How to Apply
Visiting the Department
Prospective Student FAQ
Other Useful Links

How do I apply?
When do I need to submit my application?
When will I hear if I've been accepted?
Do I have to take the GREs?
Can I visit the department?
Can I apply to a Masters degree program?
Does my stipend cover health insurance?
How and when do I choose a research advisor and begin research?
What are cumulative exams?
When do I need to arrive in the fall?
What will my responsibilities as a TA be?
When will I know my fall semester TA assignment?
How are TA assignments made?
What does a recitation TA do?
What does a lab TA do?

 
How do I apply?
Fill out the online application form by 23:59 EST, December 15.

You will need to provide the following information:
- Field(s) of Interest
- Personal information/legal and mailing addresses
- International student data
- Three or more names and e-mail addresses of letter writers:
We recommend that before 11/15 you notify your letter writers that you will be requesting evaluations from them. This will give them time to prepare and submit their letters by December 15. Once you have submitted your online application, instructions to your letter writers will be generated for you. You are responsible for making sure that your letter writers have copies of these instructions.
- Scanned copies of your college transcripts
- Scanned copies of your GRE scores
- For international students, scanned copies of your TOEFL or IELTS scores
- Educational and work history
- Statement of objectives
- Outside financial support and potential financial support information
- Credit/debit payment of $75

After your online application is complete, you must also arrange for your official transcript to be mailed to:

Department of Chemistry
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Room 2-204
Attention: Lynn Marie Guthrie
77 Massachusetts Avenue
Cambridge, MA 02139

When do I need to submit my application?
The deadline for September admission is December 15.

When will I hear if I've been accepted?
Offers of admission are typically made by mid-February. Notice of declines will be sent out electronically by late February.

Do I have to take the GREs?
Yes. Additionally, the Chemistry subject GRE is helpful, but not required.

Can I visit the department?
If you are admitted to our program, you will be invited to visit the department. The department hosts an official visiting weekend when faculty are available and you will be able to meet current students, attend dinners with faculty and current graduate students, go on tours of the campus and department, and attend orientation meetings on MIT and the Chemistry Department graduate program.

Can I apply to a Masters degree program?
We do not have an MS program. Applications are only accepted for the PhD program.

Does my stipend cover health insurance?
Your mandatory health fee is covered by your tuition award and includes Accident and Hospitalization Insurance. You will receive this insurance unless you can demonstrate that you have equivalent insurance through another program, in which case you must complete a waiver form available at MIT Medical.

How and when do I choose a research advisor and begin research?
Graduate students in chemistry generally select a research advisor during the first semester of the program and begin thesis research by the beginning of the spring semester. Choosing an advisor is one of the most important decisions you make during your graduate career and the department has prepared the following program to assist students in making this choice. Beginning in early September, each faculty member expecting to accept new students presents an informal evening lecture for first-year graduate students designed to provide an overview of his or her research program. After each lecture, refreshments are usually served and first-year students have an opportunity to meet members of that professor's research group. First-year students are urged to attend as many of these presentations as possible, for they provide an excellent means of learning about the research going on in the department. In addition to attending these evening research talks, students also make appointments to meet individually with those faculty whose work is of interest in order to learn more about specific research projects available in their laboratories. Finally, first-year students decide which groups are their top choices and provide a ranked list of top choices to a faculty committee during the first week of November. Most students thus have joined a research group officially by the middle of November of their first year.

What are cumulative exams?
Cumulative Exams are the written component of the General Examination for the Ph.D. degree. The cumulative exams are written by the faculty on a rotating basis, and examine general knowledge in each area of chemistry, including recent developments as reported in the current literature and in Departmental Colloquia.

When do I need to arrive in the fall?

• Orientation and training for incoming Teaching Assistants begins in mid-August. Over the summer, you will receive confirmation of your TA assignment and the exact date that your training begins. If you will be living on campus, please indicate that you need to be housed by August 19th on your housing application form.
• Orientation and training for students assigned to teach a laboratory subject will begin Monday, August 20, 2012.
• The Teaching Workshop for all Teaching Assistants will be held Tues., August 28 - Fri., August 31, 2012.
• Orientation for all graduate students is Monday, August 27, 2012.
• The mandatory English exam for international students is held at the end of August. For more information go to ESL at MIT.
• Registration Day is Tuesday, September 4, 2012.
• Classes begin on Wednesday, September 5, 2012.

Lab Orientation and Training is for students assigned to teach in our undergraduate lab subjects. During the week, you will become familiar with the undergraduate labs and become acquainted with lab personnel. You will also perform the experiments you will be teaching during the semester. In addition, you will learn student needs specific to these classes, and how to address these needs. The Graduate Student Orientation provides information on the first year experience. Topics include selecting classes and choosing a research advisor. The Teaching Workshop is a training program for all first-year students consisting of presentations, small group discussions, and microteaching to help prepare all chemistry teaching assistants for their teaching responsibilities. Participation in these activities is mandatory.

What will my responsibilities as a TA be?

• Attending all class lectures
• Attending periodic TA staff meetings
• Leading recitation sections that meet once or twice a week.
• Grading problem sets and exams
• Providing review sessions and individual help when requested
• Holding regular weekly office hours.

When will I know my fall semester TA assignment?
You will receive notification by e-mail of your fall TA assignment in mid- July. Along with your assignment notification, we will include information about the Chemistry Department Orientation and Teaching Workshop as well as other useful material to help you prepare for your first year at M.I.T. Please be sure that we have a summer e-mailing address for you. If you have not received this information by the beginning August, call us!

How are TA assignments made?
TAs are assigned to a number of undergraduate subjects including Principles of Chemical Science (5.111 and 5.112), Organic Chemistry I (5.12), Organic Chemistry II (5.13), Advanced Organic Chemistry (5.43), Inorganic Chemistry I (5.03), Biological Chemistry (5.07), Thermodynamics and Kinetics (5.60), Physical Chemistry I (5.61), and Physical Chemistry II (5.62), and Chemistry Labs (5.310, 5.35, 5.36, 5.37, and 5.38).

In the fall, the assignments are made based primarily upon faculty requests, class size, your prior background, and prior laboratory/teaching experience. Please e-mail Jennifer Weisman by May 15th to confirm your area of specialization in Chemistry.

• Biological chemists are assigned to 5.07, 5.111, 5.112, 5.12 and 5.310
• Inorganic chemists are assigned to 5.111, 5.112, 5.310, 5.35, and 5.37
• Organic chemists are assigned to 5.111, 5.112, 5.12, 5.310, 5.35, and 5.36
• Physical chemists are assigned to 5.111, 5.112, 5.310, 5.35, 5.60, and 5.61

In the spring, the assignments are made based on your area of study, faculty requests, and your preferences.

• Biological chemists are assigned to 5.08, 5.111, 5.310, and 5.36
• Inorganic chemists are usually assigned to 5.03, 5.111, 5.310 and 5.35
• Organic chemists are assigned to 5.12, 5.13, and 5.37
• Physical chemists are assigned to 5.310, 5.35, 5.38, 5.60, and 5.62

Please see Course Descriptions for more information on each class.

What does a recitation TA do?
Recitation instructors are in charge of one or two smaller sub-groups of a lecture class. Recitations meet for one hour either once or twice a week, depending on the class. It is the purpose of the recitation to help students understand the material covered in lecture and in their readings. How the TA chooses to cover this material is, for the most part, his/her choice. In recitation, most TAs spend a lot of time going over the assigned problem sets, discussing material covered in the professor's lectures and bringing in new problems for the students to try. Recitation instructors also spend time outside of lecture and recitation tutoring their students and grading problem sets.

What does a lab TA do?
Laboratory TAs have much more informal interaction with their students than do recitation TAs. The contact between TA and student is one-on-one and the attitude and approach of the TA will make the class either a good experience or a bad experience for the students. The primary focus of Lab TAs is to teach their students how to become researchers by providing direction and support. In all the labs, safety, technique, and procedure are learned primarily under the watchful eyes of the Lab TA. The TAs are responsible for grading written lab reports, test and/or giving oral examinations.