About Us

The Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry has exciting possibilities for all who would join our programs. With an expanding numbers of faculty and resources, the department is poised to be a major contributor of significant 21st century science. The University of Maryland at College Park is the flagship institution of Maryland's educational system of higher education. More than sixty of the university's academic programs are in the top 25 nationally and, based on citations per paper, our chemical physics program is ranked third.

Interactive and Cross-disciplinary. The department blends chemistry and biochemistry with focus in nanoscience on biomaterials, which resonates with a broad spectrum of scientists and engineers in the biological sciences, engineering and physics. Grounded in traditional subfields (analytical, bio-, inorganic, organic, and physical chemistry), research in the department extends from biophysics and catalysis to environmental and nuclear chemistry, and onto computational and theoretical chemistry. Nationally recognized, award-winning faculty instruct students and provide them with research opportunities that lead to their independent careers. In addition, vigorous collaborative interactions with nearby national labs (including NIH, NIST and the FDA) illustrate the scientific community's confidence in research conducted by investigators in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry.

Analytical Chemistry  Bioorganic and Natural Products Chemistry Catalysis Enzymology Inorganic Chemistry Materials Chemistry Theoretical and Computational Chemistry Surface Chemistry Photochemistry

Biochemistry Biophysical and Bioanalytical Chemistry Environmental Chemistry Nanoscience and Supramolecular Chemistry Organic Chemistry Nuclear Chemistry Organometallic Chemistry Physical Chemistry Optical Spectroscopy

Education. The educational program entered by undergraduates is designed to bring them closer to their career direction early in their program. Students who have taken one year of chemistry in high school enter a program that summarizes much of what they have learned at a modestly higher level in one semester, rather than the traditional two, and then takes them through organic chemistry to a course that fills in the gaps not adequately treated previously in a context that also broadens their laboratory experiences. Students whose emphasis is in biochemistry can enroll in relevant courses a semester earlier than is traditional.

Research is a vital component of the department's graduate programs, and undergraduate research is strongly encouraged. Both undergraduate and graduate students have impressive credentials, and the department's programs enable them to enter positions in top educational programs or with leading employers. The new $23M chemistry Teaching Wing aids the department's teaching and research missions with state-of-the-art facilities for instruction and synthetic research, and furtherreconstruction is ongoing. In addition, the recently opened G. Forrest Woods Memorial Atrium provides a meeting place for students and an attractive venue for departmental gatherings and for interactive eventsin the chemical sciences. The teaching and research facilities in the Bioscience Research Building, to open in 2007, will further enrich bio-inspired chemical sciences at Maryland. The Department's externalcommittee of advisors includes distinguished representatives from the pharmaceutical and biotech industries. Our rapidly growing network of scientists and allied institutions continues to place Maryland at the leading edge of research in the chemical sciences.