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History
of the University and Department
The University
of Michigan - widely regarded as one of the world's finest research
institutions - is an energetic community of students, scholars,
researchers, scientists and artists. Each year, more than 35,000
individuals from all 50 states and more than 100 countries are drawn
to the University by its reputation for scholastic innovation and
excellence, academic accomplishment and artistic freedom.
Research has
always been central to the U of M's mission. The University's institutes,
libraries, laboratories, museums and centers create an outstanding
environment for scientific exploration. Michigan remains among the
largest research institutions in the country. The University's financial
commitment to chemistry research ranks among the top 10 nation-wide.
In addition to hundreds of research projects involving students
and faculty within every school and college, the University also
supports more than a dozen large-scale research institutes that
collaborate with academic units on long-term, interdisciplinary
research. A Tradition
of Innovation
The University offers curricular and research opportunities that
lead to a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Chemistry. The Department's
program presents unrivaled opportunities for research in traditional
fields - analytical, biological, inorganic, organic, materials and
physical chemistry - as well as a variety of interdisciplinary areas.
The Ph.D. program is designed to engage and exercise the creative
talents of people who are motivated to learn, want to conduct original
research, and aspire toward a comprehensive understanding of the
field of chemistry. Link to graduate application/more information
Students graduating
with a Ph.D. in Chemistry from Michigan have established themselves
as productive, independent research scientists and scholars. After
completing the program, students are well-prepared for challenging
careers in the forefront of science and technology.
The University
and the Department of Chemistry are distinguished by a tradition
of innovation. The University was founded in 1817, and in 1844,
Michigan established its Department of Chemistry with the appointment
of Silas Douglas and was the second university in the country to
offer chemistry course work to students. The Department's long history
of excellence has been built upon the pioneering research of scientists
such as Hobart Willard (1909 - 1951), Moses Gomberg (1893 - 1936),
Werner Bachmann (1929 - 1951), Floyd Bartell (1910 - 1953), Lawrence
Brockway (1938 - 1978), and Robert Parry (1946 - 1969).
Willard's famous
textbooks in quantitative analysis and instrumental methods are
revised and updated regularly, and are still used widely today.
Gomberg's early studies are the basis of modern organic free radical
chemistry. Bachmann helped lay the early foundation of Michigan's
strength in natural products synthesis and bioorganic chemistry.
In particular, he was the first to demonstrate that a sex hormone,
equilin, could be synthesized. Both Gomberg and Bachmann were elected
to the National Academy of Science. In the last half of the 20th
Century, Michigan maintained a strong presence in organic chemistry
with many landmark studies, including those of Peter A. S. Smith,
heterocyclic chemistry; Richard Lawton, synthesis and chemistry
of corranulene; and Charles Overberger, polymer chemistry and founder
of the Macromolecular Research Institute.
Brockway and
Parry further advanced the Department's tradition of innovation
into the 1970s, conducting studies in adsorption, colloid chemistry,
radioactivity, atomic structure, electron diffraction and molecular
structure. Brockway supervised the Department's two most distinguished
graduates, Jerome Karle and Isabella Karle. The Karles' work on
the theory and development of X-ray diffraction methods helped develop
the foundation of modern crystallography and structure analysis,
and led him to the 1985 Nobel Prize in Chemistry and her to the
Presidential Medal of Science in 1995. Parry's synthetic work in
main group and coordination chemistry, and his efforts to attract
to the Department other faculty skilled in modern spectroscopic
and diffraction techniques, helped lay the basis for the Department's
strength in this interdisciplinary area, that prevails still today.
The tradition of research excellence at Michigan continues to grow.
Many of the faculty are recognized as leaders in their chosen field
of chemical inquiry. As a graduate student in the Chemistry Department,
you will be assisted by this group of scholars in developing into
a creative and independent scientist.
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