Professional Science Master's

The Professional Science Master's is an innovative graduate degree that allows students to pursue advanced training in chemistry, while simultaneously developing workplace skills highly valued by employers. This non-thesis degree prepares students for career opportunities in businesses utilizing advanced chemistry courses coupled with internship and selected business courses.

Financial information

Teaching assistantships

The Department of Chemistry has seven TA lines overall and every year we have openings for 3-4 teaching assistantships. Teaching assistantships are contingent upon adequate progress towards a degree and performance as a TA. A teaching assistantship includes a yearly salary in the amount of ~$13,000 (exact amount is subject to budget approval) and a yearly tuition award (which will be paid toward tuition) in the amount of ~$7,200 (exact amount is subject to budget approval), health, dental, and vision insurance coverage, and retirement benefits.

Application process

  1. Online application goes to the Graduate Office (Room 602 in Culkin Hall)
  2. Once your application is complete, the Graduate Office sends your folder to the Department of Chemistry
  3. Every graduate faculty examines your application folder and votes to accept or not.
  4. A letter of decision is sent to the Graduate Office from the department.
  5. Graduate Office will examine your folder and inform you about the final decision.

Graduate programs

The program is based on the conviction that the needs of students are best met in a program where much individual attention is possible. The course training is equivalent to the standards set for the PhD, regardless of whether the MS is to be terminal or preparatory to the PhD degree.

The department currently offers three graduate tracks:

Current research projects

2015 summer student research projects

Sasha Padilla
(Dr. Kestas Bendinskas)
"Development of a mail-in kit for detection of a metabolite for succinic semialdehyde dehydrogenase deficiency"

Katie Piazza
(Dr. Kestas Bendinskas)
"Fluorescence studies of BSA and A2M- metal interactions"