Prospective Students

Undergraduate FAQ

1. How do I apply to be a WPI student?  Follow the instructions at the undergraduate admissions page.
2. How do I declare a major in Chemistry or Biochemistry?  Declare with the academic advising office.
3. How do I decide what classes to take to support my sub-discipline?  Talk to your advisor.
4. How do I find out who my advisor is?  Log into Workday.

Chemistry Major Requirements

Minor In Chemistry Requirements

Biochemistry Major Requirements

Minor in Biochemistry Requirements

Why major in Chemistry or Biochemistry?

It is not uncommon for students to avoid chemistry either from a concern about limiting career options, a bad experience in high-school chemistry, or the perception of being endlessly stuck in school.  On the contrary, majoring in chemistry or biochemistry hones analytical and problem-solving skills, communication skills, and teaches experimental techniques that are broadly applicable throughout science and engineering.  Employers in all fields seek out students majoring in the molecular sciences for their creativity in problem solving.

Why Chemistry or Biochemistry at WPI?

• Interaction with world-class faculty.
• State-of-the-art learning facilities.

So what can I do with a Chemistry or Biochemistry degree?

The website "What Can I Do With This Major" details what undergraduates from across the United States have gone on to do with their degrees in Chemistry and in Biochemistry.  A few representative selections are included below:

• Continue with academic research as a graduate student at the Ph.D. level.  Undergrad majors are well positioned for graduate school in many fields including the molecular sciences, biology, physics, materials engineering, and polymer engineering.
• Attend medical, dental, veterinary, pharmacy school.  Unlike your classmates, you will actually know organic chemistry!
• Attend business or law school.  Chemists with MBAs are positioned for leadership roles at scientific corporations, and law degrees open the way to being a patent attorney. 
• Working in a laboratory doing research in drug design and synthesis, product development, manufacturing, quality control, alternative fuel sources, environmental analysis, forensic chemistry, food science, dyes and flavors chemistry, cosmetics and perfumes, polymer chemistry, and art restoration.
• Entering the pharmaceutical, medical, or chemical sales force; and unlike your colleagues, you'll actually understand what you're talking about!
• Becoming a grade school, middle school, or high school teacher.  America needs more teachers that are passionate about education and their subject material.
• Working for the government. The EPA, FDA, FBI, CIA, and the Departments of Defense, Agriculture, Energy, and Homeland Security all recruit chemistry majors for both research and non-research positions.
• Work as a legal analyst for a patent or environmental law firm.
• Work as a sector analyst for a Wall Street investment firm as a lobbyist.
• Become a technical writer or science editor for a media firm.

Job prospects and career outlook

What do Chemists and Biochemists do, and what do they earn?

The federal government's Bureau of Labor Statistics compiles information regarding public- and private-sector occupations including salary, location, and a "location quotient" that indicates how concentrated a particular job is in a particular area of the country.

Students majoring in chemistry and biochemistry have many options for jobs spanning many job titles.  In 2015 - the most recent year for which data is available - the BLS determined national mean starting salaries for of $77,860 for jobs with "chemistry" in the description; $93,390 for "biochemists and biophysicists"; and $94,940 for positions described as "materials scientist".  The links below detail the wage and location breakdown for many jobs in to which chemists and biochemists are employed:

• ​Chemists: occupational outlook handbook and employment statistics
• Biochemists and biophysicists: occupational outlook handbook and employment statistics
• Materials scientists: occupational outlook handbook and employment statistics
• Physical scientists (generic): employment statistics
• Agricultural and food scientists: occupational outlook handbook and employment statistics
• Atmospheric scientists including meteorologists: occupational outlook handbook and employment statistics

Who has hired WPI students?

Companies including Athena Diagnostics, Boston Children’s Hospital, Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Foremost Groups, Inc., Foundation Medicine, Mass Biologics, and Pfizer have recently hired WPI biochemists.  Alpha Analytical, Cabot Corp., CHEMTEK, DSG Solutions, Huntington Learning Center, PKC Pharmaceuticals, and the U.S. Army have recently hired WPI chemists.

In addition to industrial jobs, many undergraduates continue their research careers at the Ph.D. level.  WPI undergraduates from the department have recently attended graduate school at the University of Michigan. 

Great, now how do I find a job?

Students interested in careers in chemistry can check out the career site run by the American Chemical Society.  Other locations have similar career sites including Science, New Scientist, and BioSpace.

Closer to home, the Career Development Center here on campus provides numerous resources and opportunities to help you determine where your degree will take you.

Finally, the faculty members in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry have industrial, academic, and national lab colleagues that can assist in job placement.

Majors, Minors, and Options, Oh My!

Molecular sciences are important.  The department provides career preparation and placement, but further engages students with research opportunities to challenge and engage throughout their undergraduate experience.

The department offers a number of majors and minors in the study of Chemistry and Biochemistry. For more information related to the specific degree requirements for these majors, follow the links below to the specific degrees.

Majors

• Biochemistry B.S. major.  Biochemistry is dedicated to understanding the chemical processes of living organisms. Discoveries of new drugs, the recognition and control of pathogens, development of new catalysts for energy transformations and the production of new materials, and solutions to problems such as food production and environmental remediation depend upon a thorough grounding in this area.  The BS degree program in biochemistry with a concentration in medicinal chemistry features an emphasis on the application of chemistry to design and action of medicines. This program is appropriate for further study of biochemistry or related sciences in graduate school as well as medical, dental or pharmacy school.
• Chemistry B.S. major. Chemistry is concerned with the composition, properties and reactions of matter. The BS program in chemistry provides students the knowledge and skills necessary to address contemporary scientific challenges in transdisciplinary areas such as energy and sustainability, medicine and health, materials and nanoscience, geologic and biospheric science, frontiers of chemical measurement and fundamental molecular science. Students complete course work in the foundational chemistry disciplines of biochemistry and analytical, inorganic, organic and physical chemistry as part of a curriculum approved by the American Chemical Society. This degree is appropriate for further study of chemistry or other physical sciences in graduate school or scientific careers.

Degree options within the Majors

The department offers special options for students desiring to focus on a particular sub-discipline within the chemical sciences or strengthen connections with another subject. These options involve lots of additional work.

• Chemistry B.S. major with a specialization in medicinal chemistry, which extends the Chemistry major with a further emphasis.  See the Undergraduate Catalog for more details.
• Chemistry B.S. major with certification by the American Chemical Society.  

• Actinide chemistry (Professor Bursten)
• Biomaterials design and testing (Professor Perez-Olsen, Professor Wang)
• Computational chemistry and molecular modeling (Professor Kaminski, Professor Narunsky)
• Energy conversion and storage (Professor Burdette, Professor Grimm)
• Ion transport (Professor Burdette, Professor Dempski, Professor Perez-Olsen, Professor Scarlata)
• Materials science (Professor Grimm, Professor Wang)
• Medicinal chemistry (Professor Mattson)
• Membrane proteins (Professor Argüello, Professor Gericke, Professor Perez-Olsen, Professor Scarlata)
• Molecular spectroscopy (Professor Gericke, Professor Lambert, Professor Wang)
• Animal-virus biochemistry (Professor Argüello)
• Photochemistry and photophysics (Professor Lambert)
• Chemical and biological sensors (Professor Lambert, Professor Wang)
• Supramolecular chemistry  (Professor Grimm, Professor MacDonald)

Declaration and Completion of a Minor in Chemistry or Biochemistry

Declaration of a Minor: The Minor in Chemistry is flexible and allows a student to design a minor with the balance between depth and breadth that is appropriate for the student’s specific educational and professional objectives. Of the two units of required study, one unit must be at an advanced level (3000/4000), including a 4000 level capstone course. WPI policy for double counting courses to satisfy the requirements for a minor can be found in the Undergraduate Catalog. Please see the "self service" minor declaration in Workday. It is strongly suggested but not required to confer with a minor advisor in said department to make sure you are on track with all your classes to check off all the requirements. Please see Professor Brodeur for any questions regarding Chemistry minor completion. 

Find more information here.

Completion of a Minor: Please check on your academic tab in Workday for the correct process.