About USC Chemistry

The Department

The Department of Chemistry at the University of Southern California is located at the University Park Campus in the historical Figueroa Corridor of downtown Los Angeles. Our department has a vibrant community of over 31 faculty members active in research who serve approximately 250 undergraduates, 175 graduate students, and 50 postdoctoral researchers. USC labs demonstrate expertise in each of the traditional subfields, namely organic chemistry, inorganic chemistry, chemical biology, experimental physical chemistry, and theoretical chemistry. Committed to excellence in education and research, our mission is to train future chemists for impactful careers in “the central science.”

Our Students

For undergraduate students, the Department offers a unique selection of chemistry majors, including traditional chemistry, chemical research, biochemistry, chemical biology, and chemical nanoscience. This enables students to tailor their educational experience towards their specific interests and career goals. Both undergraduate and graduate students have the opportunity to perform cutting edge research in a variety of areas, such as organic synthesis, reaction catalysis, mechanistic chemistry, biochemistry and biophysics, materials chemistry, theoretical chemistry and reaction dynamics, and ultra-fast spectroscopy.

The “Central Science” at USC

The Department of Chemistry recognizes the key role chemistry plays in other disciplines as the “central science,” and so the research at USC is highly interdisciplinary. Our department collaborates with many others at the university, including Molecular and Computational Biology, Physics, Chemical Engineering, and Pharmaceutical Sciences. Through collaborations and joint appointments, the Department has established itself as a fulcrum for research in chemical and structural biology, drug discovery, energy research, materials science, chemical physics, and theoretical modeling of biological systems. Information about faculty research can be found on the faculty pages and individual profiles.