Academic Programs Catalog

In addition to meeting the requirements of the university and of the College of Natural Science, students must meet the requirements specified below.

Admission

Only those persons who are enrolled in a Doctor of Philosophy degree program in the Department of Chemistry or the Department of Physics and Astronomy at Michigan State University may petition the Committee on Chemical Physics for admission to the doctoral program in chemical physics.

Requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy Degree in Chemical Physics

The student must:

1. Pass doctoral comprehensive examinations of the cumulative type.  Details about these examinations may be obtained from the department.
2. Complete at least 6 credits in 800–900 level Chemistry courses.
3. Complete at least 6 credits in 800–900 level Physics and Astronomy courses.
4. Pass an oral examination on the proposed research.

For the Master of Science program in chemistry, the areas of study are analytical, chemical education, inorganic, organic, and physical.

In addition to meeting the requirements of the university and of the College of Natural Science, students must meet the requirements specified below.

Admission

The student must have a bachelor's degree and an acceptable grade–point average, and must have had in an undergraduate program one year each of general, analytical, organic, and physical chemistry, one year of physics, and one year of calculus. Deficiencies in the undergraduate program, such as deficiencies in calculus or in foreign language, must be removed before the degree will be recommended.

Requirements for the Master of Science Degree in Chemistry

A total of 30 credits are required for the program under either Plan A (with thesis) or Plan B (without thesis).  Most students earn the degree under Plan A.  For Plan A, students are required to complete 8 credits of master's thesis research and may be permitted to complete up to 15 credits of master's thesis research; approximately two–thirds of the remaining credits are in the major area and the balance is in other areas.

The program is planned by the student and the major professor in accordance with the student's desire for earning only the master's degree or continuing on to the doctorate.

Programs for the Doctor of Philosophy degree, based on a broad and thorough undergraduate program, emphasize study and original research in one of the following areas: analytical, chemical education, inorganic, organic and physical. Numerous cross–disciplinary research opportunities involving, for example, biochemistry or the cyclotron laboratory, are also available.

In addition to meeting the requirements of the University and of the College of Natural Science, students must meet the requirements specified below.

Admission

Students holding bachelor's degrees, or master's degrees or the equivalent, may be admitted for study at the doctoral level on either a provisional or regular basis. Applicants are expected to have had in their undergraduate programs one year each of general, analytical, organic, and physical chemistry, one year of physics, and one year of calculus or their equivalents. Deficiencies in the undergraduate program must be removed. 

Requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy Degree  in Chemistry

1. Complete a minimum of one year of teaching requirement.
2. Complete a minimum of 12 to 18 credits of 800-900 level courses through a minimum of 6 courses. Credits earned in requirements 3. and 4. may not be used to fulfill this requirement.
3. Complete the following courses (2 credits):
   CEM 890 Chemical Problems and Reports   1 (section 1 Faculty Seminar)
   CEM 890 Chemical Problems and Reports   1 (section 2 Second Year Oral)
4. Complete 2 credits of seminar course work from one of the following areas: Analytical, Inorganic, Nuclear, Organic, or Physical to demonstrate research preparedness and as a defense of the dissertation. The student's course work must be planned and approved by their academic advisor.
5. Satisfactory performance on doctoral comprehensive examinations of the cumulative type is required. Details about these and the qualification examinations may be obtained  from the department.
6. Complete at least 24 credits and no more than 36 credits of CEM 999 Doctoral Dissertation Research.
7. All students must complete Responsible Conduct of Research Training - https://grad.msu.edu/recr.
8. Additional details on applicable course work can be found in the CEM graduate handbook at www.chemistry.msu.edu.