1. INTRODUCTION

Department Chair: Prof. Stanislaus Wong (stanislaus.wong@stonybrook.edu)

Graduate Program Director (GPD): Prof. Isaac Carrico (isaac.carrico@stonybrook.edu)

Graduate Program Coordinator (GPC): Katherine Hughes (katherine.hughes@stonybrook.edu)

1.1. Graduate Programs in Chemistry

The Department offers programs leading to the degrees of Master of Science (MS) for students seeking an education at an advanced level in chemistry and Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) for those preparing for careers in which chemical research is a central activity. In cooperation with the Science Education Program, the Chemistry Department offers the Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) degree, as preparation for teaching chemistry at the secondary level.

1.2. Purpose and Content of the Handbook

The official academic regulations and procedures of the University are described in the Graduate Bulletin. These should be followed by all graduate students. Specific information for the Chemistry Graduate Program, including graduation requirements, are also available in the Graduate Bulletin.

Note that departmental degree requirements may be waived or altered in individual situations upon petition to the Graduate Program Director (GPD) and approval by the Chemistry Faculty.

This on-line handbook is intended to be a reference that you can use to answer all sorts of questions about the Chemistry PhD program, financial support, teaching requirements, etc. In essence this handbook is also our "rule book", and we distribute it to all students and faculty to be sure that everyone is operating by the same rules.

This document is intended to:

• Describe the program policies in detail and explain the rationale behind them;
• Delineate the responsibilities of students, faculty committees, faculty members and the administration of the Department;
• Promote consistency in procedures and standards;
• Provide a basis for communication between the faculty and students regarding expectations for performance and achievement and for practical matters such as financial aid.

This handbook is in effect for the entirety of a student’s matriculation at Stony Brook University. The Department keeps an archived copy of the Handbook for each entering class to preserve the record.

1.3. Channels of Communication

All communications from students and faculty to the Departmental administration concerning the affairs in this Handbook should be addressed to the GPD. Communications with official requests should be sent via email from a University email account (@stonybrook.edu). The subject line should clearly indicate the subject matter, and the body of the email should include the student’s SOLAR ID number. The GPD can then direct the item to the attention of the appropriate individual.