Doctor of Philosophy Degree

    The Doctor of Philosophy degree requires the demonstrated capacity for research in the student's chosen area of specialization. The Graduate School regulations for the Ph.D. degree can be found in the Graduate Bulletin. A CD version of the bulletin can be obtained by writing to The Graduate School, University of Wyoming, P.O. Box 3108, Laramie, Wyoming 82071 or visiting their website. The Graduate School requires the appointment, early in the student's tenure in the doctoral program, of a graduate committee consisting of the major professor and four other members. This committee will serve in an advisory capacity for development of the student's course work and research program.

     The Department of Chemistry requires all students to pass 4 out of 12 monthly cumulative examinations given over an announced topic during the student's first three semesters of residence. The preliminary examination must then be scheduled for early in the student's fourth semester of residence. The Graduate School requires passing of a preliminary examination. The preliminary examination will have written and oral parts. The written part will be a research proposal and the oral examination will focus on the proposal and on related areas of chemical knowledge.

    The Ph.D. candidate will also be required to present two seminars. The first seminar requirement can be satisfied by presenting a divisional or departmental seminar or by presenting a paper at a regional or national research meeting. The second seminar is a final seminar presented to the Department based on his/her dissertation research.  In addition, the student must make one presentation at the annual University of Wyoming Graduate Student Symposium.

    In addition to fulfilling the minimum Graduate School requirements, a student must take one three-hour graduate course (5000 and above) in each of the four areas (inorganic, analytical, organic, and physical), excluding certain special topics, tool courses, and research courses. A student may also take 12 credits of any combination of CHEM 5190, 5290, 5390, 5590, or 5790. In the area selected as a major, the student will take the following as a minimum:
        Analytical - 5250 plus nine hours of graduate-level analytical courses.
        Inorganic - 5110 plus nine hours of graduate-level inorganic courses.
        Organic - 5320, 5330 5340 and 5350.
        Physical - any three graduate-level physical chemistry courses (Note:Special
                       Topics in Physical Chemistry are allowed to fulfill this requirement).