Students with only a Bachelors degree must take 4 ACS entrance exams (with an option to take Biochemistry or Analytical and a requirement to take core exams in Organic, Inorganic, and Physical Chemistry ). They must obtain at least the national median ACS score in the required core exams to pass. If they fail, they have the option to retake the exam or remediate the deficiency by obtaining at least B (not a B-) in one of our upper-division undergraduate courses (or by taking the exams in the appropriate course and obtaining the equivalent grade) in the area of the deficiency before their candidacy exam.
Master's students may be required to adhere to the policy at the discretion of the Graduate Council at the time of acceptance.
Graduate students must maintain an overall grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 (B) in all courses. Any graduate student who falls below a 3.0 GPA at the end of any given semester will be placed on academic probation and has the next two semesters (excluding summers) to remedy the situation before being dismissed from the program. No grade below "C" will be accepted toward a graduate degree, but will be used in the computation of the overall GPA.
Although all grades in graduate level courses will be used in computing the student's GPA, no grade below "C" may be counted toward fulfillment of the approved course of study. Consequently, any such course in which a student receives a grade below "C" must be repeated, or have the requirement waived by their supervisory committee.
A student who receives three grades lower than a "B" in structured courses required by his supervisory committee to meet the structured course requirement will be dropped from the program.
A student who receives a grade of "U" while a chemistry graduate student will be placed on automatic probation. A second "U" grade is grounds for termination from the Program, and the Chemistry Graduate Council will automatically review the student's status. Students on probation are not excluded from having a teaching assistantship during the probationary semester.
The Graduate Council shall be responsible for ensuring that all graduate students meet the minimum standards as set down in the Graduate Student Handbook. The Graduate Coordinator will periodically review the standing of each student with regard to grade point average (GPA), academic progress, and (in the case of teaching assistants) teaching performance and notify the Graduate Council as necessary. Should disciplinary action appear in order, the student's major professor will be consulted (in order to obtain as many relevant facts as possible) before such action is taken.
All chemistry graduate students must satisfy the following minimum requirements for CHM 6935:
or
whichever is less.
Under exceptional circumstances, students may petition for a waiver on a semester-by-semester basis if employment or other obligations conflict with the requirement.
Students must meet all degree requirements as specified by the Graduate School. Study for the M.A. and the M.S. should take between two and three calendar years beyond the baccalaureate degree to complete. Specific requirements include:
The Master of Arts (M.A.) degree requires:
The Master of Science (M.S.) degree requires:
A graduate student working on a master's degree in a program that requires a thesis must register in course CHM 6973 or CHM 6971 when engaged in research, data collection, or writing activities relevant to the master's thesis. The number of credits in these courses must be appropriate to the demands made on faculty, staff, and University facilities.
Final Thesis Defense: Each student should consult with their supervisory committee for deadlines in submitting the thesis prior to the defense. Thesis or dissertation defenses are not normally scheduled during final exam week or during the weeks between regularly scheduled sessions.
The thesis defense must be scheduled through the Chemistry Graduate Office at least two weeks in advance. The Chemistry Graduate Office will then announce the defense to the entire Chemistry Department.
NOTE: These deadlines are in addition to those Imposed by the Graduate School. The Graduate School sets a deadline for scheduling thesis defenses each semester.
The recently adopted, restructured Ph.D. program features minimal, flexible course requirements and an emphasis on research.
Entering students will have a Promotion to Candidacy Committee established upon entering the Ph.D. Program. The Committee advises students as to what courses they need to take in their first semester. There are no set course requirements, but the decision of the Committee is binding. Students will normally be expected to take the first semester of a first year course covering. "Tools of Research", including literature search and analysis, proposal writing, oral presentation skills, and laboratory instrumental techniques. The second semester of the course may be required by a students Promotion to Candidacy committee. Advanced courses in other subject areas may be assigned by the Committee, where appropriate. Final coursework decisions are made by the candidate's research advisor.
Because the doctoral degree is earned on the basis of advancement to doctoral candidacy status and satisfactory completion of the dissertation, the Graduate School does not specify any minimum number of courses or credit hours that must be completed for award of the degree. Students must comply with general enrollment requirements and also institutional residency requirements.
Students need to choose a pre-Ph.D. candidate research adviser by the beginning of second semester to begin pre-candidate research in that laboratory. (see below) The student will then proceed to initiate a research project by the beginning of the second semester and through the first summer of study.
Selection of a research advisor is one of the most important decisions a student will make during the graduate career. In order to avoid hasty or poorly founded decisions each student must discuss potential research projects with at least three members of the chemistry faculty. Appropriate forms can be obtained from the Chemistry Graduate Office and should be completed and returned no later than the end of the second semester (excluding summer semester) after entering the program.
At the conclusion of the first year (before the start of the third semester), a written research document outlining progress to date and future plans is submitted to and approved by the Promotion to Candidacy Committee. This proposal is subsequently defended in front of the committee. A successful defense results in Promotion to Ph.D. candidacy, contingent upon the student being formally accepted into a research group. The committee must vote three quarters in favor of the candidate (for a four person committee) or two thirds in favor (for a three person committee) for a pass. A vote of two of four members (or one of three) in favor results in a conditional pass, and the committee must set conditions to be met to promote the student within 30 days of the first meeting. At the discretion of the committee, the students not promoted to candidacy may be given a pass at a M.S. level of competency and proceed to obtain a terminal research masters degree, or be terminated from the program. Appropriate forms to document promotion to candidacy must be completed and forwarded to the Graduate School. The forms may be obtained from the Chemistry Graduate Office.
Upon promotion the candidate must formally choose and declare a research adviser and a thesis committee must be established initially with at least three members. An additional committee member from outside the department or university must be added before the final defense. The research adviser chairs the committee.
Students will now need to complete their Original Research Proposal in a time window starting their second year and closing by the end of their third year. Failure to do so will normally result in the student being put on probation. At the discretion of the research adviser, the student's original research proposal may or may not be the related to the student's current or future research. The student must be informed of the research adviser's preference in advance of seeking approval for the thesis topic. The thesis committee formally approves the proposal and its defense. The candidate should meet with the thesis committee members (individually or as a group) to discuss the proposal topic. The original research proposal should follow the format of a major federal granting agency appropriate to the nature of the proposed research. The format of the proposal, in conjunction with the topic, should be approved in advance by the thesis committee. The written proposal must be given to the thesis committee members two weeks in advance of the scheduled defense. After the defense, the committee must vote three quarters in favor of the candidate (for a four person committee) or two thirds in favor (for a three person committee) for a pass. A vote of two of four members (or one of three) in favor results in a conditional pass, and the committee must set conditions to be met to pass the candidate within 30 days of the first meeting. Students not passing will normally be terminated from the Ph.D. program.
By the end of the fourth year, a research data presentation must be made to thesis committee and the committee formally advises the candidate on research milestones that need to be met before permission to "write up" the dissertation is granted. The permission to "write up" the dissertation can be given at any subsequent time.
A peer-reviewed publication based upon the dissertation research is required to obtain the degree of Ph.D. Note: Extenuating circumstances will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.
Further, students will now have to wait a minimum of 6 months after successful completion of their Research Data Presentation (aka Data Defense) (and the associated online data base forms) before they will be permitted to defend their dissertation. This rule can only be waived by the Department Chair with the written approval of the majority of the Thesis Committee in the case of exceptional circumstances.
Each student should consult with their supervisory committee for deadlines in submitting the thesis prior to the defense. Thesis or dissertation defenses are not normally scheduled during final exam week or during the weeks between regularly scheduled sessions.
The thesis defense must be scheduled through the Chemistry Graduate Office at least two weeks in advance. The Chemistry Graduate Office will then announce the defense to the entire Chemistry Department. The candidate normally defends their thesis in the fourth or fifth year.
NOTE: These deadlines are in addition to those Imposed by the Graduate School. The Graduate School sets a deadline for scheduling thesis defenses each semester.
Candidates may be offered a departmental TA position in year five given satisfactory progress in research as judged by the thesis committee and approval of the Department Chair, TA's are not normally awarded beyond year 5. RA's are only permitted beyond year six in exceptional cases with the written approval of the department chair. It is important to note that the Graduate School will not award tuition waivers for credit hours beyond 120 for students entering with a baccalaureate degree and 90 for students entering with a masters degree.
According to University Regulations, the Ph.D. supervisory committee must consist of at least four (4) members, including the student's research director. At least two (2) of the members must be from an area related to the student's research.