Not Simply Chemists

From the day one enters full of hopes as a fresh undergraduate, Institute of Chemistry Ceylon, College of Chemical Sciences offers a multi-avenue route to being a well-rounded professional. The four years spent learning from the best in the field is so much more than textbooks and lab work. CCS offers numerous possibilities to be the best version of you.

Science students are heavily stigmatized to be bookfocused; they are often caged into the pressure of results and nothing more. However, the sportsmen and women of CCS are the first to beg to differ. Each year, the students propose, plan, and successfully carry out no less than 4 major sports events. This includes inter-level basketball, rugby, badminton, and cricket at an inter-university level.

Every event is coordinated by the students, from formal budgeting and location scouting to negotiating sponsorships.

It is not that the college is brimming with sports professionals

– students are genuinely motivated by their peers to practice a sport they might have never played before, taking full advantage of the College’s sports funds.

There are students who have played a sport for the first time at CCS and yet performed exceedingly well at inter-university level. The intrinsic sense of synergy that students gain through these experiences is unparalleled.

Giving prominence to aesthetic ability is a specialty at CCS. There’s always someone carrying a guitar with the promise of a good round of cheerful singing. ‘Aura’ – the grand annual talent show is the perfect chance for students of all artistic gifts to flaunt their flair. Numerous students have even found their talents through this event, and have gone on to be successful performers while still leading the industry.

In times of racial and religious crisis in the country, CCS students proved to rise above the baseless grudges as they organised vibrant celebrations for Eid, Navarathri, Christmas and Vesak. Calm observances of bana, pirith and thanksgiving mass are exemplary for the peaceful serenity of cultural harmony. Each celebration is a beautiful reflection of the tight-knit sense of community within the college, with no burden on one race or religion even during the organizing.

Any professional thrives on their networking and communication skills. Students of CCS aren’t any different – they just have well practiced strategies up their sleeve. The Gavel Club, Rotaract Club, and AIESEC of CCS have prepared them with regular opportunities to sharpen their skills. Not only that, students have the opportunity to train as qualified First Aiders through the Saukyadana Unit, while giving back to the community with their invaluable blood donation camps, mobile first aid units for pilgrims and interactive first aid camps. Inter-level and inter-university debating competitions give the necessary self-confidence to confront life’s oppositions, and gracefully accept failure to nourish self-improvement.

Any professional thrives on their networking and communication skills. Students of CCS aren’t any different – they just have well practiced strategies up their sleeve. The Gavel Club, Rotaract Club, and AIESEC of CCS have prepared them with regular opportunities to sharpen their skills.

Co-curriculars are the ying to extra-curricular’s yang in the vital prerequisites to being a versatile personality. Students who are naturally inclined towards specific areas in chemistry are catered to by the Organic Chemistry Club ( OCC) and the Society of Magicians. While the OCC runs a biannual publication and organizes informative seminars on the latest field related research, the Society of Magicians uses the principles of chemistry to create masterful illusions and tricks that appeal to all audiences, sparking intuition and wondrous enthusiasm for the subject.

“Chemistry In Sri Lanka” is the tri- annual publication of the Institute of Chemistry Ceylon, and serves as the only peer- reviewed knowledge hub for chemists in both academia and industry. Through the CCS Media Circle, the students have the chance to contribute to this revered publication serving to popularize and disseminate chemistry proficiency.

Every 4 years, the vast world of chemistry is made closer to the general public through “Chemex” – a multi themed exhibition aimed at showing that chemistry is prevalent in all our daily activities we take for granted. The Annual Sessions of the Institute of Chemistry Ceylon provides a platform for local scientists to present their research and receive coveted awards for their work. The stage is extended beyond national borders at the “Frontiers in Chemical Technology”, an international research conference which was initiated in 2020.

A considerable percentage of CCS students publish their undergraduate research in well- respected peer reviewed journals and even more have presented their findings at reputable conferences, winning many accolades for their extraordinary work.

The transition from being a CCS undergraduate to an independent professional in the field is streamlined by interactive career guidance programs conducted by the Alumni who make sure no one is left alienated after graduating. This includes academic & industrial CV writing, facing interviews and what to expect in a workplace. “Colloquium”, a seminar series that brings the latest cutting- edge research to the palms of all students ensuring they are up to date.

CCS graduates thrive in positions spanning across academia, industry and management owing to their deeply ingrained confident humility, emotional intelligence, interpersonal skills, and ability to withstand stressful situations collectively resulting from the college experience. They are able to survive, surpass and succeed in their career and life while being exemplary members of society, because they’re not simply chemists – they are all-rounders.