A previous experiment had spun-cast polystyrene-toluene solutions onto glass slides, then measured thickness with FTIR and the Beer-Lambert law to generate a thickness vs. concentration curve. However, glass slides were used as opposed to silicon wafers, a fan instead of a research-grade spin casting machine, FTIR rather than ellipsometry for thickness, and did not use the information to determine the molecular weight of the polymer 8 . Another experiment analyzed various materials as substrates for polymer spin casting but did not use silicon wafers . This report strives to answer questions regarding the types of techniques that will most effectively introduce a large group of students without prior laboratory experience to methods for determining the molecular weight of a polymer in a condensed time, emphasizing the importance of determining molecular weight as a key for applications in recycling. This experiment process was designed as a way for high school students to transition from basic high school laboratory work to advanced hands-on experience in a university setting. It served as a first for many regarding the experimental approach, such as the importance of maintaining experimental controls, accounting for error, and literature review; laboratory safety and the wearing of PPE, keeping a lab notebook, avoiding contamination, and the safe disposal of hazardous waste; and realistic laboratory expectations like collaboration and communication between project participants and the vitality of asking questions to fortify understanding. This experiment introduces 98 high-school students to basic principles of laboratory safety in practical application, with procedures for operating laboratory equipment like Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy (UV-Vis), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), contact angle goniometry, compression molding, optical microscope visualizations, spin casting, and ellipsometry. Through guided instruction and demonstrations, students acquire relevant laboratory techniques to improve their proficiency for future research pursuits in college and beyond. Dividing the students into several research groups consisting of 8-10 students each, the simplicity of the experiment allows them to become familiar with laboratory procedures on a fundamental level, while also improving their skills of collaboration. In addition, while adhering to the familiar structure of the scientific method that they initially learned in middle school, it reinforces the fact that it still applies to all levels of research.