First round molecule released! 5th National SCI/RSC Retrosynthesis Competition

8 Nov 2017

Venue: Burlington House, London, UK
Date: Friday 16 March 2018

For many years, the UK has produced high calibre synthetic organic chemists, able to retrosynthetically disconnect complex molecules and natural products then solve the challenging problem associated with the forward synthesis. To celebrate this and following on from the success of the previous competitions, we are pleased to announce the 5th SCI/ RSC National Retrosynthesis Competition.

The event will showcase the calibre of UK chemists from both industry and academia and provide a platform for them to demonstrate their retrosynthetic and forward synthetic prowess. The first-round molecule has now been released (click here for further information) and entries will close at 5pm on Friday 15th December. These entries will be shortlisted to a final 10 teams to go on to the second-round molecule, with final presentations to be held at the Royal Society of Chemistry, Burlington House, London. An exciting line up of the UK's leading academic and industrial synthetic chemists will judge the event, with the top three teams winning specifically designed trophies, in addition to the acclaim and praise from peers, colleagues and the wider Chemistry community for winning the event.

Event Timeline:

• Friday 15 December 2017: First round entry closes at 5pm. Entries submitted after this time will not be judged.
• Monday 15 January 2018: Finalists announced. The judging panel will select a maximum of 10 entries to progress to the second round.
• Monday 15 January 2018: Second round molecule released to selected teams.
• Friday 16 March 2018: Competition final. Selected teams present and judges select a winning team.

Audience registration is free and will be open in January 2018. If you wish to register your interest in attending this event, please email conferences@soci.org with the subject "Register my interest - 5th National Retrosynthesis Competition".

Teams will be invited to register once finalists are confirmed. To see last year’s winning presentation, please click here. For the second place presentation, please click here, and for the third place presentation, please click here.

• Download the first round molecule
• Download competition terms and conditions
• Download the template for competition entry

Related Links

• 5th National Retrosynthesis Competition - Enter today!
  - First round entry closes on Friday 15th December
• SCI Fine Chemicals Group
• SCI Young Chemists’ Panel