Combined BS (certified)/MS Degree
The Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry offers an accelerated Masters degree option for our best prepared and most successful undergraduate students. If you have a GPA of 3.5 or higher in all chemistry courses taken by the middle of the junior year of our BS curriculum, this option allows you to earn both an ACS certified Bachelor of Science and a Master of Science degree in chemistry in as little as five years. The option permits six hours of coursework {CHM 445/545 and CHM 491/591 (or CHM 499/591)} to be counted for both the undergraduate and graduate degree.You will:
- fulfill the ACS Bachelor of Science requirement in inorganic chemistry by taking CHM 545 (Inorganic Chemistry, 3 credit hours) in the second semester of your third year. You will receive both undergraduate and graduate credit for this course.
- fulfill part of the ACS laboratory requirements by counting a total of three hours (145 lab hours) of research during the summer session between the 3rd and 4th year toward the BS degree (3 credit hours of CHM 491 or 499), and an additional three credit hours (145 lab hours) of research (CHM 491/591 or 499/591) performed during the Fall semester of the fourth year toward both the BS and MS degrees.
- Count four graduate courses (12 semester hours) as undergraduate electives.
- Complete the basic studies requirements
- complete the MS degree requirements by taking 16 credit hours of graduate course work in the fall and spring semesters of the 4th year, 3 credit hours of DIS (CHM 591) in the summer between the 4 and 5th year, and 8 credit hours of graduate courses (thesis research and seminar) in the 5th year. Up to one additional credit hour of graduate thesis work could be taken during the summer session immediately following the 5th year.
A complete sample schedule is presented below:
Preliminary courses (3.5 or higher in all chemistry (CHM) courses listed)
Courses to complete the Five Year Masters
| Fall 1 | Spring 1 | Fall 2 | Spring 2 | Fall 3 | Spring 3 | Summer 3 | |
| CHM 101 | CHM 102 | CHM 211 | CHM 212 | CHM 312 | CHM 545 | ||
| MAT 161 | MAT 162 | CHM 250 | CHM 235 | CHM 321 | CHM 420 | ||
| BIO 204 | basic | PHY 201 | PHY 202 | CHM 365 | CHM 435 | CHM 491 (499) | |
| basic | basic | MAT 261 | MAT 361 (335) | basic | basic | ||
| basic | basic | basic | basic | basic | |||
| CHM BS | 12 | 8 | 12 | 15 | 12 | 11 | 3 |
| Basic studies | 15 | 9 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 6 | |
| Total BS | 15 | 17 | 15 | 18 | 18 | 17 | 3 |
| MS | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Fall 4 | Spring 4 | Summer 4 | Fall 5 | Spring 5 | Summer 5 | Total Hours | |
| CHM 501 | CHM 521 or 536 | ||||||
| CHM 516 or 546 or 568 | CHM 5elec | CHM 595 | CHM 595 | ||||
| CHM 516 or 546 or 568 | CHM 495 | CHM 591 | CHM 599 | CHM 599 | CHM 599 | ||
| CHM 591 | elec | ||||||
| basic | |||||||
| 3 | 1 | CHM BS | 77 | ||||
| 3 | Basic studies | 45 | |||||
| 12 | 10 | Total BS | 125 | ||||
| 11 | 6 | 3 | 4 | 3 | {1} | MS | 30 |
For more information, contact Dr. Brooks Avery, program advisor..
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