Participate in Laboratory Research at the Department of Chemistry!

The Department of Chemistry enrolls the most undergraduate students into research than any department at UCR. We highly encourage not only science majors, but also chemistry majors to learn, volunteer, apply, work, or participate in a laboratory setting.

Within the chemistry field, laboratory experience is vital to your success! 

Participating in a laboratory research setting with graduate students and faculty will help develop your critical thinking skills and expose you to modern chemistry/materials research equipment, thousands of publications from UC professors, and, most importantly, perform experiments. If you are applying to any higher education program, like graduate school, having laboratory experience or publications in your resume/CV looks outstandingly competitive.

At UCR, you can participate in laboratory research and earn credits toward your degree!

Course Enrollment Requirements 

In order to enroll in undergraduate chemistry research, the following must be meet:

Taken 1 year of General Chemistry
CHEM 001A & CHEM 01LA or CHEM 002A & CHEM 02LA
CHEM 001B & CHEM 01LB or CHEM 002B & CHEM 02LB
CHEM 001C & CHEM 01LC or CHEM 002C & CHEM 02LC

Taken 1 year of Organic Chemistry*
CHEM 008A & CHEM 08LA or CHEM 08HA & CHEM 08HLA
CHEM 008B & CHEM 08LB or CHEM 08HB & CHEM 08HLB
CHEM 008C & CHEM 08LC or CHEM 08HC & CHEM 08HLC

*The organic chemistry requirement is flexible, however completing the series allows greater understanding of the work being performed.

Once you have satisfied these requirements, your next step is to speak with your chemistry academic advisor, Kourtney Luke (kourtney.luke@ucr.edu) or your designated academic advisor and pick up the "Request for Chemistry Undergraduate Research or Special Studies" form. 

In order for your enrollment request to be fulfilled, you must receive approval from your academic advisor AND your faculty member of interest. Once the form is completed, you can submit the form to Kourtney/designated advisor or Jeffery Matute, the Undergraduate Student Affairs, at (jmatu003@ucr.edu) or at Chemical Sciences 246. 

IMPORTANT NOTE: You CANNOT enroll yourself into a CHEM 19X course. Any student enrolled in a CHEM 19X course without approval will be dropped.