Program Overview

The doctorate in chemistry degree recipient must demonstrate scholastic breadth in chemistry and contribute significantly to scientific advancement in a chosen research area. Requirements of the doctoral degree in chemistry program include coursework, candidacy examinations, a chemical information retrieval or technical writing course, and successful completion of a publishable doctoral thesis.

Research areas available to those pursuing a PhD in chemistry include the use of digital electronic methods to analyze trace constituents of air and water, a study of the molecules of living systems, the effects of toxic chemicals and carcinogens, synthesis and characterization of compounds of medicinal and industrial interest, methods for studying macromolecules, and characterization of transient species using lasers.

Learn more in the Course Catalog

Faculty Accepting Students: 2024-2025

Consistent with our learning philosophy, the Chemistry department’s faculty scientists serve as dedicated mentors to our graduate students. The department’s community of scholars —faculty, postdoctoral fellows, graduate, and undergraduate students— is large enough to offer a range of stimulating experiences within the field of chemistry yet small enough to provide each student with individual attention to fit their interests.

Faculty Member	Contact	Specialization
	Young-Hoon Ahn Associate Professor Disque Hall 506 ya426@drexel.edu	Chemical Biology; Cysteine Proteomics; Redox Signaling; Glutathione; and Post-translational Modifications; Medicinal Chemistry.
	Fraser Fleming Professor Stratton 410 fraser.f.fleming@drexel.edu	Research is focused on rapidly constructing biologically relevant scaffolds as potential pharmaceutical leads. Two complementary research areas comprise most of the research effort: the use of metalated nitriles as potent nucleophiles for hindered bond construction, and the use of metalated isocyanides as precursors to peptide mimics. The research has been primarily funded by the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation.
	Joe P. Foley Professor; Department Head Disque Hall 306 jfoley@drexel.edu	Separation science and analytical chemistry, with an emphasis on the fundamentals and applications of pressure- or voltage-driven liquid-phase separation techniques including ultra-high pressure liquid chromatography and capillary electrophoresis.
	Hai-Feng (Frank) Ji Professor; Affiliated faculty member of College of Engineering, Department of Materials Science and Engineering Disque Hall 211 hj56@drexel.edu	Organic and Polymer Chemistry; Drug discovery; Biofilm; Phosphorus-based nanomaterials; Plasma chemistry and it’s medical applications
	Daniel B. King Associate Professor; Associate Department Head 509 Disque Hall daniel.king@drexel.edu	Active learning pedagogy; Assessment of technology use; Guided inquiry (i.e., POGIL) activities; Incorporation of real-world context
	Myungwoon Lee Assistant Professor Disque 508 ml3784@drexel.edu	Neurodegenerative protein aggregation; Membrane associated amyloid fibrils; Molecular structures, dynamics, and intermolecular interactions of biological macro molecules; Solid-state NMR and Cryo-electron microscopy (Cryo-EM)
	Kevin G. Owens Associate Professor; Chair, Faculty Senate Stratton Hall 415 kevin.owens@drexel.edu	analytical chemistry; mass spectrometry; analytical method development; time-of-flight mass spectrometry; analytical instrument development; matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization; imaging mass spectrometry; micro-organism identification by mass spectrometry; chemometrics; correlation analysis
	Karl Sohlberg Associate Professor; Chemistry Graduate Advisor Disque Hall 222 kws24@drexel.edu	Theoretical chemistry; computational chemistry; materials research; mechanically interlocked macromolecular complexes (MIMAs); surface modeling.
	Ezra C. Wood Associate Professor; Chair of Chemistry Graduate Program Committee Disque Hall, room 507 Ezra.Wood@drexel.edu	Atmospheric Chemistry; Air Pollution; Climate Change; Analytical Instrumentation

Candidacy Requirements

To become a candidate for the PhD in Chemistry at Drexel, a student must pass a prescribed set of cumulative examinations.

Cumulative Examinations

To become a candidate for the PhD in Chemistry at Drexel, a student must pass a prescribed set of cumulative examinations. Written examinations designed to test a student’s background in his or her major area are given monthly during the academic year and occasionally during the summer at the discretion of the faculty. Students should begin taking these examinations after having completed three courses in the major area (usually the main sequence courses), though beginning these exams earlier is possible for well-prepared students. Students normally begin taking these examinations in the fall quarter of their second year.

Research Seminar

The literature review seminar is designed to help the student conduct his/her research more efficiently by (1) promoting a greater fundamental understanding about the student's own specific research project, and (2) providing context and perspective about previous accomplishments in the field by other research groups as well as her/his own. The subject of the seminar will be related to but broader than that of the thesis research. The examination at which the research seminar is defended is held no later than the end of the winter quarter of the second year for full-time students or the end of the spring quarter of the second year for part-time students. A written report is submitted to the committee no later than two weeks before the examination. A passing grade on this examination is required for continuation in the PhD program.

PhD in Chemistry Thesis

A PhD thesis — the heart of the doctoral degree — must be written, accepted by the research supervisor, presented to a PhD Thesis Examining Committee, and defended orally to the satisfaction of the Examining Committee. It is the responsibility of the student, not the research supervisor, to submit an acceptable thesis. It is expected that students will have at least one peer-reviewed research article accepted for publication by the time of the thesis defense.

Admission Requirements

For admission to graduate study, the department requires a BS in chemistry or the equivalent. This requirement applies to full-time and part-time students working toward either the MS or PhD. Generally, in order to be considered for admission, the successful applicant should have taken two semester courses of Organic, Analytical and Physical Chemistry with corresponding laboratory courses. In addition, he/she should have taken an upper level Inorganic Chemistry course.

Financial Assistance

Chemistry PhD students at Drexel can obtain two main types of financial support: teaching assistantships and research assistantships. Teaching assistantships are available on a competitive basis to incoming students and are normally renewable for several years. Prospective graduate students seeking financial assistance must submit scores for the Graduate Records Exam (GRE).

PhD in Chemistry Teaching Fellow Policy

The College of Arts and Sciences regards training in pedagogy and instruction to be core to the mission of doctoral education. Therefore, all PhD students in the College are required to perform significant teaching duties (defined over multiple terms) during their pursuit of their degree. These activities may include, but are not limited to:

• Supervising teaching labs
• Running course recitations
• Teaching as the primary instructor
• Running student seminars
• Training junior researchers in core research methods
• Running or actively participating in pedagogical seminars or conferences

Alternate fulfillment of this requirement is at the discretion of the program director and the head of the student's home department. To learn more about how to get a PhD in chemistry at Drexel, contact the graduate program committee chair, Ezra Wood, PhD.

Learn more in the Course Catalog