Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry

chemistry lab bench with glassware

Online Distance Education Master of Science (MS) In Chemistry Program

Contact Information: Hyunjung "Kelly" Lee, Ph.D Coordinator of Distance Education and Lecturer (910)962-7123 leek@uncw.edu

Program Overview:

Obtaining a graduate degree in chemistry while working full-time is often an insurmountable challenge. Our program is designed for someone with an undergraduate science degree who is working full-time.  Courses are given totally online – can be taken anywhere with web access and with a flexible time schedule – you don’t need to listen to the course material at a fixed time.  Employees who work different shifts can participate without changing their schedule.  Pursuing an online MS degree has a list of distinct advantages over the traditional path for working students. This includes:

  1. You have more time flexibility. You will be able to remain employed full-time while earning a MS degree. Since there is no designated class time, you can go over the course material at any time of the day.
  2. You can set your own pace based upon your experience and background. If you are familiar with a certain topic, you can quickly move through that section of the course. Conversely, you can spend more time on a topic if it is unfamiliar or difficult.
  3. You can take the course anywhere with internet access: at work, home or while traveling. If you relocate, you can still finish the degree from the new location.

Our program requires only online coursework. There is no on-campus requirement to complete the program.

Degree Requirement:

A total of 36 credit hours are required. Out of 36 credit hours, at least 21 credit hours should be from chemistry courses, including CHM597 (Comprehensive Literature Review). Additional coursework (at least 9 credit hours) is required in a second area of specialization such as education, business or clinical research. The remaining 6 credit hours of coursework can be chosen from any approved graduate course, including those offered by other departments, as approved by the student’s advisor or graduate coordinator. The student must also successfully complete CHM 597 that consists of a comprehensive project that involves the writing of a literature-based research paper that is approved by the student’s advisory committee

Available Online Courses:

Chemistry

  • CHM 512 – Mass Spectrometry and NMR Spectroscopy
  • CHM 516 - Advanced Organic Chemistry (3 credits)
  • CHM 521 - Advanced Physical Chemistry (3 credits)
  • CHM 536 - Advanced Analytical Chemistry (3 credits)
  • CHM 546 - Advanced Inorganic Chemistry (3 credits)
  • CHM 568 - Advanced Biochemistry (3 credits)
  • CHM 597 - Comprehensive Literature Review (3 credits) - REQUIRED
  • CHM 517 - Medicinal Chemistry (3 credits)
  • CHM 585 - Industrial and Polymer Chemistry (3 credits)
  • CHM 590 - Molecular Modeling (3 credits)
  • CHM 595 - Graduate Seminar (up to 3 credits)

Second concentration courses (9 credit hours required from the field of your choice)

Business Options

  • MBA 508 - Accounting
  • MBA 514 - Information Analysis & Management
  • MBA 530 - Economics
  • MBA 532 - Corporate Finance
  • MBA 542 - Marketing
  • MBA 562 - Management

Education Options

  • MIT 500 - Instructional Systems Design: Theory and Research
  • MIT 511 - Multimedia Design and Development
  • MIT 513 - Computer-based Instruction
  • MIT 514 - Foundations of Distance Education
  • MIT 515 - Web Teaching: Design and Development
  • MIT 516 - Instructional Video Design and Production
  • MIT 531 - Assessment of Learning Outcomes

Clinical Research Options

Choose any three 3-credit graduate Clinical Research (CLR 5xx) courses.

You can find more information about these courses on the graduate school catalog.

Admission Criteria:

A major factor in admissions decisions is how a person did as an undergraduate. Generally we look for a GPA of at least 3.0 and a strong chemistry background. Work experience, recommendations, and GRE scores are also considered. Although an undergraduate degree in chemistry is desirable, some of our traditional graduate students have undergraduate degrees in other disciplines (often biology) but have taken several chemistry courses as an undergraduate.

Application Procedure:

Applicants seeking admission to the online graduate program in chemistry are required to submit the following:

  1. An official application for graduate admission
  2. Official transcripts of all college work (undergraduate and graduate)
  3. Three professional references
  4. Official scores on the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) (verbal, quantitative and analytical only)

Apply Now!