honours Chemistry or Honours Biochemistry program, (regular or cooperative timetables) at the University of Waterloo. Award holders must be Canadian citizens or permanent residents of Canada. The holder of the award agrees to work with a professor and a research group according to the terms listed at left. Award holders are expected to carry a full academic program in addition to the work connected with the award.

Information about Chemistry and Biochemistry at Waterloo is available on request to Dr. C. Bissonnette, Department of Chemistry, University of Waterloo, Waterloo ON N2L 3G1.