Combined Degree Options
B.S./M.S. Admission Requirements (Undergraduate)
Students may apply to either program after completing CHM 252; to be admitted, the student must have achieved an overall GPA of 2.50, an average GPA of 2.75 in chemistry courses, and a C or better in all chemistry, mathematics, biology, and physics courses.
B.S./M.S. Admission Requirements (Graduate)
To earn graduate status within the B.S./M.S. programs, students must have achieved a cumulative GPA of 3.0 in the last 60 hours of undergraduate course work, a cumulative GPA of 2.75 in undergraduate chemistry courses, and a cumulative GPA of 3.0 in graduate courses. For both B.S./M.S. options, up to nine hours of graduate credit, taken during the final year of the bachelors degree, can be dual counted for the combined degrees. If this option is selected, a minimum of 146 hours, 31 of which must be at the graduate level, must be earned. The Graduate Record Examination is not required for admission to this program.
Common Programmatic Requirements and Procedures
Candidates for the B.S./M.S. degree must complete 146 hours, 31 of which must be at the graduate level.
- At least 2 undergraduate and 8 graduate credit hours must be devoted to original research that results in a publishable thesis. Research must be conducted under the supervision of a faculty adviser who is a member of the Chemistry graduate faculty and the student must submit a written progress report to the thesis adviser no less than three times per year.
- Program participants are expected to engage in full-time research experiences during the summers after their third, fourth and fifth years.
- Students must identify a research mentor/thesis advisor and begin their undergraduate research no later than the summer after their third year.
- Before completion of the senior year, the student must present a seminar (CHM 580, 1 credit) where the literature relevant to the intended research area is summarized and a plan for the research is presented. Following the seminar, the student must meet with the thesis committee to discuss the presentation and the research plan.
- All matriculated graduate students are required to be registered for at least one course per semester, or have an approved Leave of Absence, for each fall/spring/summer semester from the semester of matriculation through the semester in which the degree is completed.
- Upon completion of the thesis, the student must present the work in a research seminar (CHM 680, 1 credit) and successfully defend the thesis to a committee of three graduate faculty members, including the thesis adviser, one member selected by the student, and one member selected by the Graduate Coordinator. The voting members of the thesis committee shall determine the research seminar grade and when a thesis has satisfactorily met all standards.
BS/MS Chemistry
In addition to meeting the general education requirements for the B.S., students in this program must successfully complete the required courses listed below. The remaining credit hours may be selected from the lists of Graduate electives. A maximum of 3 hours of special topics and a maximum of 6 graduate credit hours from cognate fields may be applied. Cognate courses must earn prior approval of the Graduate Coordinator/Department.
BS Requirements
| Dept | Course | Title | Credit Hrs. |
| Chemistry | 110/111 | General Chemistry I with lab | 4 |
| 116/117 | General Chemistry II with lab | 5 | |
| 252/253 | Organic Chemistry I with lab | 5 | |
| 256/257 | Organic Chemistry II with lab | 4 | |
| 292 | Chemical Informatics | 1 | |
| 316 | Environmental Chemistry | 3 | |
| 326 | Analytical Chemistry with lab | 4 | |
| 360/361 | Biochemistry with lab | 4 | |
| 380 | Junior Seminar (2 semesters) | 0 | |
| 436/437 | Inorganic Chemistry with lab | 4 | |
| 470/471 | Physical Chemistry I with lab | 4 | |
| 476 | Physical Chemistry II | 3 | |
| 420 | Independent Studies in Chemistry | 2 min | |
| 499 | Industrial Organic Chemistry | 1 | |
| 520 | Instrumental Analysis | 4 | |
| 580 | Literature Seminar | 1 | |
| Chemistry Electives (500 plus) | 4 | ||
| Biology | 151 | From Molecules to Cells with lab | 4 |
| Math | Calculus (2 semesters) | 7 or 8 | |
| Physics | Physics I & II with labs | 8 |
MS Requirements (31 hrs total)
| Dept | Course | Title | Credit Hrs. |
| Chemistry | 599 | Research | 8 total |
| 680 | Research Seminar | 1 | |
| 699 | Thesis | 1 |
Gradate Chemistry Electives (to give 31 hrs. total)
- 500 Chemical Topics, 1-3 hrs.
- 512 Molecular Modeling, 1 hr.
- 514 Chemical Group Theory, 1 hr.
- 516 Environmental Chemistry, 3 hrs.
- 526 Advanced Analytical Chemistry, 3 hrs.
- 528 Topics in Analytical Chemistry, 1-3 hrs.
- 532 Descriptive Inorganic Chemistry, 3 hrs.
- 538 Topics in Inorganic Chemistry, 1-3 hrs.
- 540 Materials Chemistry, 3 hrs.
- 541 Materials Chemistry Laboratory, 1 hrs.
- 548 Topics in Materials Chemistry, 1-3 hrs.
- 550 Industrial Organic Chemistry, 1 hrs.
- 552 Physical Organic Chemistry, 3 hrs.
- 554 Organic Spectroscopy, 3 hrs.
- 555 Organic Spectroscopy Laboratory, 1 hr.
- 558 Topics in Organic Chemistry, 1-3 hrs.
- 562 Protein Structure and Function, 3 hrs.
- 564 Biochemical Literature, 1-2 hrs.
- 566 Intermediary Metabolism, 3 hrs.
- 568 Topics in Biochemistry, 1-3 hrs.
- 577 Physical Chemistry Laboratory II, 1 hr.
- 578 Topics in Physical Chemistry, 1-3 hrs.
- 584 Readings in Chemistry or Biochemistry, 1-3 hrs.
Five Year Plan: BS/MS in Chemistry
A Chemistry BS/MS major might complete the required science courses according to the following schedule. Students need not exceed a full load (16 credits/semester) to graduate in five years. Note that required general education courses would be distributed among the first eight semesters.
Fall Semester |
Spring Semester |
Summer |
|
| Freshman | General Chemistry I with lab Calculus I |
General Chemistry II with lab Calculus II From Molecules to Cells with lab |
|
| Sophomore | Organic Chemistry I with lab Physics I with lab |
Organic Chemistry II with lab Analytical Chemistry with lab Chemical Informatics Physics II with lab |
|
| Junior | Biochemistry with lab Physical Chemistry I with lab Junior Seminar Directed Studies in Chem. |
Inorganic Chemistry with lab Physical Chemistry II Junior Seminar Directed Studies in Chem. |
Research |
| Senior | Instrumental Analysis Research (1 hr) |
Research (2 hr) Literature Seminar Chemistry Electives |
Research |
| 5th year | Research (2 hr) Graduate Chem. Electives |
Research (3 hr) Graduate Chem. Electives |
Research Research Seminar Thesis |
BS/MS Biochemistry
In addition to meeting the general education requirements for the B.S., students in this program must successfully complete the required courses listed below. A maximum of 4 hours of special topics and a maximum of 5 graduate credit hours from cognate fields may be applied. Cognate courses must earn prior approval of the graduate coordinator/department.
BS Requirements
| Dept | Course | Title | Credit Hrs. |
| Chemistry | 110/111 | General Chemistry I with lab | 4 |
| 116/117 | General Chemistry II with lab | 5 | |
| 252/253 | Organic Chemistry I with lab | 5 | |
| 256/257 | Organic Chemistry II with lab | 4 | |
| 292 | Chemical Informatics | 1 | |
| 326 | Analytical Chemistry with lab | 4 | |
| 360/361 | Biochemistry with lab | 4 | |
| 380 | Junior Seminar (2 semesters) | 0 | |
| 470/471 | Physical Chemistry I with lab | 4 | |
| 420 | Independent Studies in Chemistry | 2 min | |
| 520 | Instrumental Analysis | 4 | |
| 562 | Protein Structure and Function | 3 | |
| 566 | Intermediary Metabolism | 3 | |
| 580 | Literature Seminar | 1 | |
| Biology | 151 | From Molecules to Cells with lab | 4 |
| 310 | Genetics with lab | 4 | |
| 464 | Cell Biology with lab | 4 | |
| Math | Calculus (2 semesters) | 7 or 8 | |
| Physics | Physics I & II with labs | 8 |
MS Requirements
| Dept | Course | Title | Credit Hrs. |
| Chemistry | 536 | Inorganic Chemistry | 3 |
| 599 | Research | 8 total | |
| 680 | Research Seminar | 1 | |
| 699 | Thesis | 1 |
Electives (19 hrs, with at least 4 hrs from *courses)
| Dept | Course | Title | Credit Hrs. |
| Chemistry | 500 | Chemical Topics | 1-3 |
| 512 | Molecular Modeling | 1 | |
| 514 | Chemical Group Theory | 1 | |
| 516 | Environmental Chemistry | 3 | |
| 526 | Advanced Analytical Chemistry | 3 | |
| 528 | Topics in Analytical Chemistry | 1-3 | |
| 532 | Descriptive Inorganic Chemistry | 3 | |
| 537 | Inorganic Chemistry Laboratory | 1 | |
| 538 | Topics in Inorganic Chemistry | 1-3 | |
| 540 | Materials Chemistry | 3 | |
| 541 | Materials Chemistry Laboratory | 1 | |
| 548 | Topics in Materials Chemistry | 1-3 | |
| 550 | Industrial Organic Chemistry | 1 | |
| 552 | Physical Organic Chemistry | 3 | |
| 554 | Organic Spectroscopy | 3 | |
| 555 | Organic Spectroscopy Laboratory | 1 | |
| 558 | Topics in Organic Chemistry | 1-3 | |
| *564 | Biochemical Literature | 1-2 | |
| *568 | Topics in Biochemistry | 1-3 | |
| 576 | Physical Chemistry II | 3 | |
| 577 | Physical Chemistry Laboratory II | 1 | |
| 578 | Topics in Physical Chemistry | 1-3 | |
| 584 | Readings | 1-3 | |
| Biology | *503 | Molecular Genetic | 3 |
| *509 | Human Genetics | 3 | |
| *568 | Cell/ Molecular Immunology | 3 |
Five Year Plan: BS/MS in Biochemistry
A Biochemistry BS/MS major might complete the required science courses according to the following schedule. Students need not exceed a full load (16 credits/semester) to graduate in five years. Note that required general education courses would be distributed among the first eight semesters.
Fall Semester |
Spring Semester |
Summer |
|
| Freshman | General Chemistry I with lab Calculus I |
General Chemistry II with lab Calculus II From Molecules to Cells with lab |
|
| Sophomore | Organic Chemistry I with lab Genetics with lab Physics I with lab |
Organic Chemistry II with lab Analytical Chemistry with lab Chemical Informatics Physics II with lab |
|
| Junior | Biochemistry with lab Physical Chemistry I with lab Junior Seminar Directed Studies in Chem. |
Protein Structure and Function Physical Chemistry II Cell Biology with lab Junior Seminar Directed Studies in Chem. |
Research |
| Senior | Instrumental Analysis Research (1 hr) Chemistry Electives |
Research (2 hr) Literature Seminar Intermediary Metabolism Inorganic Chemistry |
Research |
| 5th year | Research (2 hr) Graduate Chem. Electives |
Research (3 hr) Graduate Chem. Electives |
Research Research Seminar Thesis |
