Chemistry & Chemical Biology

As a chemistry and chemical biology major, you’ll learn logical thinking and creative problem solving and can either dive deep following a traditional curriculum or pursue a flexible program that may be ideal for those with alternative career goals. The department’s research areas include inorganic, materials, organic, analytical and physical chemistry, as well as chemical biology.

Requirements

Want to start right away? Here are some basic requirements for students wanting to major in chemistry. Keep in mind this isn’t the complete list of formal requirements — that list can be found on the Courses of Study page.

Earning the chemistry degree involves completing 60 credits of required courses:

  • Core courses cover:
    • Introductory Chemistry (combined lecture and laboratory),
    • Organic Chemistry (lecture and one core laboratory course),
    • Inorganic Chemistry (lecture course),
    • Physical Chemistry (lecture and one core laboratory course),
    • Calculus (lecture), and
    • Physics (combined lecture and laboratory);
  • Upper-level laboratory courses; and
  • Upper-level electives in chemistry, chemical biology, and related areas

Sample classes

  • Entrepreneurship in Chemical Enterprise
  • Introduction to Quantum Chemistry
  • Information Literacy for the Physical Scientist
  • Chemistry of Natural Products: Combinatorial Chemistry

Outcomes

All information below is based on the 2014-2018 First-Destination Post-Graduate Survey. Lists are not exhaustive; rather, they are a sampling of the data. "Other" includes time off, travel, volunteer experiences, and/or preparing for graduate school. If you would like more information, please email as_careers@cornell.edu

42%   Employed
50%   Attending Grad School
4%     Seeking Employment
4%     Other

67% of the Class of 2014-2018 Chemistry & Chemical Biology graduates completed the survey. n = 242

Below, you will find:

  • Top Employment Sectors
  • Where Graduates Work
  • Top Graduate Fields
  • Where Graduates Study

Top Employment Sectors

  • Education (26%)
  • Biotech/Pharma/Life Sciences (12%)
  • Nonprofit Organization (12%)
  • Government (10%)
  • Manufacturing (9%)
  • Health and Human Services (9%)
  • Consulting/Prof. Practice (7%)
  • Law (4%)
  • Agriculture (3%), 
  • Business - Other (3%)
  • Communications & Media (1%), Financial Services (1%), Technology (1%)

Where 2014-2018 Chemistry & Chemical Biology Graduates Work

Employer Job Titles
Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Temporary Chemist
AmeriCorps VISTA Opioid Addiction Response Specialist
Amneal Pharmaceuticals Quality Control Specialist
Baruch S. Blumberg Institute Junior Apprentice Researcher
Beyond Meat Food Technologist
Boston Children's Hospital Clinical Research Coordinator
Bringham & Women's Hospital Clinical Research Assistant
Research Assistant
Broad Institute Research Assistant
Central California Intellectual Property Group Legal Assistant
City of Austin Health & Human Services Department Communicable Disease Program Coordinator
City Year Legal Administration Assistant
Colegio Rosa-bell Teacher
College Achieve Central Charter Schools Middle School Science Teacher
Columbia University Clinical Research Coordinator
Dean and Company Analyst
Delbarton School Math and Science Teacher
Deloitte Consulting Business Analyst
Duke Clinical Research Institute Research Assistant
E&J Gallo Winery Chemistry Intern
Epic Systems Technical Problem Solver
Exeter Group, Inc. Consultant
EY Business Advisory Consultant
GlaxoSmithKline Associate Scientist
Gloria Ferrer Caves & Vineyards Harvest Lab Enologist
Healthcare Legal Solutions LLC Paralegal
Hospital for Special Surgery

Research Assistant

Hycor Biomedical Research Associate
Lancaster Rehabilitation Center Certified Nursing Assistant
LANXESS Solutions US Urethanes Lab Technician
Massachusetts Institute of Technology Senior Research Support Associate
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center Research Technician
Research Study Associate
Morgan Stanley Financial Advisor Associate
Mount Sinai Medical Center Research Assistant
Associate Researcher
National Institutes of Health PREP Program Participant
Post-baccalaureate IRTA Research Fellow
Post-baccalaureate IRTA Trainee
Research Assistant
Phillips 66 Lab Technician
Procter & Gamble Researcher
Product Safety Labs Analytical Chemist
Reckitt Benckiser R&D Future Leaders Program Associate
Rockefeller University Research Assistant (2)
SellUP Data Analyst
Shell Refinery Process Chemist
Teach for America Teacher
Ultra Tab Laboratories Chemist
Underwriters Laboratories LLC Chemist
United States Air Force Bioenvironmental Engineering Officer
United States Department of Agriculture Dairy Scientist
University of California at San Francisco Research/Project Assistant
University of Michigan Lab Technician
Weill Cornell Medicine Research Technician (4)
Yale Orthopedics Clinical Research Fellow
ZS Associates Consultant

Top Graduate Fields Pursued

  • Chemistry & Chemical Biology (43%)
  • Medicine (20%)
  • Biomedical Engineering (6%)
  • Materials Science Engineering (4%)
  • Pharmacology (4%)
  • Dentistry (2%), Biochemistry, Molecular & Cell Biology (2%)
  • Art Conservation & Art History (1%), Chemical Engineering (1%), Law (1%), Nutrition (1%), Plant Biology (1%), Public Health (1%), Public Policy (1%), Molecular & Cell Bio (1%)

Graduate Degrees Pursued

  • PhD (56%)
  • MD (15%)
  • MEN (6%)
  • MS (5%)
  • MD/PhD (5%)
  • Cert. (2%)
  • Master's (2%)
  • DDS (1%), DO (1%), JD (1%), MPH (1%), MPP (1%), MSA/MBA (1%), DMD (1%), PharmD (1%)

Where 2014-2018 Chemistry & Chemical Biology Graduates Study

  • Albert Einstein College of Medicine
  • California Institute of Technology
  • Columbia University In The City of New York
  • Cornell University
  • Duke University
  • George Washington University
  • Georgetown University
  • Gerstner Sloan-Kettering School of Biomed. Sci.
  • Harvard University
  • Johns Hopkins University
  • Massachusetts Institute of Technology
  • New York Institute of Technology
  • New York Medical College
  • New York University
  • Northeastern University
  • Northwestern University
  • Princeton University
  • Roswell Park Cancer Institute Medical Dosimetry
  • Rutgers University
  • Scripps Research Institute
  • Stanford University
  • Suny Downstate Medical College
  • Tri-Institutional PhD Program in Chemical Biology
  • University of California-Berkeley
  • University of California-Los Angeles
  • University of California-San Diego
  • University of California-San Francisco
  • University of Cambridge
  • University of Chicago
  • University of Colorado At Boulder
  • University of Edinburgh
  • University of Illinois At Urbana-Champaign
  • University of Massachusetts-Worcester
  • University of Minnesota-Twin Cities
  • University of North Carolina
  • University of Oxford
  • University of Pennsylvania
  • University of San Francisco
  • University of Southern California
  • University of Texas
  • University of Virginia
  • University of Wisconsin-Madison
  • Washington University In St Louis
  • Weill Cornell School of Medicine
  • Yale University