SUMMARY OF REQUIREMENTS FOR ADVANCED DEGREES
IN CHEMISTRY AND BIOCHEMISTRY
(Effective September 1, 2006)
Graduate students who are in residence at the
University of Delaware are expected to register as a listener
for one of the Divisional seminars and to participate each semester
in that seminar and all departmental colloquia.
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Requirements for the M.A. in Chemistry and
Biochemistry |
The following requirements are for the
M.A. in Chemistry and Biochemistry. |
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Admission by the Office of Graduate Studies.
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A minimum of 30 credit hours of graduate-level
courses is required with an overall B average (3.00). A minimum
of 18 credit hours must be course work at the 600 level or
above (excluding pre-candidacy study, research, thesis or
dissertation credits) as specified in Section II of the Ph.D.
requirements. A maximum of 12 credit hours, 500 level or
greater, may be taken in other departments toward the 30
credit hour requirement. No thesis is required.
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Satisfaction of the Ph.D. cumulative examinations,
as specified in Section III of the Ph.D. requirements.
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Satisfaction of the Ph.D. Language Examination
as specified by the student's division in Section V of the
Ph.D. requirements.
The advisor for this program is the Director
of Graduate Studies. All courses must have his/her approval. |
Requirements for the M.S. in Chemistry and
Biochemistry |
The following requirements are for the M.S. in Chemistry and Biochemistry. |
Admission by the Office of Graduate Studies.
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A minimum of 30 credit hours of graduate-level
courses is required with an overall B average (3.00). A minimum
of 18 credit hours must be course work at the 600 level or
above (excluding pre-candidacy study, research, and thesis
credits) as specified in Section II of the Ph.D. requirements.
A maximum of nine credit hours, 500 level or greater, may
be taken in other departments toward the 30 credit hour requirement.
Appendix D describes course requirements for students in
all divisions regarding the research conducted in the Department
and service as a teaching assistant.
- Thesis must not represent more than six credit hours. Thesis
and/or research must represent a minimum of six and a maximum
of twelve credit hours toward the 30 credit hour requirement.
- A thesis is required. It must meet the approval of the Thesis
Advisor, Department Chairperson, Dean of the College of Arts
and Science, and the Vice Provost for Academic and International
Programs. The requirements for formatting of the M.S. thesis
are detailed in the “Thesis and Dissertation Manual” which
may be found online at: http://www.udel.edu/gradoffice/thesismanualhtml.
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Students who have completed some
graduate courses at other institutions may transfer up to nine
credit hours of acceptable work, subject to approval by the Director
of Graduate Studies and the Office of Graduate Studies. (Credit
hours applied towards a degree at another institution may not
be transferred.)
Requirements for the Ph.D. in Chemistry and
Biochemistry The following requirements are for the Ph.D.
in Chemistry and Biochemistry.
- Admission by the Office of Graduate Studies.
- The department course
requirements are a minimum of eighteen credit hours in graduate
level courses (600-level or higher) excluding research and
dissertation (CHEM-868 and CHEM-969). At least nine of these
must be taken outside the student's division. At least six
two or three-credit courses must be taken. Appendix B describes
specific course requirements for each division. Scientific
courses offered by other Departments may be counted as courses
outside the student's division, if approved by the faculty
in the student's division. The student must achieve at least
a cumulative grade point average of 3.00 in the courses that
fulfill this requirement. The course requirements, including
the division's requirements, should be satisfied within four
semesters of entering the program with a bachelor's degree.
Any required course may be satisfied by means of a competency
examination administered by the secretary of the respective
division, upon approval of the division. Appendix D describes
course requirements for students in all divisions regarding
the research conducted in the Department and service as a
teaching assistant.
- Cumulative Examinations
The cumulative examinations for all Ph.D.
and M.A. students in this department will be given eight
times per year in the months of September, October, November,
December, February, March, April, and May. Each division
will determine the format of its cumulative examinations.
To fulfill the cumulative examination requirements, a student
must accumulate ten points on eight consecutive examinations.
A student may take cumulative exams in any area but must
accumulate at least six points in exams offered by his/her
division. Grading will be on a scale of 3.0, 2.5, 2.0, 1.5,
1.0, 0.5, and 0 for each examination. In no case will the
student be allowed to take more than eight examinations (with
the exception listed in the second paragraph). The division
that is responsible for a student may recommend to the Graduate
Curriculum Committee (GCC) that they excuse, for cause, a
student from completing a series of examinations after the
nth exam in the sequence. The excused period is for a specified
time. However, when a student resumes taking the examinations
again, he/she will only be allowed to take 8-n exams in order
to accumulate the balance of his/her points. Unexcused absences
will be counted as scores of zero. Students entering with
a Bachelor's degree should complete the cumulative requirement
during their third and fourth semesters of full-time study.
Part-time students are expected to start taking examinations
after the equivalent of two full-time semesters. An entering
graduate student who holds a master's degree, or a student
completing an M.S. (Chemistry and Biochemistry) degree at
the University of Delaware, will be expected to begin taking
the cumulative exams immediately. However, those graduate
students who, for some valid reason (e.g., excessive number
of undergraduate courses taken during the first year, illness,
change of major, etc.), wish to delay the start of their
examinations must obtain written permission to this effect
from the GCC.
Students who fail to achieve a total of ten points in eight
consecutive cumulative examinations may start the series
over again after completing the requirements for an M.S.
degree and obtaining the approval of the GCC.
A schedule of examinations will be posted at the beginning
of the academic year. A student may take an examination outside
his/her division consistent with the required point distribution
described above. However, the student must inform the secretary
of the appropriate division and the Executive Secretary of
the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry of his/her interest
in taking such an examination at least two weeks prior to
the date of the examination. The exams will normally be designed
for two hours, but three hours will be allowed. In some cases,
take home examinations are given. Each division prepares
and grades its own cumulative examinations.
- Ph.D. Advisory Committe
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The Department Chairperson shall inform
the GCC of his/her approval of the supervision of the student's
Ph.D. research by a faculty member of the Department of Chemistry
and Biochemistry. Students are not allowed to do senior research,
a master's thesis, and a Ph.D. dissertation (or senior research
and a Ph.D. dissertation if no master's thesis is written)
with the same research advisor. In addition to attending
the special seminar program for first year graduate students,
each graduate student is required to meet individually with
at least three faculty members before choosing a research
advisor. The choice of research advisors normally occurs
by December 15 to enable the student to begin his research
effort during the Winter Session of his first year.
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The research supervisor shall submit nominations
for the student's Ph.D. Advisory Committee to the GCC for
its approval no later than the beginning of the semester
following the student's completion of the cumulative examinations.
Members of the Ph.D. Advisory Committee should be consulted
with regard to their willingness to serve by the student
and/or the student's research supervisor prior to their nomination.
The committee consists of at least four members: a chairperson,
a faculty member in the primary research area of the dissertation,
a faculty member outside the primary research area of the
dissertation and an external member. If appropriate, the
committee may include up to two additional members. If the
chairperson of the committee does not have a primary appointment
in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, then another
member of the committee having a primary faculty appointment
in the Department must serve as a co-chair. At least half
of the members shall have a primary faculty appointment in
the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, and at least
half of those members shall represent the primary area of
study. The external member must be a faculty member having
a primary appointment in another department in the University
or a scientist from outside the University. An external member
having a regular faculty appointment in the University may
serve as a co-chairperson. All committee members from outside
the University must have outstanding credentials as judged
by the GCC. A faculty member having a secondary appointment
in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry may serve
as either an internal or external member of the committee.
In order to convene a meeting of the Ph.D. Advisory Committee,
at least 75% of the committee members must be present. A
temporary and/or permanent substitute for a regular committee
member must be approved by the GCC.
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In order to continue in the program, the student shall request
and hold a meeting of the Ph.D. Advisory Committee during
the student’s second year in the program, at which
time the student will present a brief oral and written outline
of his/her
proposed research program.
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The Ph.D. Advisory Committee shall inform the GCC of the
suitability of the proposed research program for a Ph.D.
in Chemistry and Biochemistry by means of the "Approval
of Ph.D. Research Program" form. This form may be obtained
in the office of the Executive Secretary of the Dept. of
Chemistry and Biochemistry or online at http://www.udel.edu/chem.
For the student to continue in the program, the Ph.D. Research
Program must be approved by the end of the student’s
third year.
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If the research topic is changed at
a later stage, the research supervisor shall convene a meeting
of the Ph.D. Advisory Committee to discuss and approve the
outline of the new research topic.
- Language Requirement
The specific language requirements and the method(s)
of satisfaction are determined by the division (see Appendix
A).
- "Recommendation for Candidacy for
the Ph.D. Degree" Form
http://www.udel.edu/gradoffice/current/candidacyform.pdf
This form must be submitted to the Executive
Secretary of the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
and then to the Department Chairperson and Office of Graduate
Studies after the student has fulfilled the following requirements:
Foreign language
- Course requirements
- Cumulative examinations
- Research project and program of study
approval by Ph.D. Advisory Committee, and "Approval
of Ph.D. Research Program" submitted to the GCC (see
Section IV.d)
- One year residence as specified by the
University.
This form may be obtained from the Executive Secretary
of the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry or http://www.udel.edu/gradoffice/.
- Preliminary Oral Examination(s) of
Research Progress
At least one meeting of the Ph.D. Advisory
Committee must be held no less than six months preceding
the day of the final dissertation defense. The Ph.D. Advisory
Committee shall inform the Executive Secretary of this meeting
by means of the "Record of Preliminary
Oral Examination" form.
This form may be obtained from the Executive Secretary of
the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry or online at:
http://www.udel.edu/chem/grad/preoral.pdf
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"Application for Advanced Degree" Form
This form must be submitted to the Executive
Secretary of the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
by the Office of Graduate Studies' established dates for
the Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter graduations. The form
can be found online at http://www.udel.edu/gradoffice/current/advanceddegree.pdf
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Dissertation
A dissertation is required. It must meet
the approval of the Dissertation Advisor, the Ph.D. Advisory
Committee, the Department Chairperson, the Dean of the College
of Arts and Science and the Vice Provost for Academic and
International Programs. The requirements for formatting of
the Ph.D. dissertation are detailed in the “Thesis
and Dissertation Manual” which may be found on the
Office of Graduate Studies website, http://www.udel.edu/gradoffice/current/thesismanual.html
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Final Oral Defense of Dissertation
The Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
requires that the final examination for the Ph.D. include
a public oral presentation of the candidate's dissertation
results that meets the approval of the Ph.D. advisory committee.
The presentation should be about one hour long. The Executive
Secretary of the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
must be notified three weeks in advance of the date of the
exam so that the appropriate notification of the University
community can be made. A hard or electronic copy of the dissertation
must be available for examination in the office of the Executive
Secretary of the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
at least two weeks in advance of the date of the exam. In
the event that a student is unsuccessful, the Ph.D. Advisory
Committee may arrange for the student to be reexamined.
- "Certificate of Ph.D. Dissertation Defense"
Form
This form must be submitted to the Office
of Graduate Studies with the Dissertation. It may be obtained
from the Executive Secretary of the Department of Chemistry
and Biochemistry or online at: http://www.udel.edu/gradoffice/current/certificationdefense.pdf
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APPENDIX A
Language Requirements by Division
A language requirement may be met by any of the following methods:
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Two full years of college-level courses
in one of the specified languages with an average grade of
C or better. An equivalent undergraduate background may be
accepted, upon request to GCC.
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Submission of evidence of satisfactory
performance (a score greater than 500 or one above the 50th
percentile) on the ETS Graduate School Foreign Language Test
for one of the specified languages. Students will make arrangements
to take these examinations directly with ETS.
- Satisfactory performance in a departmental
reading examination in one of the specified languages. Responsibility
for determining the frequency and content of these examinations,
as well as their grading, will rest with each of the five divisions
of the Department (analytical chemistry, biochemistry, inorganic
chemistry, organic chemistry, and physical chemistry), and
the examinations program will be administered by the appropriate
Divisional Secretary. The use of a dictionary will be permitted
throughout each examination.
A student wishing to use options (a) or (b)
should consult with the Executive Secretary of the Department
of Chemistry and Biochemistry who will verify grades or test
scores. A student wishing to use option (c) should consult with
the division secretary who will arrange for an examination and
communicate the result to the Executive Secretary of the Department
of Chemistry and Biochemistry who will see that it is recorded
in the student's file.
The languages in which the requirement is to be met as determined
by the divisions are:
- Analytical
None.
- Biochemistry
None.
- Inorganic
None.
- Organic
Any modern foreign language is acceptable and proficiency may
be established by any one of the three methods.
- Physical
None
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APPENDIX B
Divisional Course Requirements
A course is defined as a unit of three credit
hours. In the case of a divisional course requirement where a
particular course is not specified, this "course" may
be satisfied by a combination of graduate level courses whose
value equals or exceeds three credit hours. Other stipulations
of the division concerning the nature of courses must be satisfied.
Divisions are also called concentrations by the University.
Course requirements for students in the various divisions are:
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Analytical
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Six credit hours of graduate
analytical courses plus three additional credit hours of graduate
coursework designated by the research advisor. The three additional
credit hours can be selected from graduate level analytical courses,
other graduate level courses in the Chemistry and Biochemistry
Department, or graduate level courses in other departments. Courses
in other departments must be approved by the analytical faculty.
Analytical courses which can satisfy this requirements include
CHEM-620, CHEM-621, CHEM-622, CHEM-623, CHEM-624, CHEM-625, CHEM-626,
CHEM-627 and CHEM-820. |
Biochemistry |
At least 6 credits
in graduate-level biochemistry courses. The Biochemistry
Division or the student's research advisor must approve the courses
used to satisfy the departmental course requirement of 18 credits
in graduate level courses.
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Inorganic |
Nine credit hours from CHEM-651, CHEM-652, CHEM-
653 and CHEM-654.
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Organic |
CHEM-633 and CHEM-634. Two additional
courses (6 credit hours) with a CHEM-63X or CHEM-83X designation.
One of these additional courses may be audited. It is strongly
recommended that the courses taken outside of Organic Chemistry
should be chosen from the following list: CHEM-641, CHEM-642,
CHEM-651, CHEM-652, CHEM-654. If a student wishes to take other
courses than these outside of Organic Chemistry, then each of
these courses must be approved: (a) at the Fall and Spring advisements
for first-year graduate students by the representative from the
Organic Chemistry Division on the Graduate Curriculum Committee
and (b) at other times by the Organic Chemistry Faculty.
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Physical |
A minimum of three courses from among the following:
CHEM-671, CHEM-672, CHEM-674 and CHEM-677. One may substitute for
one of these three courses from related three-credit courses outside
physical chemistry upon the approval of the research advisor.
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APPENDIX C
General Office of Graduate Studies Requirements
A teaching assistant, research assistant or tuition scholar must
be registered each semester for at least six hours of graduate
credit, not including courses for which he/she is registered
as a listener or courses which are not for graduate credit
(400 series and lower courses). Similarly, a research fellow
must be registered for at least nine credits of graduate work,
not including undergraduate courses or courses for which he/she
is registered as a listener.
After admission to candidacy, the candidate shall register for a total of nine
hours of CHEM-969 (Ph.D. Dissertation). Following these registrations, if the
dissertation has not been submitted to the Office of Graduate Studies, the candidate
shall register for UNIV-999 (Sustaining) status each semester in the fall or
spring semester, or register as full-time if on contract during these periods.
Sustaining or other registrations shall be required for summer session if the
candidate graduates during that session.
The student must register continuously or he/she will be charged
in the semester before he/she graduates for the missing semester(s)
unless he/she is on a leave of absence. A student who receives
a master's degree and wishes to continue for the Ph.D. must submit
a Graduate Student. Change of Classification form to his/her
Ph.D. advisor requesting reclassification as G1 (graduate pre-candidacy).
The form is approved in turn by the Chairperson of the GCC, the
Director of Graduate Studies, the Department Chairperson, and
the Office of Graduate Studies. If the form is not submitted
with the Application for Advanced Degree, the student is automatically
reclassified CEND (Continuing Education Non-Degree).
Office of Graduate Studies Academic Standards
For full-time students, the index shall be computed
after the first semester and for every semester increment thereafter
with the qualification that to be classified as a full-time student
there must be a minimum of nine hours for credit in each semester.
The following degrees of substandard cumulative indices will obtain: |
2.50 - 2.99 cumulative |
warning |
2.00 - 2.49 cumulative |
probation |
below 2.00 cumulative |
drop |
If the index is not raised to the next higher
category by the following semester, the student is placed in
the next lower category (warning to probation -- probation
to drop). If the index places the student on probation, and
that index is not raised to the next higher category after
one additional semester, the student is terminated. If the
index places the student on warning, and that index of 2.50
- 2.99 is not raised to the next higher category after an additional
semester increment, the student is placed on probation for
one semester. If the student fails to achieve a 3.00 after
one semester on warning and one semester on probation, he/she
is terminated from the Office of Graduate Studies and the Department
of Chemistry and Biochemistry.
In the case of graduate teaching or research assistants, a
minimum of six credit hours of graduate level course work is
required per semester. However, graduate teaching or research
assistants may take more hours per semester if they wish to
do so and are permitted by their advisor.
If a student does not take a minimum of nine hours a semester
or six hours as a graduate teaching or research assistant,
he/she becomes a part-time student and the following rules
apply:
The index shall be computed after the first nine hours and
for every nine-hour increment thereafter. The following degrees
of substandard cumulative indices will obtain:
2.50 - 2.99 cumulative |
warning |
2.00 - 2.49 cumulative |
probation |
below 2.00 cumulative |
drop |
If the index is not raised by the following
nine-hour increment, the student is placed in the next lower
category (warning to probation -- probation to drop).
If the index places the student on probation, and that index
of 2.00 - 2.49 is not raised to the next higher category after
one nine-hour increment, the student is terminated. If the
index places the student on warning, and that index of 2.50
- 2.99 is not raised to the next higher category after one
nine-hour increment, the student is placed on probation for
one semester. If the student fails to achieve a 3.00 after
one nine-hour increment on probation, he/she is then terminated.
In the case of graduate teaching assistants on a six-hour
per semester course load, the increment shall consist of six
hours as soon as the graduate teaching assistantship is in
force.
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APPENDIX D
Other Departmental Course Requirements
All full-time students in the M.S. and Ph.D.
programs must enroll in CHEM-865 New Student Seminar during their
first fall of residence, and withdrawal from CHEM-865 New Student
Seminar without the permission of the instructor constitutes
resignation from the graduate program. CHEM-865 New Student Seminar
must be passed by all full-time students in the M.S. and Ph.D.
programs within their first two years of residence. CHEM-601
is required for all students in the M.S. and Ph.D. programs who
serve as teaching assistants and must be taken concurrently with
their first teaching assignment or in the following semester.
8/16/06
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