UNIVERSITY OF DELAWARE
GRADUATE STUDIES IN CHEMISTRY AND BIOCHEMISTRY

The University of Delaware	The Department
Graduate Program in Chemisty & Biochemistry Graduate Degrees Offered Graduate Courses Research Programs and Projects	Resources Libraries Staff Research Instruments
Important Considerations	Practical Matters
Activities Housing The Area Financial Assistance After Graduate School	Getting in Touch Visiting Us Travel Directions
Chemistry Home Page	University of Delaware

The University of Delaware

• over 17,000 students
• over 100 undergraduate majors
• a graduate enrollment of about 2,500
• master's degrees in 80 fields and Ph.D. degrees in 40 disciplines
• founded in 1743 -- one of the oldest institutions of higher learning in the USA
• Find out more about the university on the University of Delaware homepage.

Visiting the University of Delaware

Delaware is a great place to live and learn about any kind of chemistry. It is located in a major center of chemistry and chemical research (both in the state and neighboring states) and has more Ph. D.s per capita than any state in the country. We strongly encourage prospective graduate students to visit us.

If you would like to visit, please contact Ms. Durkin by email, pmcmahon@udel.edu, or telephone, 302 831 2462. Mention your area of interest and any faculty member you are especially interested in talking to. Typically, potential students visit campus for a day. They talk with faculty, tour the department and other university facilities, and spend a significant amount of time with current graduate students in the program at meals, etc. so that they get a broad view of our program.

Getting to Newark, Delaware, and the University is convenient from anywhere in the northeast and from most of the rest of the world. Check out the travel directions and maps for a guide that directs you to our campus and the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry.

The Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry

• a premier undergraduate and graduate program of the College of Arts and Science
• occupies more than 200,000 square feet of teaching, office and research-laboratory space located in
• H. Fletcher Brown Laboratory
• Quaesita Drake Hall
• the recently constructed Lammot du Pont Laboratory
• offers degree programs leading to
• Bachelor of Arts (with majors in Chemistry and Chemistry Education)
• Bachelor of Science (with majors in both Chemistry and Biochemistry)
• Master of Arts
• Master of Science
• Doctor of Philosophy.

Graduate Program

The graduate program in Chemistry and Biochemistry

• is one of the first two advanced-degree programs established at the University of Delaware, awarding its first Ph.D.s in 1948
• has awarded more than 500 doctoral degrees and more than 300 master's degrees
• has alumni who have achieved successful careers in industry, academia and government laboratories
• has a faculty recognized locally, nationally and internationally
• had external grants of over 4 million dollars annually.

The moderate size of the graduate program provides

• excellent student-faculty interaction
• research opportunities comparable to graduate programs of much larger size.
• participation in research across the traditional boundaries in the chemical sciences
• frequent interaction with faculty in such other departments as chemical engineering, physics, life sciences, and marine studies, particularly through joint appointments.
• student participation in teaching and governance of the department as representatives on departmental committees.

Graduate Degrees

Each graduate degree program has certain requirments, officially described in the University of Delaware Graduate Catalog and the Summary of Requirements for Advanced Degrees in Chemistry and Biochemistry. The general features are:

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Graduate Courses

The core of each student's program of development consists of course work and independent research. Each area has specific course requirements. However, certain general qualities of most students' programs include:

• Satisfaction of course requirements in two to four semesters.
• Availability of special-topics courses on the latest research in rapidly developing research.
• Weekly seminar series in biochemistry, inorganic and organic chemistry, and analytical and physical chemistry feature renowned academic, industrial and government scientists.
• Monthly colloquia on topics of general interest to the entire chemistry community.

In addition to the general course-based educational program, a wide variety of other avenues for chemistry learning are available in Delaware. There are specialized annual meetings on "Ion-Molecule Reactions" and "NMR Spectroscopy" sponsored by the department, and the large numbers of chemical companies in the area provide additional opportunities for further information transfer at the University of Delaware.

Resources

The Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry has exceptional resources for graduate research in chemistry and biochemistry.

A Wide Range of Research Instruments

Three major analytical facilities support research and teaching in the Department:

• The Blue Hen NMR Complex
• Seven liquid- and solid-state NMR and ESR spectrometers routinely used by graduate students in research
• Full-time Ph.D. NMR spectroscopist
• Mass Spectrometry Laboratory
• Standard electron-ionization (EI) mass spectrometry
• Fast-atom bombardment (FAB) mass spectrometry
• Chemical ionization (CI) mass spectrometry
• Electrospray mass spectrometry
• GCMS
• Full-time Ph.D. mass spectrometrist
• X-ray laboratory
• Two modern diffractometers that provide state-of-the-art crystal structure analysis

An Outstanding Staff

• glassblower
• four machinists
• three electronics technicians
• an electronics design engineer
• support for laboratory preparation

Extensive Library Resources

• The Chemistry Library, located in Brown Laboratory, contains an extensive collection of reference works and monographs, and carries subscriptions to over 200 journals.
• Hugh M. Morris Library, a two-minute walk from the department, contains more than 2 million volumes
• Library catalogs are conveniently available on line from locations within the department
• Bibliographic databases, including those of the American Chemical Society, available on line.

Activities

While our focus is on science, fun is also a part of graduate-student life at Delaware.

• Interactions among students are strongly encouraged, whether in work or outside the lab.
• Students lunch together on the steps of Brown Lab or
• Participate in team sports such as volleyball or softball
• The University's location offers
• University-sponsored activities on campus
• cultural and sports events in nearby Philadelphia or Baltimore
• access to New York City and Washington by short train rides
• a lazy day at the beach in southern Delaware.

Housing

Apartments, shared houses and other arrangements can often be made through the University.

The department also informally assists students to find comfortable, affordable housing, either separately or as groups. Please ask for further information when applying.

Financial Assistance

• Students typically are supported as teaching or research assistants, and a stipend is provided.
• Tuition is waived for students under contract.
• Teaching assistants are an integral part of the teaching program of the department, and their interaction with undergraduate students provides resources in chemistry that add depth to the educational experience. Teaching assistants spend eight or nine hours per week supervising undergraduate laboratories and a comparable amount of time in preparation, office hours, and grading.
• Research assistants are paid from faculty research grants.
• University and departmental fellowships are awarded to exceptional students.
• Graduate students in good standing in the Ph.D. program are provided calendar-year support for five years from the time of entry in the graduate program.
• Students may be eligible for federally guaranteed loans.

New-Student Orientation

New graduate students have a great deal to do to get adjusted to the demands of work in a graduate program. A week before classes start, they

• attend University and departmental orientation programs
• get academic advisement
• gain information and training for their roles as teaching assistants
• meet their new colleagues.

After Graduate School

Almost all graduates find positions in industry, in government laboratories or in academic posts. Initial contacts between students and potential employers often occur due to contacts between faculty and industry, government and academic institutions. The best indicators of the opportunities afforded by an advanced degree in chemistry and biochemistry from the University of Delaware are the over 500 successful graduates of our program such as:

The advanced degree in chemistry and biochemistry from the University of Delaware thus takes the graduate to many different careers, of which these are only a sampling. Ask any of our 500+ graduates, and you will learn the possibilities that graduate education in chemistry and biochemistry at the University of Delaware can bring.

Getting in Touch

To find out more about the graduate program in chemistry and biochemistry at the University of Delaware, to request application information, to arrange a visit to the department, or just to talk about the possibilities, you can

• Call Ms. Jen Durkin, the department staff assistant, at (302) 831-2462 between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. (U.S. eastern time) weekdays, or fax at (302) 831-6335
• Contact Ms. Durkin by electronic mail at: pmcmahon@udel.edu
• Write to:
  Graduate Admissions:
  Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
  University of Delaware
  Newark, DE 19716-2522