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Applying 411

A letter to prospective graduate applicants

As Director of Graduate Studies, I want to welcome you as you explore the Department of Chemistry at Emory University as part of your journey towards graduate school in chemistry. To join our Department as a graduate student is to surround yourself with talented colleagues who will become lifelong friends, and to fully immerse yourself in the world of Chemistry.

It is an exciting time in our Department as many changes are taking place. In 2015, we moved in to a new, beautiful addition to Atwood Hall, giving us room to grow our research capabilities and evolve our teaching. In addition to adding over 90,000 square feet of new and renovated research space to chemistry’s footprint, this new building offers the Science Commons—a community gathering space with a library and coffee shop—and new seminar and group meeting spaces to foster collaborative science. We are aggressively hiring faculty members to fill this space who, through both research and teaching, will offer innovative pathways into a deeper understanding of chemistry.

At its heart, chemistry is a creative endeavor, and research at Emory touches on many aspects of society and improves the lives of those around us. Ongoing work in physical chemistry and spectroscopy impacts energy science and sustainability. Our strong theory group is pushing the frontiers of quantum computing and machine learning. In organic and biomolecular chemistry, new discoveries in reaction development, medicinal chemistry, and nanotechnology contribute to improving human health. An active outreach program seeks to inspire and engage our community with the exciting work happening in our labs.

In addition to research, education is an integral aspect of a strong department, and Emory Chemistry is recognized for its excellence in integrating the lab and the classroom. Our undergraduate curriculum, Chemistry Unbound, highlights an integrated approach to understanding foundational chemistry, allowing for building specialized knowledge, creativity, and interdisciplinary collaboration as students advance. Chemistry Unbound also opens new opportunities for graduate students to contribute to our teaching mission.

The success of our department is built on our commitment to working together to create and share knowledge. We are a community of scholars and the Graduate program is at the heart of this community. Our success depends on our students—and, in turn, students who fully engage with our community have been successful in their paths beyond Emory, whether as faculty at R01 research universities and Liberal Arts Colleges, as researchers in National Labs, or as leaders in the pharmaceutical and technology R&D industries and beyond.

Emory Chemistry has a wonderful team in place to help you on your journey.

  • If you have questions about the application process or our outreach activities, please contact Dr. Kira Walsh, Manger, Communications and Outreach.
  • If you have questions about our graduate program, please email gradchem@emory.edu; this will connect you with our entire admissions team, including Graduate Coordinator Laura Hilado, Kira Walsh, and our faculty Graduate Committee.
  • If you have questions about research, please contact any research-active faculty member in this Department. (At this link, you can also see a list of faculty accepting students this year by selecting the “Accepting Graduate Students” filter in the “View By” menu in the upper right hand corner.)
  • If you have questions about our teaching mission, please contact Dr. James Kindt, Director of Undergraduate Studies.
  • And if you have general questions about our Department or our Graduate Program, please contact me or Dr. Brian Dyer, our Department Chair.

I wish you all the best as you continue your Chemistry journey.

Sincerely,

Khalid Salaita
Professor, Department of Chemistry
Director of Graduate Studies

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