College Mission Statement (Adopted 10/8/05)

Beloit College engages the intelligence, imagination, and curiosity of its students, empowering them to lead fulfilling lives marked by high achievement, personal responsibility, and public contribution in a diverse society. Our emphasis on international and interdisciplinary perspectives, the integration of knowledge with experience, and close collaboration among peers, professors, and staff equips our students to approach the complex problems of the world ethically and thoughtfully.


Science Mission Statement (Adopted 12/13/96)

A liberally educated person needs an understanding of basic science ideas and processes to make informed decisions.

All students at Beloit College:

• should understand how we choose questions to study and why those questions are important to us. Our choices are informed by an intrinsic interest in and aesthetic appeal of the disciplines and by an understanding of practical applications and their social and ethical consequences.
• should understand (through experimental coursework) how scientists approach and attempt to answer these questions.
• should understand the responsibilities of scientists and citizens in making informed decisions about environmental, health, and other social issues based in science.

Students majoring in one of the sciences at Beloit College:

• should be prepared for and encouraged to participate in research in and out of formal courses.
• should be prepared to begin to practice their craft and to function as professionals in their chosen scientific field. This includes, but is not limited to, asking appropriate questions, seeking solutions to their questions, communicating their results to specific and general audiences, and understanding their responsibility to engage in each of these activities. All students majoring in the sciences should be prepared to practice science in this way regardless of whether they anticipate a career in science.

Educators in the sciences should:

• work with students to help them to become lifelong learners.
• promote interdisciplinary and international connections.
• provide a flexibility in pedagogy to meet the changing and diverse needs of students
• make science accessible to all members of the Beloit Community by promoting a welcoming and engaging atmosphere.

Chemistry Mission Statement (Adopted 10/07 and reafirmed 4/13)

Our mission is to provide all chemistry and biochemistry students with

• an understanding of the fundamental concepts and language of chemistry,
• an understanding of the attitudes, approaches, and limitations of science, and
• an appreciation of the importance of the acquired knowledge of chemistry when acting responsibly in society.

Our mission is also to graduate majors who will eventually become key players (as scientists and/or policy makers) working together in interdisciplinary teams that address important and topical questions and issues in 21st century environmental science, materials science, nanotechnology, biotechnology, and in the health professions.

We will achieve our goals throughout our curriculum by fostering a teaching environment where students learn chemistry by doing what chemists actually do, using the sophisticated tools and techniques that practicing chemists use.