Chemistry (Ph.D.)

Location(s): Brookings Main Campus

Student working in a lab with ice.

Program Coordinator/Contact

Cheng Zhang, Associate Professor
Department of Chemistry, Biochemistry and Physics
Avera Health and Science Center 247, Box 2202
605-688-5151 or 605-688-5428

Program Information

The department’s chemistry faculty research programs fall into the thematic focus areas of environmental chemistry, green chemistry, chemical sensor development, organic synthesis, materials chemistry, natural products chemistry, and chemical education. Within these multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary focus areas, students can select research projects that involve the traditional subdisciplines of chemistry; analytical, biochemistry, inorganic, organic, and physical. Currently active research projects in the department focus on various aspects of analytical chemistry, drug discovery and delivery, synthesis or photoactive materials including polymers, materials chemistry and self-assembly, chromatography, the chemistry of cell membranes, environmental analysis, green chemistry, chemistry of climate change, photophysical chemistry, natural products synthesis, biophysical chemistry, computational chemistry, and solid-state NMR. For additional information about these options, review the descriptions of current faculty research interests on the department website.

Course Delivery Format

Courses offered in the Ph.D. Chemistry curriculum are taught in a variety of formats which address student learning outcomes. Didactic (lecture) methods ensure the development of advanced knowledge of chemistry. Practical (laboratory) methods ensure the development and maturation of laboratory skills and training, and these opportunities are developed in the research laboratory. A combination of didactic and practical methods ensures the successful completion of the graduate dissertation research project.

Research Instrumentation

The department is equipped with modern instrumentation core facilities to support its research program. These facilities are readily available to graduate students for hands-on experience after successfully completing a short training course.

The NMR core facility includes a 600MHz solution FT-NMR spectrometer.
Core Campus Mass Spectrometry Facility consists of a high-resolution magnetic sector mass spectrometer with EI and CI sources and GC, HPLC, pyrolysis and fast-atom bombardment capabilities; a MALDI-TOF mass spectrometer; a Eksigent/Thermo LTQ ESI LC-MS/SM dedicated to “bottom-up” proteomics studies; and an Applied Biosystems SCIEX QTRAP ESI LC-MS/MS dedicated to small molecule and metabolomics characterizations.
Core campus proteomics facility has all the necessary equipment to prepare samples for mass-spectrometry-based proteomics characterizations.
Optical Spectroscopy lab containing 2 FT-IR spectrometers with far-IR capabilities; time-resolved spectrofluorometer; atomic absorption and diode-array UV-Vis spectrophotometers.
The department is home to multiple state-of-the-art fluorescence microscopes for the analysis of biochemical reactions involving purified molecules and within living cells. These instruments include spinning disk confocal microscopy, total internal reflection fluorescence (TIRF) microscopy, targeted photo-bleaching, instrumentation of for ensemble and single-molecule fluorescence-resonance energy transfer (FRET) experiments and fluorescence-correlation spectroscopy, and optogenetics capabilities. The department also houses cell/tissue culture facilities, large- and small-scale protein-purification equipment and biophysical characterization capabilities including isothermal titration calorimetry. Campus computer facilities (including a Beowulf supercomputer cluster) are readily available. Individual groups maintain their own systems for molecular modeling, word processing or data manipulation. Direct, online computer access to chemical and biochemical literature databases such as Chemical Abstracts and Web of Science are provided by the department. Facilities in the Physics Materials and Nanoscience (PMNS) Lab include two sputtering systems to fabricate multi-layered thin film structures, X-ray structural characterization, thermal treatment under controlled environment in ultra-high vacuum, electrical and magnetic properties characterization in 50K - 1000K and optical property characterization.
The department operates a nuclear laboratory that studies both naturally-occurring and man-made isotopes in the environment via gamma spectroscopy and alpha/beta counting.
In addition to these departmental resources, individual research groups also maintain instrumentation including supercritical fluid chromatography and extraction, thermal analysis, laser light scattering, and computational chemistry. Campus supercomputer facilities and online computer access to other online information sources are readily available.

Available Options for Graduate Degrees

Doctor of Philosophy	60 Credit Plan
	90 Credit Plan

Core Requirements

60 Credit Plan

Graduate students in the Ph.D. programs who have completed the M.S. degree in Chemistry or a related discipline at SDSU or another institution of higher education may choose to follow the 60-credit plan. In this plan, the only courses required are CHEM 790 Seminar (progress and final seminars, 2 cr) and CHEM 898D Dissertation (minimum of 18 cr). Although not required, students following this plan are recommended to take CHEM 760 - Laboratory Rotations (2 cr), CHEM 707 - Chemical Communication Skills (2 cr), GSR 601 - Research Regulations Compliance (1 cr), and four core courses as defined in the 90-credit plan if equivalent content was not covered in the curriculum of a student’s prior M.S. program. Students will work with their advisory committee to agree upon their plan of study. The requirements of the 60-credit plan are:

CHEM 790 - Seminar (COM) Credits: 1 (2 credits required)
CHEM 898D - Dissertation (COM) Credits: 1-12 (minimum of 18 credits)
and/or other coursework as required by Graduate Student Advisory Committee

90 Credit Plan

Students are required to complete 12 credits of core coursework covering basic concepts in Chemistry which provide foundational disciplinary breadth. To support the interdisciplinary nature of the dissertation research project and provide subspecialty depth, 2 credits of laboratory rotations are required, and 6 credits of elective coursework are chosen by the student and their graduate advisory committee. Additionally, students must complete 3 credit hours of seminar, split between literature, progress, and final seminars. Students are also required to complete 1 credit of research regulation compliance and 2 credits of chemical communication skills. The remaining credits in the 90-credit plan of study are dissertation research credits, along with other courses related to a student’s research, as agreed upon in consultation with their graduate research advisor and graduate advisory committee.

CHEM 707 - Chemical Communication Skills Credits: 2
CHEM 760 - Laboratory Rotations Credits: 2
CHEM 790 - Seminar (COM) Credits: 1 (3 credits required)
CHEM 898D - Dissertation (COM) Credits: 1-12 (64 credits required)
GSR 601 - Research Regulations Compliance Credits: 1
Electives (Courses must be selected from STEM disciplines) Credits: 6

Select from the following

Select four of the following five courses. Credits: 12

CHEM 701 - Advanced Organic Chemistry I Credits: 3
CHEM 703 - Advanced Physical Chemistry Credits: 3
CHEM 704 - Advanced Inorganic Chemistry Credits: 3
CHEM 705 - Principles of Biochemistry Credits: 3
CHEM 706 - Advanced Analytical Chemistry Credits: 3

Candidacy Examinations

The Department uses a comprehensive examination process as its written candidacy examination for the doctorate in Chemistry. The exam is offered annually with chemistry faculty of sub-disciplines (e.g., analytical, organic, and physical chemistry) contributing to the exam. The exam is to be taken after the student has substantially completed the required coursework and the exam will cover the content presented in the required coursework. The oral candidacy exam takes place within a year of completion of the written candidacy exam. For the oral examination, students are required to develop and write an original research proposal and defend it orally. In order to successfully defend such a proposal, the student must be able to integrate their coursework into the proposed research, and the oral defense reflects that expectation.

Additional Admission Requirements

GRE: General and subject score are recommended but not required
TOEFL: 71 Internet-based
TOEFL Essentials: 7.5
IELTS: 6.0
Duolingo: 100

The priority deadline for applying for admission for the fall semester is December 1. A secondary deadline is January 15. The department typically does not admit students for the spring semester unless applicants have secured funding for their graduate education. Support can come from three sources:

Research assistantship from a professor in the department
Personal or family funds
Scholarship from the government or an organization

In addition to the materials required by the Graduate School, the Department of Chemistry, Biochemistry and Physics requires the following application materials:

A one- to two-page personal statement which includes a description of undergraduate research, work experience, or other factors demonstrating a propensity toward graduate studies. The personal statement should also include a statement of the applicant’s career goals. The applicant may upload this statement while completing the Graduate School’s online application.
Two letters of recommendation, preferably at least one from faculty at the applicant’s undergraduate institution. Letters should come from faculty who are directly familiar with the applicant’s academic work. They must address the applicant’s scholarly potential and may also speak to the applicant’s potential for graduate studies in the discipline. Letters should come directly from the recommenders, who may submit their letters electronically along with the personal recommendation form provided by the Graduate School. The Graduate School will email recommenders detailed instructions for submitting their recommendations using the contact information provided by the applicant.

General Requirements

Graduate students must consult with their advisor before registering for graduate coursework. For additional information, refer to the Doctor of Philosophy Degree Requirements .