New Name for Chemistry Department Reflects Health/Life Sciences Role

INDIANAPOLIS - 06.29.2005

The chemistry department in the Purdue School of Science at IUPUI has changed its name.

The new name, Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, is more descriptive of the health/life sciences aspect of both the curriculum and career paths open to students and graduates, officials said.

“We are strategically located in a metro area with a large health and life sciences industry. Chemists play a large role in that industry and IUPUI graduates are employed across a broad spectrum of the health/life sciences industry,” Frank Schultz, chair of the department, said.

While no curriculum change is associated with the name change, the department in recent years has come to focus more and more on teaching, research and learning associated with the biological sciences. The path reflects the dynamic and interdisciplinary nature of modern chemical science.

“There is a very large biological component of what chemists are doing these days, studying proteins, discovering drugs, and measuring substances in biological systems,” Schultz said. “The bases of most biological systems are still chemical in nature.”

Undergraduate chemistry majors at IUPUI can pursue a degree with either a traditional chemistry focus or a biochemistry focus. The Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology also offers a master's and doctorate in chemistry. Currently about 150 undergraduate students and about 50 to 60 graduate students are enrolled in the department, according to the chair.

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