Two Students Awarded Prestigious Goldwater Scholarship
Two Students Awarded Prestigious Goldwater Scholarship
The Department of Chemistry & Chemical Biology at Cornell has been home to some of the world's most distinguished chemists, including four Nobel Prize winners and two MacArthur "Genius" Awards. Our faculty are renowned for their groundbreaking research in many areas, ranging from nanoscale materials and polymers to supramolecular chemistry. Whether you are an undergraduate exploring the discipline or a graduate student working on a Ph.D., you will be able to conduct cutting-edge research with the leading chemists in the field today.
More About Academics
Graduate Program
As a graduate student in Chemistry & Chemical Biology, you will receive training across the chemical sciences while focusing on one of five in-depth programs of study: Analytical, Inorganic, Organic, Physical, or Theoretical. You will conduct advanced research with our distinguished faculty or you can join a laboratory at one of the state-of-the-art research facilities at Cornell, such as the Cornell NanoScale Science and Technology Facility (CNF) or Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source (CHESS)
Nearly all graduate students work as Teaching Assistants in undergraduate Chemistry & Chemical Biology courses in their first year in the program. Admission to the graduate program guarantees at least five years of full financial support as long as you show satisfactory progress toward your Ph.D. degree.
Undergraduate Program
Majoring in Chemistry & Chemical Biology at Cornell will allow you to explore the foundations of the discipline and the fields it intersects with—the Life Sciences, Physics, and Engineering. The undergraduate program will prepare you for a variety of careers in industry, academia, government, and the non-profit sector.
Here are a few of our undergraduate courses:
CCB News
On storm-ravaged Vieques, a microgrid builds resilience
A collaboration with Cornell is bringing relief to Vieques, a Puerto Rican island that still has unreliable power nine years after Hurricane Maria. A solar-powered battery that operates independently of the main island’s grid is the first installment of a project led by Héctor Abruña, chemistry professor in Cornell's College of Arts and Sciences – still to come is a green-hydrogen fuel cell system.
Admitted Class of 2030 seeks real-world impact
Cornell admits the Class of 2030 emphasizing real-world impact, enrolling 5,776 students from 102 countries.
At Cornell University, the diverse cohort reflects the land-grant mission and applied learning goals across multiple colleges.
Nickel catalyst enables high-performance fuel cell free of precious metals
Cornell University researchers Héctor D. Abruña and David Muller developed a nickel‑carbon catalyst that delivers high hydrogen oxidation performance in alkaline fuel cells, surpassing U.S. DOE power density targets. Published in PNAS, this breakthrough demonstrates a durable, low‑cost, precious‑metal‑free path to scalable clean‑energy fuel cell technology.
Researchers observe dynamic “gate” that tames powerful signaling molecule
Cornell researchers have uncovered a built-in molecular “gate” that controls the production of the molecule nitric oxide, a crucial signaling molecule throughout biology that in humans helps regulate blood pressure, brain signaling, and immune defenses. But when levels go unchecked, it can damage cells and disrupt normal signaling.
Proteins organize for extracellular electron transfer
Researchers discovered electron transfer in electroactive bacteria is mediated by CymA proteins’ ability to synchronize and form a biomolecular condensate in the cell’s inner membrane.
Abruña honored for chemistry in the public interest
The Gustavus John Esseln Award for Chemistry in the Public Interest from the Northeastern Section of the American Chemical Society honors outstanding achievement in scientific and technical work that contributes to public well-being.
Student spotlight: Bayu Ahmad
Bayu Ahmad, a doctoral candidate in chemistry and chemical biology, studies the use of organic chemistry for sustainable applications under the guidance of Phillip Milner at Cornell.