For anyone who does not believe me when I say undergrads need basic education not research, I recount an experience.
I frequently go as an examiner for Chem practical examinations to different colleges as do most of my colleagues. A few years back, the university decided that the 3rd year undergrad student must do a "project" for his paper IV chemistry practical exam. The "project" involved looking up the internet and downloading IR, UV, NMR and mass spec of 6 simple compounds, assigning the bands/peaks/signals and submitting. In the college I went to as an examiner, the students had all photocopied a set of spectra, probably provided by the teaching staff and submitted them. Everyone had the same set. What is worse, the fifth page was so blurry that it was blank with a few spots of black. Nothing was visible. Only 2 people had even noticed that the photocopier was not copying properly and had tried to improve the quality of the copy. THAT is the level at which students are. They are not capable of even finding published spectral data for a common compound like acetone or nitrobenzene, and what is more do not even care enough to check if the copier is copying the project report properly. I could not fail the whole class though I was tempted to.
So when people argue that undergrads must be exposed to cutting edge research, I feel so frustrated at their ignorance of reality. I will be very happy if a student graduates BSc with the ability to read and understand a class XII text book.
I frequently go as an examiner for Chem practical examinations to different colleges as do most of my colleagues. A few years back, the university decided that the 3rd year undergrad student must do a "project" for his paper IV chemistry practical exam. The "project" involved looking up the internet and downloading IR, UV, NMR and mass spec of 6 simple compounds, assigning the bands/peaks/signals and submitting. In the college I went to as an examiner, the students had all photocopied a set of spectra, probably provided by the teaching staff and submitted them. Everyone had the same set. What is worse, the fifth page was so blurry that it was blank with a few spots of black. Nothing was visible. Only 2 people had even noticed that the photocopier was not copying properly and had tried to improve the quality of the copy. THAT is the level at which students are. They are not capable of even finding published spectral data for a common compound like acetone or nitrobenzene, and what is more do not even care enough to check if the copier is copying the project report properly. I could not fail the whole class though I was tempted to.
So when people argue that undergrads must be exposed to cutting edge research, I feel so frustrated at their ignorance of reality. I will be very happy if a student graduates BSc with the ability to read and understand a class XII text book.
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