Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry

Faculty and Fields of Interest

Shuowei Cai bioanalytical and biophysical chemistry, protein chemistry, drug formulation, and pharmaceutical biotechnology

Patrick J. Cappillino (Graduate Director), Inorganic Chemistry

Wei-Shun Chang Single-particle spectromicroscopy, catalysis, biosensing

David Z Goodson theoretical chemical physics, quantum chemistry methods development, physical chemistry of the environment, mathematical and computational methods of chemical data analysis

Maolin Guo Biochemistry and molecular biology, protein engineering, structural biology, bioinorganic, bioorganic chemistry, nutritional biochemistry and analytical biochemistry

Xiaofei Jia Biochemistry

Maricris Mayes Theoretical and Computational Chemistry

Catherine C Neto phytochemicals with anti-cancer, antimicrobial, antioxidant, and neuroprotective activity from cranberries and other plant sources; bioactivity, purification, and structure elucidation of natural products; effects of plant physiology and plany nutrition on production of secondary metabolites including functional food factors; chemical education in the organic laboratory

Emmanuel C A Ojadi photochemistry, photobiology, and photophysics of porphyrin compounds and their applications to energy transformation processes involving oxidation reduction reactions; photorefractivity of porphyrin polymers, photoelectrochemistry on porphyrin coated electrodes and thin films

Sivappa Rasapalli synthesis of natural products, heterocyclic chemistry, green chemistry, development of novel synthetic methodologies, catalysis (enzymatic, organo and organometallic), development of novel biomaterials for bioengineering and for drug delivery

Yuegang Zuo analytical nvironmental chemistry, toxicology, environmental monitoring, marine chemistry, atmospheric photochemistry, photobiology, natural products chemistry

The Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth offers a graduate program leading to the degree of Master of Science with specialization in analytical chemistry, biochemistry, inorganic chemistry, organic chemistry, polymer chemistry, physical chemistry or computational chemistry. Several options leading to the degree in chemistry are available which are tailored to the needs of individual students.

The Research Thesis option (Plan A) is designed for full-time students who wish to continue their graduate education at a PhD granting institution or who want to pursue a career in teaching, research, or industry with the Master of Science degree. The Research Project (Plan B) and the Library Research Project (Plan C) are non-thesis options which are intended primarily for working students who wish to earn the Master of Science degree on a part-time basis.

The department also offers a Doctor of Philosophy degree in chemistry and Biochemistry. The program provides both breadth and depth through a flexible structure of formal course work, independent study, and research. This full-time program takes approximately five years to complete. You will be eligible for graduate assistantships for research and/or teaching activities. A minimum of 55 course credits is required beyond the BS, including at least 24 credits of formal courses, at least 27 credits of doctoral dissertation research, and 4 credits of Graduate Seminar. A GPA of 3.0 or above on a 4.0 grading scale is required to satisfy the course requirements throughout the program. Doctoral students must also successfully pass written qualifying examinations, and the original research proposal-doctoral candidacy examination. The final part of the program is devoted principally to research leading to the doctoral dissertation. Doctoral students are required to successfully defend the dissertation research proposal and pass the dissertation defense, and complete a written dissertation. If you enter the program with an earned master’s degree in chemistry or biochemistry you may be eligible to receive Advanced Standing in the doctoral program. You will complete a minimum of 8 credits from formal courses. The total number of formal course credits required will be determined during individual advisement with the Graduate Programs Director and must be approved by the Graduate Programs Committee. All other program requirements, including the qualifying examinations, remain unchanged.

Research Facilities

Research is conducted in fifteen research laboratories and six instrument rooms. These facilities are housed in the Group II and Violette Research Buildings.

Modernization of instrumentation is a high priority in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry. The departmental instrumentation includes NMR spectrometers, gas chromatograph, mass spectrometers, infrared, UV-visible, fluorescence, atomic absorption spectrometers, preparative and analytical gas and liquid chromatographs, a capillary gas chromatograph, scintillation counter, isothermal titration Calorimeter, ultracentrifuge, electrophosesis systems, spectropolarimeter, optical fiber-based biosensor, microtiter plate reader and washer, dialyzer/protein concentrator, DNA sequencer, Parr hydrogenation apparatus, electroanalytical instrumentation, and related apparatus for chemical and biochemical research. An electronics shop and electron microscope facilities are shared with other science departments.

Admissions Requirements

Undergraduate training in chemistry or biochemistry is the usual background of graduate students in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry. However, students from other disciplines (physics, biology, etc.) with a strong emphasis in chemistry are encouraged to apply.

Applicants must submit the required application materials to the Graduate Office, with the following additional considerations:

The Graduate Record Examination (GRE) scores are not required for admission to the MS program. However, an applicant may strengthen the application by submitting scores for Verbal, Quantitative, Analytical and Advanced (Chemistry) parts of the GRE. GRE scores are required for those who would like to be considered for the joint PhD or cooperative PhD programs.
Two confidential letters of recommendation are required, from chemistry professors (a third letter is recommended).
For those submitting TOEFL scores, a minimum score of 550 is required for admission and a teaching assistantship.
Please submit a separate list of all chemistry courses taken at the college or university level.

While there is no formal application deadline, applicants are encouraged to submit and complete their applications early to place themselves in the best position for consideration for assistantships.

The department has established a fast-track BS-MS program permitting UMass Dartmouth Chemistry undergraduates to progress to the masters level smoothly and at a savings of some overall credits. See the General Catalogue for information and special admissions procedures.

Financial Assistance

For qualified students, the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry provides competitive teaching and research assistantships for the academic year (includes waiver of tuition). The number of teaching assistantships, however, are limited. Therefore, persons interested in such support are encouraged to apply early.

A student holding an assistantship must be registered for at least 9 credits per semester. An additional summer research or teaching assistantship has usually been awarded to students in good standing working on thesis research. Students may be supported by research assistantships by faculty members holding research grants from various external agencies.

Other assistance, such as loans or work study, may be available to you. Please consult the chapter on “Expenses and Financial Assistance.”

Contacts

Dr Patrick Cappillino
Graduate Program Director
Chemistry
508-910-6639
pcappillino@umassd.edu

University of Massachusetts Dartmouth
285 Old Westport Road
North Dartmouth, MA 02747-2300