Kaleb Yoast reports on his experiences at the Michigan Math and Science Scholars Program (MMSS), where he is studying Organic Chemistry.
“This first week of MMSS has been very exciting. I have had the most wonderful time getting to know the university. As for the class, it has been pretty challenging but I am pushing through. At the end of class we took little trips all over the campus, we went to the law building, a museum, and a science center,” Kaleb says.
“In the first week, we covered the basics in organic chemistry just to make sure all of the students started the program with the same baseline information. In the first week we were able to have two labs, one basic TLC lab and an IR and NMR lab. These labs were very fun because they tested our ability to problem solve, they also showed us how to use common machines used for organic chemistry. Everyday was an adventure, our instructor would take us for walks around the campus and she also took us to a couple museums to help break up and make six hours of class more enjoyable. While this was not the easiest class I still had an amazing time,” Kaleb reports.
“The second week of my program at MMSS was very insightful. It helped me learn that even though some things are easy there is sometimes a little bump in the road. In-class work was a little harder than I had expected, but with the help of a couple of classmates, I was able to get the hang of it. On Monday, our class went on a little field trip to the big football stadium and then to go get ice cream. As for the rest of the week, we did lectures, practice problems, and two labs. The labs that we performed this week built off of the previous labs. We had to perform the same tasks but with a couple of additional steps. Then on the last day, our professor brought us donuts, and we worked on a couple of problems on the final exam. I was very surprised and happy because I was called to do a problem and I got every step right,” Kaleb says.
Great work, Kaleb. We wish you much success in your future studies!
>> Read Kaleb Yoast’s final report (PDF file, 75 KB).
>> Learn about other students’ experiences in the GFF Scholarship Program.
