Coursework
section III, article 1
Coursework is an opportunity to delve deeper into the science of your chosen research area as well as the discipline of chemistry more broadly. Required skills-based coursework in proposal preparation, pedagogy, and ethics, among others, will help prepare you for your thesis work and for the job market.
Required Courses for All Scholars
In addition to the course requirements listed below, all scholars must enroll in research credit as defined in the Coursework Residency Requirement and Research Credit section below.
- six 3-credit chemistry graduate courses (or approved external courses)
- TATT 600 + 605 (TATTO)
- JPE 600 + 605 + 610 (JPE)
- ELSP courses, if required (ELSP)
- CHEM 504 (Rotations)
- CHEM 597 (Proposal/Library Course)
- CHEM 798B, CHEM 798C, CHEM 798D (Milestones)
Grading
Courses are graded as Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory (S/U) or on a letter grade basis (A, A-, B+, B, B-, C, or F). Courses that offer a letter grade must be taken for a grade if they will be applied towards the requirements for candidacy.
New Scholar Enrollment
New scholars will meet with faculty during orientation to select coursework for the first semester. A signed Course Selection Form is required for the first semester only. Enrollment in two chemistry graduate courses is considered a full load during the first year. Scholars wishing to take a third course should request DGS permission prior to enrollment. In most cases, new scholars will be best served by taking all of their first year, first semester courses in chemistry. However, scholars may submit a petition to take courses outside of chemistry if they wish.
Understanding Course Levels
Graduate courses at Emory are offered at the 500-level about above. The following guidance may be helpful in distinguishing between levels:
- 500-level: core/foundational graduate course; appropriate for any graduate scholar
- 600-level: required training courses, including TATTO and JPE
- 700-level: advanced graduate course; first year scholars may enroll, but are encouraged to seek advising support to ensure they can be successful in the course
ELSP Courses
The LGS English Language Support Program (ELSP) provides highest quality language support to graduate and professional students, postdoctoral fellows, and scholars with diverse linguistic backgrounds at all stages of the academic journey. Scholars for whom English is a second language may be required to take an ELSP assessment during orientation. The chemistry graduate program strongly encourages scholars to take all required and recommended ELSP courses. ELSP courses are also recommended as an excellent resource for fluent English speakers seeking support in graduate writing and presentation skills.
Petitioning for Course Credit or a Course Waiver
Scholars may petition to receive course credit for graduate courses taken at another institution or a course waiver for a maximum of 9 credit hours. The scholar should submit the Petition for Course Credit and/or Waiver form to the Graduate Program Coordinator. Petitions will be forwarded to the Graduate Committee for review. Transfer credit requests must also be approved by the Laney Graduate School Dean (see box below.)
Coursework petitions must be submitted by the end of the first semester of coursework and will be accepted as early as the first graduate committee meeting of the semester.
What is the difference between transfer credit and a waiver?
Course transfer credit may be given only for courses that were not used to satisfy the requirements of any previous degree. When you request course credit, you are requesting for a specific course taken elsewhere to be included on your official Emory transcript. Transfer credit may also reduce the number of courses required at Emory by an equivalent amount. A course waiver may be requested to reduce the usual six-credit course load required for candidacy, but the courses themselves will not be reflected on the Emory transcript. It is more common for students to be eligible for a waiver than for transfer credit.
Scholars wishing to use non-chemistry coursework as part of a transfer or waiver request should include a rationale indicating the relevance of the course to the chemistry degree. For transfer requests, the signature of the primary research mentor is required (therefore, scholars should submit these requests after group selection has concluded.)
All requested waivers and petitions will be reviewed. However, scholars should be advised that in most cases, it benefits the scholar to take a full slate of courses at Emory.
Course Registration for Continuing Scholars
All scholars should meet with their primary research mentor to decide on necessary coursework. Scholars must register themselves online via OPUS with assistance, as needed, from the Graduate Program Coordinator. Scholars are responsible for ensuring that they are enrolled prior to the enrollment deadline each semester.
Milestone Course Guidance
Scholars must enroll in a specific course to properly record and receive credit for chemistry milestones. Scholars should enroll in these courses in the semester in which they plan to complete a milestone. Scholars are also required to re-enroll if they are approved to re-test a milestone in a given semester.
- CHEM 798B: Second Year Qualifying Exam (3 credits)
- CHEM 798C: Third Year Milestone (1 credit)
- CHEM 798D: Fourth Year Milestone (1 credit)
Registering for External Courses
Scholars who wish to register for courses offered outside of the Department of Chemistry must complete the External Coursework Petition. This form requires signatures from the primary research mentor, the Instructor of Record for the requested course, and the graduate committee. If a scholar wishes to apply a non-chemistry course towards the six chemistry courses required for candidacy, they should indicate this on the petition.
Coursework Residency Requirement and Research Credit
All scholars in the graduate program are required to maintain a full course load consisting of at least 9 units during the fall, spring and summer semesters. In most semesters, scholars will need to enroll in CHEM 599R (Pre-Candidacy) or CHEM 799R (Post-Candidacy) to properly reflect their research effort. Scholars should refer to the table below to determine the appropriate research credit to reflect their effort in a given semester.
Research Credit Guidance
| First Year, First Semester | 0 |
| First Year, Second Semester | 6 |
| First Year, Summer | 12 |
| Second Year, First Semester | 9 |
| Second Year, Second Semester | 9 |
| Second Year Summer and Above | 12 |
Grading for Research Credit
The Instructor of Record for CHEM 599R/ 799R is the Director of Graduate Studies. The DGS will seek input from the primary research mentor as to the scholar’s research progress at the midpoint of each semester. Scholars will be graded as:
- Progressing well, no concerns
- Some concerns will need improvement
- Major concerns, needs significant improvement
Scholars will be informed of their mid-semester evaluation and will be provided with notes from the primary research mentor regarding the assessment. At the end of the semester, faculty will be asked to advise the DGS of any changes to the mid-semester evaluation. Scholars must receive an assessment of “progressing well, no concerns” to earn an “S” grade in research in a given semester.
Share Your Thoughts
If you would like to provide feedback on this handbook entry, we invite you to submit this form.