Chemistry

Opportunities for graduate studies

The Department of Chemistry at the University of North Texas offers course work leading to a Master of Science degree in Chemistry and a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Chemistry.
UNT's program will provide you with opportunities to impact the world - from designing new pharmaceuticals and materials to reducing emissions of toxic substances or producing higher-value products from natural gas.
The master's degree program includes concentrations in analytical, industrial, inorganic, organic or physical chemistry, or chemistry education. You may conduct your thesis or dissertation research in any concentration except industrial chemistry.
The university recognizes that new frontiers in chemistry often fall at the intersections of two or more traditional areas. Your advisors will encourage and can assist you in designing unique, leading-edge interdisciplinary study opportunities. You may choose from a wide variety of research programs, including:

• catalysis
• computational chemistry                                                                                           
• electrochemistry                                                                                                              
• forensic science  
• materials chemistry                                                                                                         
• molecular dynamics and kinetics                                                                              
• nuclear magnetic resonance                                                                                                
• organic synthesis and mechanisms                                                                                               
• organometallic chemistry                                                                                                  
• spectroscopy
• thermochemistry

Research interests of the chemistry faculty span the areas of analytical, inorganic, organic and physical chemistry, and chemistry education. The department is nationally recognized for its top research in computational chemistry, materials chemistry and chemical education.

UNT's chemistry education and industrial chemistry specializations are targeted to teachers and industrial employees. Classroom-based and online programs are offered in both areas, and many evening classes are available.

Research and laboratories

UNT's chemistry faculty is committed to excellence and your success as a graduate student. A number of faculty members have been internationally and nationally recognized in their respective fields of expertise, winning major awards, serving as editors or on the editorial boards of major journals, and receiving extensive citations for their research endeavors.

For example, Professor Tom Cundari and Professor Wes Borden, Welch Chair of Chemistry at UNT, are part of a group of 50 researchers sharing a five-year, $15 million National Science Foundation grant to carry out research on chemical catalysis. In 2009, Borden also was named to the inaugural class of American Chemical Society Fellows, a distinction awarded to only 162 chemists nationwide. (The new program is designed to recognize the country's best researchers in the field of chemistry.)

Department research to solve many of chemistry's most complex issues is supported by the National Science Foundation, U.S. Departments of Energy and Education, U.S. Air Force, the Semiconductor Research Corp., the Welch Foundation, the American Chemical Society - Petroleum Research Fund, and many other federal and industrial sources.

Research laboratories are housed in the 107,000-square-foot Chemistry Building and the 63,000-square-foot Science Research Building. The department possesses more than $6.3 million of capital equipment and maintains a wide range of instrumentation to facilitate sophisticated graduate research, including research in:

• chemical analysis
• computational chemistry
• mass spectral analysis
• materials and surface characterization
• nuclear magnetic resonance
• UV-vis-IR and laser spectroscopy
• X-ray structure determination

The department offers outstanding computing resources via the U.S. Department of Education-supported Center for Advanced Scientific Computing and Modeling, which is one of the most comprehensive computational chemistry programs in the nation. The computers are used for extensive quantum chemistry and molecular modeling applications. The department also maintains and houses many other state-of-the-art facilities and resources including:

• the Computational Chemistry Instructional Laboratory, which provides hardware and software resources to predict the physical and chemical properties of compounds
• an extensive range of modern instrumentation including a 500 MHz Varian NMR spectrometer, APEX II CCD-based X-ray diffractometer, and mass spectrometers with MALDI, ESI and APCI capabilities
• a comprehensive inventory of chemicals and laboratory supplies
• a forensics lab with instrumentation used to process crime scene evidence and trace evidence identification
• a full-time master glassblower who repairs and fabricates specialized glassware for research
• an electronics shop containing electrical items and equipment including oscilloscopes, voltmeters and amplifiers

Admission requirements

You must meet the admission requirements of UNT's Toulouse School of Graduate Studies and the program's specific requirements:

• a bachelor's degree from an accredited four-year college or university
• a minimum 3.0 GPA on the last 60 undergraduate semester credit hours or 3.4 GPA on any completed graduate degree
• a minimum GRE score of 391 (verbal) and 555 (quantitative)
• two letters of recommendation
• statement of purpose and curriculum vitae

Because program admission is competitive, achieving minimum scores does not guarantee admission. Generally, higher scores are required for financial assistance.

If you're an international student whose native language is not English, you will need a minimum score of 550 on the Test of English as a Foreign Language.

U.S. applicants may apply directly to the Toulouse School of Graduate Studies. International applicants should apply to the Office of International Admissions. To speed the application process, you are encouraged to send a copy of your application materials to the chair of the chemistry department's Graduate Affairs Committee.

Degree requirements

M.S. degrees

Analytical, inorganic, organic or physical chemistry

You will plan your program with your advisory professor and the advisory committee. You must earn credit for 30 semester hours and maintain a B average in all formal chemistry course work. The program requires completion of three of the four core courses (analytical, inorganic, organic and physical), one of which must be in your area of research. You also will write a thesis describing the research and defend the thesis at an oral examination administered by the advisory committee.
Chemistry education

This program is designed for pre-service or in-service education professionals. With the aid of your advisor, you will choose a 30-semester-hour program with thesis or a 36-semester-hour program without thesis. A minimum of 18 hours of formal course work in chemistry is required.

Industrial chemistry

This concentration is available if you have a specific interest in a selected area of applied chemistry. Degree requirements are determined in consultation with the Graduate Affairs Committee. The program leads to a non-thesis degree requiring 36 semester hours of formal course work, including at least 18 hours in chemistry. At least 12 hours of non-chemistry courses must be included and approved by your committee. You also are required to hold an industrial position to receive on-the-job training.

Ph.D. degree

For the Ph.D. degree, you are required to complete core courses in three of the four traditional areas of chemistry (analytical, inorganic, organic and physical), including your area of research. You must complete three additional advanced courses. Research will culminate in a written dissertation of demonstrable scientific merit. The department requires that at least one paper from your Ph.D. work be accepted in or submitted to a refereed journal by the time of the oral defense. Also, you must fulfill a foreign language or computer science requirement.

Financial assistance

You may apply for teaching assistantships and research fellowships. Teaching assistants receive a monthly stipend and a health insurance package. In some cases, health insurance is provided to research assistants. Teaching and research assistants pay in-state tuition. You may be considered for a graduate school competitive fellowship, but you must be nominated by the department. New graduate students who have participated in Ronald E. McNair Post-Baccalaureate programs are eligible for McNair Fellowships.