Accelerated B.S. to M.S. in Chemistry

The Department of Chemistry offers an accelerated BS/MS program for talented and motivated undergraduates in Chemistry and Biochemistry. Graduates will receive separate bachelor’s and master’s degrees on their transcripts. The BS degree can be in either Chemistry or Biochemistry, and the MS degree will be in Chemistry. This program allows a student to complete the traditional BS in 4 years, and while doing so also enroll in 5000-level classes that will count toward both undergraduate and graduate requirements. Together with summer research, these credits shorten the MS timeline to just one additional year, reducing the time and cost required to earn the MS degree.

Admission Requirements

Information about admission into the accelerated program can be found in the undergraduate catalog, as can guidance regarding suggested preparatory courses that will satisfy prerequisites to facilitate timely progress through the advanced degree. The semester before completing the bachelor’s degree, participants must also apply for formal admission into Idaho State University’s Graduate School. Standard criteria that must be satisfied for admission are detailed by the Graduate School. Standardized tests such as the GRE are not required for students in the BS/MS program.

General Requirements

Students in the accelerated program fulfill the same total credit requirements for the graduate degree as all other MS students. A key benefit of the accelerated framework is that graduate courses can count toward both degrees and shorten the degree timeline. In addition, the accelerated program is differentiated from traditional thesis and coursework MS degrees in Chemistry by a structured research project conducted principally during two summers. This element is intended to give students intensive research analogous to a thesis degree while retaining the structure and respecting the schedule limitations of undergraduate education. To fulfill the research component of the degree, each student selects a committee and identifies a project during the first year after admission, which is typically their third year in university. They go on to conduct laboratory research during the summers, complete parts of a research paper each semester, and defend a final research paper prior to graduation with the MS degree. Continuation in the accelerated program requires that the student maintain a minimum GPA of 3.0 from date of admission, and make satisfactory progress as approved by their committee. Students failing to make adequate coursework or research progress will be asked to discontinue the program after completing the bachelor’s degree. Students enrolled in the accelerated program may also freely elect to abandon the MS portion, and the bachelor’s degree will be awarded as soon as the student has fulfilled all bachelor’s degree requirements. A student wishing to apply their BS/MS progress towards a stand-alone MS degree (thesis or non-thesis) must reapply to that program following the steps described in the Graduate Catalog.

Specific Coursework Requirements

While or after completing the accelerated BS degree in Chemistry or Biochemistry, each student is required to complete two credits of seminar (CHEM 6601), ten credits of MS research (CHEM 6635), two of the advanced chemistry courses (CHEM 6609, CHEM 6630, CHEM 6655, and CHEM 6671) and six additional credits from among these or other approved 6600-level lecture courses. Students must complete six additional credits of approved graduate-level coursework at the 5500 or 6600 level, which may comprise 5500-level lecture or laboratory coursework counted simultaneously toward the accelerated Chemistry or Biochemistry BS degree. Detailed suggestions for scheduling these classes alongside their undergraduate prerequisites are described in degree maps linked here.

For more information on this program, including admission into the accelerated program and undergraduate degree requirements related to this program, please reference the accelerated program description in the undergraduate catalog.