Educating and training new generations of computational and theoretical chemists with a broad, practice-based knowledge is of paramount importance. Therefore, the Faculty of Chemistry University of Gdańsk introduces new master's specialization in "Digital chemistry". This two-year program is designed to give the students a solid base in quantum chemistry; molecular mechanics & dynamics, coarse-grain modelling; exploratory data analysis and machine learning algorithms; artificial intelligence for computer-aided drug design; numerical methods with algorithms for chemical and physical sciences, and programming in R and Python at an advanced level. The focus on "Digital Chemistry" is innovative not only in terms of content but also regarding the teaching concepts. At least two of the courses are strongly project-oriented, so that students will not only hear about theory/modelling methods but also use them in practice.
The graduate student of full-time second degree/master’s studies has in-depth knowledge, skills and competences in specialist matters of chemical sciences. In particular, the graduate is prepared to independently solve chemical problems, conduct research and collect and critically analyze experimental and computational data. The graduate has advanced specialist knowledge in basic branches of chemistry, modern cheminformatics techniques, computational methods in molecular quantum mechanics, theoretical and computational techniques in physics-based modeling and simulation. S/he knows the operating principles of scientific and research equipment used in chemistry. The graduate is able to use his/her knowledge to plan and perform chemical experiments of medium complexity using appropriate computational tools/methods. S/he is prepared to solve complex problems using innovative computational methods. S/he can formulate, and test hypotheses related to simple research problems in the field of digital chemistry. The graduate is prepared to manage teamwork, can interact with other people in the group and take a leading role in it. S/he keeps track of national and global scientific development in the field of chemistry thanks to the knowledge of professional literature.
Achieving the effects of learning outcomes of second-degree studies offers graduates the possibility of employment in enterprises as well as in public, non-governmental and research and development organizations and institutions whose activities are related to the application of chemistry (with particular emphasis on digital chemistry).
