The Department of Chemistry
This page is updated for the academic year 2023-2024.
Information for the academic year 2024-2025 will be updated in the coming days.
Master's Degree
Two graduate M.Sc. tracks are available:
Track A – includes research and thesis submission
Track B – non research-based with no thesis requirement
The Department of Chemistry has several research groups covering all areas of chemistry available for master’s degree students to conduct their research with, after coordination with the prospective advisor.
The Department’s research labs are involved in a variety of domains, inlcuding: physical chemistry, biological chemistry, inorganic chemistry, material science and energy, nanotechnology, organic and bio-organic chemistry, pharmacological chemistry, polymers, theoretical chemistry and computational chemistry.
Admission requirements
An undergraduate major in chemistry with a minimum grade point average of 80.
An undergraduate major in biophysics with a minimum grade point average of 78.
Applicants with an undergraduate degree in chemistry from another university and applicants with an undergraduate degree in another discipline in the Faculty of Exact Sciences or the Faculty of Life Sciences, must complete background courses as determined on an individual basis in accordance with the decision of the Department pedagogical committee.
Applicants for Track A, thesis-based track in chemistry, nanotechnology or chemoinformatics, must choose an advisor from among the academic faculty before beginning the application process on the website.
Admission to the department is contingent upon medical authorization that the student is physically fit to partake in studies that include lab work – this authorization must be presented no later than the time of course registration.
Applicants with an undergraduate degree in exact sciences or in life sciences from Bar-Ilan applying to continue on with their master’s degree immediately upon completion of their bachelor’s degree, and have submitted such medical authorization in the past, need not provide it again.
A subsistence scholarship is awarded by departmental decision. In most cases such a scholarship is guaranteed for students with a minimum undergraduate grade point average of 85 (or 83 for biophysics majors).
Students must submit their research proposal approved by their advisor and by the departmental committee to the School of Graduate Studies, by way of the department, by the end of their first year of study. In exceptional cases, a request for extension until the end of the spring semester of the second year may be granted. Failure to submit the thesis proposal in a timely manner may result in termination of studies. Note that the level of scholarship support changes in accordance with the timely submission of the research proposal.
Upon completion of their research, students submit their thesis summarizing its outcomes and defend their thesis at the end of the program’s second year.
The final grade of the degree is based on coursework grades and the thesis grade.
Credit and seminar requirements
Chemistry program in Track A – thesis-based 84401
14 AC (annual-based credits) (28 SC – semester-based credits) as specified below:
10 AC (20 SC) – elective courses in the department or by approval of the departmental pedagogical committee.
2 AC (4 SC) – participation in one seminar in the area of specialization throughout the degree.
2 AC (4 SC) – participation in departmental colloquium [1 AC (2 SC) each year].
Nanotechnology specialization in Track A – thesis-based 84430
13 AC (26 credits) as specified below:
4 AC (8 SC) – required nanotechnology courses (introduction and lab).
2 AC (4 SC) – participation in one seminar in the area of specialization in the 1st year (one seminar throughout the degree)
2 AC (4 SC) – participation in departmental colloquium [1 AC (2 SC) each year].
3 AC (6 SC) – elective courses from among nanotechnology electives.
2 AC (4 SC) – elective courses from Department of Chemistry electives.
Chemoinformatics specialization in Track A – thesis-based 84-408
14 AC (28 SC) as specified below:
1 AC (2 SC) – required course "Introduction to Chemoinformatics"
5 AC (10 SC) – elective courses in chemistry
5 AC (10 SC) – elective courses in chemoinformatics
1 AC (2 SC) – seminar on data science (one seminar throughout the degree)
2 AC (4 SC) – participation in departmental colloquium [1 AC (2 SC) each year].
Jewish studies
As per general requirements for the master's degree (see introductory chapter).
Thesis guidelines
See School of Graduate Studies Rules and Regulations in the introductory chapter.
Final exam for the master’s degree
The exam is based on the thesis and its underlying bibliography.
Research proposals are to be submitted by the end of the first year of study
and no later than the end of the fall semester of the second year.
Master’s degree without thesis
The non-research master’s degree in chemistry is intended for chemistry or science teachers, for chemists working in industry and for people with a bachelor's degree who would like to broaden their horizons and to keep abreast of current knowledge in chemistry.
Program duration is two years but may be shortened to a single year or extended, as needed.
Admission requirements
A bachelor's degree in chemistry or a related discipline with a minimum grade point average of 80.
A bachelor's degree in biophysics with a minimum grade point average of 78.
Applicants with an average below 80 may be called for a personal interview with the department’s admissions committee.
Credit and seminar requirements
Chemistry program in Track B – non-research, without thesis 84501
20 AC (40 SC) as specified below:
16 AC (32 SC) – elective courses in the department or by approval of the departmental pedagogical committee
2 AC (4 SC) – participation in one seminar in the area of specialization throughout the degree
2 AC (4 SC) – final project
Jewish studies
As per general requirements for the master's degree (see introductory chapter).
PhD
The PhD is a challenging research degree, the pinnacle of academic achievement. The program spans four years, during which time students conduct original publishable research. Students must also meet coursework requirements and participate in seminars and the departmental colloquium.
Areas of specialization
- Organic chemistry: Organic synthesis, organic-physical chemistry, NMR and mass spectrometry, stereochemistry, combinatoric chemistry, chemisty of polymers.
- Physical chemistry: Spectroscopy, basic and applied electrochemistry, sonochemistry, energy storage and conversion – advanced rechargeable electrical batteries (lithium, lithium ion, magnesium), supercapacitors, photovoltaic cells, solar cells.
- Theoretical and computational chemistry: Quantum chemistry, multi-photonic processes, lasers, interaction of materials with radiation, dynamics of reactions, computational modeling of enzymatic mechanisms for enzyme inhibitors, computational models for chemical responses, computational models in material science.
- Pharmaceutical and bio-organic chemistry: Anti-carcinogens, antibiotics, substances for Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease, antipsychotics, enzyme inhibitors, ligand-receptor interaction, immobilized enzymes, drug delivery systems, enzymatic mechanisms, peptides and peptidomimetics, computational models for drug development.
- Material science, polymers and nanotechnology: Thin-layer materials, functional nanospheres, heterogeneous polymer systems, surface chemistry, bioactive polymers, sonochemistry, nanoparticles, compounded materials from metals and polymers, solid state chemistry and crystallography.
- Biophysics: Iteraction between electromagnetic radiation and biological systems, radiation treatment of cancer cells, determining protein structure and interactions of proteins with NMR, design and modeling of protein-protein interaction, protein and peptide interactions with non-organic surfaces.
- Non-organic and bio-non-organic chemistry: Complexes of transition metals, stable radicals, models of metalloenzymes, complexes of natural materials with ionic metals, biomimetics, artifical “enzymes”, chemical switches and optochemical sensors.
Admission requirements
Master’s degree in chemistry or a related discipline with a minimum grade point average of 85.
Applicants to the PhD program must choose an advisor from the administration faculty before beginning the application process on the website.
Admission to the department is contingent upon medical authorization that the student is physically fit to partake in studies that include lab work – this authorization must be presented no later than the time of course registration.
Within a year of admission to the PhD program, students must submit their research proposal and be tested on it.
Credit and seminar requirements
Standard track
16 AC (32 SC) as specified below:
6 AC (12 SC) – Departmental seminars focused on the appropriate field of study in the 1st, 2nd and 4th years of the program. In the first two years the seminars will be on topics from the professional literature, and in the last year the seminar will present the PhD research work.
6 AC (12 SC) – elective courses in the department or by approval of the departmental pedagogical committee, these must include a course in English scientific writing and editing (2 SC) only from the second year and onward.
4 AC (8 SC) – Participation in the departmental colloquium is mandatory throughout the degree.
Combined PhD track
The combined degree is for students with proven research abilities who plan to further develop their master’s degree work into a doctoral thesis. Admission criteria to this track is completion of all required thesis-based master’s degree coursework with a minimum average of 85, submission of a PhD research proposal and approval by the departmental pedagogical committee. The research proposal for the dissertation must be submitted by the end of the second year of the master’s degree, and serves as a summary and final project of master’s degree research.
During the two years of master’s work, course load is required as follows:
20 AC (28 SC) as follows: (usually SC is double the AC)
10 AC (20 SC) – elective courses in the department or by approval of the departmental pedagogical committee.
2 AC (4 SC) – seminar in area of specialization.
2 AC (4 SC) – participation in departmental colloquium [1 AC (2 SC) each year].
6 AC (0 SC) – registration for Course ID entitled ‘thesis’.
Applicants must meet the criteria for the combined track as listed in the introductory chapter in order to be admitted to PhD studies in this track.
Students admitted to the PhD program in the combined track must take the following course load in addition to master’s degree obligations:
16 AC (32 SC) as specified below:
6 AC (12 SC) – Departmental seminars focused on the appropriate field of study in the 1st, 2nd and 4th years of the program. In the first two years the seminars will be on topics from the professional literature, and in the last year the seminar will present the PhD research work.
6 AC (12 SC) – elective courses in the department or by approval of the departmental pedagogical committee; these must include a course in English scientific writing and editing (2 SC) only from the second year and onward.
4 AC (8 SC) – Participation in the departmental colloquium is mandatory throughout the degree.
For further details
contact the department by phone at 03-5318309/10, via email,
or visit the Department of Chemistry website
Last Updated Date : 03/04/2024
