The Utrecht Chemistry Student Association “PROTON” is the study association for Chemistry and Molecular Life Sciences in Utrecht. It was founded on July 14, 1986 and since then it has become a great association that supports its members, represents their interests and organizes enriching and recreational activities. Currently, the U.S.S. Proton is governed by the 40th board which aims to focus on its members under the motto “Emmitting” So now Proton has 39 former boards, who have not only written Proton's rich history, but have also left us some songs. More recent association history appears every two months in our association magazine, The Chemograaph. If you would like more information, there are several ways to contact us.

Description
Since July 14, 1986, the Utrecht Chemistry Student Association “PROTON” has been the study association for chemistry students at Utrecht University. Proton originated from two separate groups of students. One group organized a book market and parties. While the other produced the Chemograaph, a magazine that kept students and staff informed of developments within the then subfaculty of Chemistry. At the urging of the Royal Dutch Chemistry Association (KNCV), the subfaculty board proposed bringing these initiatives together into a single study association, the U.S.S. Proton.

Today, Proton is a thriving association and ties between the university and Proton remain close. For example, the commissioner of educational affairs is also a student board member of the Department of Chemistry and coordinates co-determination within the program. Furthermore, Proton organizes most of the introduction of the study and we actively contribute to the education of school students.

With about 800 members, almost all chemistry students and Molecular Life Sciences students at Utrecht University are members of Proton and the majority attend our activities. In recent years the number of chemistry students has grown significantly and the number of committee members has also grown with it. These committee members have also started to organize more and more activities, which are attended by a very broad group of students.

Activities
The articles of association state that the purpose of the association is “to promote the study of chemistry, to look after the interests of its members and to promote contact and cooperation among its members, in the broadest sense.” This is expressed in the organization of a very diverse range of activities. These activities can be divided into study support, chemistry-related and leisure activities.

As a study association, Proton tries to support students in their studies. First of all, Proton sells study materials, such as textbooks at reduced rates and lab journals, and old exams are made available by Proton, which often include elaborations. Another initiative is the organization of learning days before and during exam periods so that students can study together while enjoying free tea, coffee, cookies and silence. Students are also educated about the various possibilities in terms of sections and internships abroad within the program. To complement this, Proton publishes booklets with experience stories about electives and research at the sections.

The chemistry-related activities show where chemists can go after their studies. The annual multi-day study tour gives third-year and older students a good idea of international career opportunities, and younger students can see some of the research abroad during a two-day study tour. Throughout the year Proton organizes many field trips, lunch and drinks lectures and the PAC symposium, a large, national chemistry symposium organized in cooperation with sister societies ACD (Amsterdam), VCSVU (Amsterdam) and CDL (Leiden).

Proton offers its members a wide range of recreational activities consisting of a combination of sports, cultural and other fun activities. Many of these activities are organized together with other associations to ensure greater integration between Utrecht students and with chemistry students from other cities. To get master students more involved in Proton, we also organize get-togethers especially for master students and are involved in the introductions of the Graduate Schools.

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