What Chemistry/Biochemistry Majors do after Skidmore (and how to get there)

Chemistry and biochemistry students should start thinking as early as possible about their next steps after graduating Skidmore - no later than during their junior year. There are multiple options to consider. Over a third of our majors will decide to attend graduate school for a Ph.D. or Master's degree after Skidmore.  About another third of graduates from the Department will go onto programs in the health professions such as medicine (M.D. or D.O.), veterinary medicine, dentistry, physician assistant, nurse practitioner, pharmacy, or public health. The other third are successful in starting careers in industry (e.g., materials, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, diagnostics, biomedicine, environmental, energy, or manufacturing); clinical, governmental, academic, and environmental research laboratories; health care; teaching; science communication; science policy/outreach; and data science.

• Information on applying to graduate school
• Information on job searching
  
• What recent chemistry and biochemistry graduates have done after Skidmore

Applying to Graduate School

Advice

• ACS Planning for graduate work
• ASBMB Becoming a graduate student
• For Health Professions see the Health Professions Advisory Committee (HPAC).
• General Advice from Cientifico Latino

Funding

Typically, for Ph.D. programs, graduate students do not pay for tuition costs/fees and are paid a stipend.  Funding usually comes from training grants, research grants, or internal funding at the institution.  Graduate students serve as research assistants in faculty research laboratories and as teaching assistants in undergraduate classes.  Many programs will increase the stipend for a graduate student who obtains their own external fellowship.  A fellowship may also enable a graduate student to focus on research rather than serving as a teaching assistant, depending on the program. Fellowships are prestigious to obtain. Fellowship appplication deadlines are typically between October and January.  There are competitive fellowships that you can apply to the year before you start graduate school.

• Hertz Foundation Graduate Fellowship 
• Ford Foundation Predoctoral Fellowship
• NSF Graduate Research Fellowship
• National Defense Science & Engineering Graduate Fellowship
• NRC Graduate Research Awards
• Other Federal Opportunities

Timeline

Start research as early as possible

Junior year

• Fall  
  • Discuss with your advisor & research mentor as well as other relevant faculty members
  • Start reviewing literature and think about areas/topics you are interested in along with institutions to attend and principal investigators to work with
• Spring  
  • Continue reading articles
  • Continue discussing with your advisor & research mentor as well as other relevant faculty members
  • Start the review of programs

Summer before Senior Year

• Research at Skidmore, REU, or an internship
• Start preparing graduate school essay (Cientifico Latino Sample Statements)
• Prepare for the both the GRE
• Start reaching out to potential writers for letters of recommendation
• Prepare CV (Cientfico Latino Sample CV)

Senior Year

• Aug/Sept.  Create list of programs applying to including their deadlines and what they require (e.g., do they require the GRE or not).
• Aug/Sept. Take the GRE General Exam
• Sept./Oct.  Take the GRE Subject Exam if relevant for the programs you are applying to (not many do - some physics-oriented programs will want the physics GRE - the chemistry subject exam is no longer offered)
• Oct.  Confirm letter writers, provide drafts of materials to them
• Oct./Nov.  Tailor application materials to programs
  Update recommenders with final list of deadlines & latest drafts
• Nov.-Feb.  Apply - program deadlines vary
• Jan.-April  Interviews/Visits and acceptances
• By April 15  Decide on program and formally accept offer

Rankings

US News & World Report

• US News Top Analytical Chemistry
• US News Top Biochemistry/Biophysics/Structural Biology
• US News Top Inorganic Chemistry
• US News Top Organic Chemistry
• US News Top Physical Chemistry
• US News Top Theoretical Chemistry

Fields of Chemistry to Consider

Careers

What can you do with a degree in Chemistry? Biochemistry?

Resume/CV and Cover Letter

• Undergraduate CV Example
• ACS Preparing a Resume
• Skidmore Career Development Center Guide (pdf)
• UCSD Triton Career Guide
• The Do’s of Writing a Spectacular Cover Letter
• Example Cover Letter Bachelor’s Level Analytical Chemistry

Job Search

• ACS Find a Job 
• Skidmore Handshake
• Skidmore CDC Search
• Federal Government USAJOBS
• Looksharp Biochemistry Internships & Entry-level Jobs
• Looksharp Chemistry Internships & Entry-level Jobs
• Albany Molecular Research Inc. Job Openings
• Global Foundries
• GE Job Openings
• NYU Openings
• Careers Mount Sinai
• Careers Cornell Medicine
• Careers at The Rockefeller University
• Career Opportunities Albert Einstein College of Medicine
• Employment Lincoln Laboratory
• Job Openings Harvard Medical School
• Careers MIT
• Brigham and Women’s Hospital Job Openings
• Regeneron Careers

Additional Resources

• ACS College to Career: Next Steps 
• ACS Land the Job
• ASBMB Exploring careers in biochemistry & molecular biology (pdf)
• ASBMB Today Careers
• Skidmore Career Development Center 
• Looksharp Internship Search
• Chemistry World: Looking Good on LinkedIn
  
• LinkedIN: The Basics
• On Being a Lab Technician
  
• Post-baccalaureate (Prep) Programs

What Recent Chemistry & BioChemistry Graduates Have done After Skidmore

Ph.D. Programs Recent Graduates Matriculated Into

• Harvard University, Chemical Biology Ph.D. Program
• Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Chemistry Ph.D. Program
• University of California-San Francisco, Biophysics Ph.D. Program
• Yale University, Molecular Biophysics & Biochemistry Ph.D. Program
• Yale University, Chemistry Ph.D. Program
• Princeton University, Chemistry Ph.D. Program
• Johns Hopkins University, Chemistry Ph.D. Program (x4)
• Johns Hopkins University, Cell/Molecular/Developmental Biology & Biophysics Ph.D. Program
• University of Pennsylvania, Chemistry Ph.D. Program
• Carnegie Mellon University-University Pittsburgh, Joint Computational Biology Ph.D. Program
• University of Wisconsin-Madison, Biophysics Ph.D. Program
• University of Wisconsin-Madison, Chemistry Ph.D. Program
• University of Michigan, Biological Chemistry Ph.D. Program
• University of Michigan, Chemistry Ph.D. Program
• University of Colorado-Boulder, Chemistry Ph.D. Program
• University of California-Los Angeles, Chemistry & Biochemistry Ph.D. Program
• University of California-San Diego, Chemistry Ph.D. Program
• University of California-Davis, Agricultural and Environmental Chemistry Ph.D. Program
• University of California-Merced, Chemistry Ph.D. Program
• Georgia Institute of Technology, Material Science Ph.D. Program
• Ohio State University, Chemistry Ph.D. Program
• Arizona State University, Astrobiology & Complex Systems Ph.D. Program
• Tufts University, Biology Ph.D. Program
• Stony Brook University, Computational Chemistry Ph.D. Program
• Stony Brook University, Chemistry Ph.D. Program
• Northeastern University, Molecular Microbiology Ph.D. Program
• Northeastern University, Chemistry Ph.D. Program
• Northeastern University, Chemical Biology Ph.D. Program
• New York University, Chemistry Ph.D. Program
• University of North Carolina, Chemistry Ph.D. Program
• North Carolina State University, Chemistry Ph.D. Program
• University of Massachusetts, Cellular and Molecular Biology Ph.D. Program
• University of Arizona, Biochemistry Ph.D. Program
• Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Chemistry Ph.D. Program
• Drexel University, Chemistry Ph.D. Program

Advanced Degree Programs iN THE Health Professions REcent Graduates Matriculated Into

Medical Programs (M.D. and D.O.)

• Stanford University, M.D. Program
• Tufts University, M.D. Program
• Albert Einstein School of Medicine, M.D. Program
• University of California Los Angeles, M.D. Program
• Drexel University, M.D. Program
• Albany Medical College, M.D. Program
• Georgetown, M.D. Program
• Brown University, M.D. Program
• Temple University, M.D. Program
• University of Massachusetts, M.D. Program
• New York Medical College, M.D. Program
• Central Michigan University, M.D. Program
• Thomas Jefferson University, M.D. Program
• University of Illinois, M.D. Program
• SUNY-Upstate, M.D. Program
• Stony Brook University, M.D. Program
• Stony Brook University, M.D./M.P.H. Program
• Ross University, M.D. Program
• St. George's University, M.D. Program
• Touro College, D.O. Program
• University of New England, D.O. Program
• New York Institute of Technology, D.O Program
• Western University, D.O. Program

Veterinary Programs

• University of Pennsylvania, D.V.M. Program
• Ontario Veterinary College (University of Guelph), D.V.M. Program
• University of Wisconsin, D.V.M. Program
• Royal Veterinary College, D.V.M. Program

Dental Programs

• New York University, D.D.S. Program
• Stony Brook University, D.D.S. Program
• Touro College of Dental Medicine, D.D.S. Program (x2)

Pharmacy Programs

• Washington State University, PharmD Program
• University of North Carolina, PharmD Program

Nursing Programs

• Johns Hopkins University, Master of Nursing Program
• Massachusetts General Hospital, Master of Nursing Program

Public Health and Other Programs

• Yale University, Master of Public Health Program
• Mount Sinai, Master of Public Health Program
• Boston University, Master of Public Health Program
• SUNY Downstate, Master of Public Health Program
• Thomas Jefferson University, Master of Public Health Program
• University of Vermont, Master of Science Mental Health Counseling

Other Advanced Degree PROGRAMs REcent Graduates Matriculated Into

• Georgetown, Master of Science in Bioinformatics Program
• Brown University, Master of Science in Biostatistics Program
• Yale University, Master of Science in Biostatistics Program
• Florida State University, Master of Science in Chemical Oceanography Program
• Pratt Institute-School of Design, Master in Industrial Design Program
• Sorbonne Université, Master in Management Innovation Program
• New England Conservatory of Music, Master in Music Theory Program
• Johns Hopkins University, M.B.A. Program
• University of Pennsylvania, Master in Chemical Sciences Program
• University of Kentucky, Master in Animal & Food Science Program
• University of Wollongong (Australia), Fulbright Scholar

Institutions, Programs, and Companies Recent Graduates Have Been Employed AT

• Broad Institute
• Novartis
• Verdox Electric 
• Blueprint Medicine
• Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
• UConn Health
• Yale University
• Massachusetts General Hospital
• Penn Medicine
• Brigham and Women’s Hospital
• Brewster Academy
• BioLegend
• Abcam
• GreenLight Biosciences
• C16 Biosciences
• Pfizer
• Korro Bio
• Ignite Biosciences
• Living Carbon
• Beam Therapeutics
• Tome Biosciences
• Premier Medical Group
• Memorial Sloane Kettering Cancer Center
• World Wide Technology
• Corning Incorporated
• Guthrie
• Teach for America
• Children’s National Hospital
• Wooster School
• University of California, San Francisco
• Northeast Document Conservation Center
• New England Biolabs
• Tata Harper Skincare
• Honeywell
• BASF Chemetall
• Weill Cornell Medicine
• Selleck Chemicals