Skip to main content.
Bard
  • Bard
  • Academics sub-menuAcademics

    A place to think.

    Discover Bard
    • Academics
      • Programs and Divisions
      • Structure of the Curriculum
      • Courses
      • Requirements
      • Academic Calendar
      • Faculty
      • Libraries
      • College Catalogue
      • Bard Abroad
      • Dual-Degree Programs
      • Other Study Opportunities
      • Graduate Programs
      • Early Colleges
  • Admission sub-menuAdmission

    Do you love to learn?

    Discover Bard

    Apply Now
    • Discover Bard
      • Our Students
      • Our Alumni/ae
      • Campus Tours
      • Bridge Program
      • Video Gallery
    • Applying
      • First Year
      • Transfer Students
      • Early College Transfers
      • International Students
      • Homeschooled Students
      • DACA and Undocumented
      • Bard Conservatory
      • Return to College
      • Admitted Students
      • Enroll Now!
      • New Students
      • Prospective Families
      • Familias
      • Financial Aid
      • Tuition and Payment
      • Contact Us
      • Admission Team
      • Tour Guides
      • Graduate Admission
      • Early College Admission
  • Campus Life sub-menuCampus Life
    Bard Campus Life

    Make a home in Annandale.

    • Living on Campus
      • Housing + Dining
      • Campus Resources
      • Get Involved on Campus
      • Bard Connects
      • Visiting + Transportation
      • Athletics + Recreation
      • New Students
  • Civic Engagement sub-menuCivic Engagement
    • Bard CCE The Center for Civic Engagement (CCE) at Bard College embodies the fundamental belief that education and civil society are inextricably linked.

      Take action.
      Make an impact.

      Get Involved
      • Campus + Community
      • In the Classroom
      • U.S. Network
      • International Network
      • About CCE
      • Resources
      • Support
  • Newsroom sub-menuNews + Events
    Upstreaming
    • News + Events
      • Newsroom
      • Events Calendar
      • Video Gallery
      • Press Releases
      • Office of Communications
      • COVID-19 Updates
    • Special Events
      • Commencement + Reunion Weekend
      • Family + Alumni/ae Weekend
      • Fisher Center
      • Bard SummerScape
      • Bard Athletics
  • About Bard sub-menuAbout Bard

    A private college for the public good.

    Support Bard
    • About Bard College
      • Mission Statement
      • Bard History
      • Love of Learning
      • Visiting Bard
      • Employment
      • OSUN
      • Bard Abroad
      • The Bard Network
      • Montgomery Place Campus
      • Campus Tours
      • Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
      • Sustainability
      • Title IX
      • HEOA Disclosures
      • Institutional Support
      • Safety and Security
      • Inside Bard
      • Alumni/ae Network
      • Family Network
      • Support Bard
  • COVID-19 Response
  • Search

Program

Chemistry Menu
  • The Program
  • Faculty
  • Req sub-menuRequirements + Courses
    • Chemistry
    • Biochemistry
  • Instrumentation
  • News + Events
  • Safety + Resources
  • Home
Student-Driven Research
Professor Craig Anderson with Bard Summer Research Institute students. Photo by Sarah Wallock '19

Student-Driven Research

In addition to the program’s core course work, students have the opportunity to become involved in faculty-led research at early stages of their undergraduate career. In the last five years, faculty in the Chemistry and Biochemistry Program have published 30 publications, which include more than 65 Bard undergraduate coauthorships. All of the faculty members in the program also conduct research with Bard undergraduates (an average of 28 students each summer over the last five years) as part of the Bard Summer Research Institute. Many students in the program present their research work as talks and posters each year at National and Regional Conferences.

The Program has an excellent record of student placement after graduation. Chemistry and Biochemistry alumni have pursued studies at the graduate and medical school level. Others have obtained employment in academia, science editing, and as industry professionals in pharmaceutical, manufacturing, biotech, and health-related fields. 
 

Recent Senior Projects in Chemistry and Biochemistry at Bard
Photo by Pete Mauney '93 MFA '00

Recent Senior Projects in Chemistry and Biochemistry at Bard

  • “Carbon-carbon bond formation: An investigation of [2+2] cycloadditions by visible light photoredox catalysis”
  • “Evolution of extracellular DNA (eDNA) secretion in Bacillus subtilis”
  • “Hybrid lithography in SU-8: A mask-based photolithography and direct laser writing technique”
  • “Potential anticancer activity via inhibition of telomerase binding: Investigation of stabilization factors for G-quadruplex structures”

Academic Tracks

  • Chemistry
  • Biochemistry

In Their Own Words

Raed Ibraheim ’13

“While I was at Bard, all I wanted to do was finish my undergrad degree and go to medical school. But while I was at Bard, I started working in the labs, first just as a helper to clean glassware and organize the lab space. Then I did research with Professor Swapan Jain. And I loved it. It was a great challenge to think of a scientific hypothesis, troubleshoot experiments and interpret results. So I decided to hold off the med school and work in labs to gain more research experience. I worked as a research assistant at Weill College Medical College in New York City in the gene therapy lab. Again after loving that research field, I decided to pursue grad school.” 

Raed Ibraheim ’13

“I am currently a third year in the Ph.D. program at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. My work is on using a research tool called CRISPR to manipulate genes with DNA mutations that cause diseases. I'm using this tool to develop therapeutic platform for genetic diseases that results from mistakes in the DNA sequence. Grad school has been a very rewarding experience. I am learning new things every day about myself as well as cutting edge science that can have a great impact on health care in the future. My plan after I graduate is to join a research institution to continue in this field. There are over 7,000 genetic diseases affecting over 30 million Americans. So my hope is to use what I am learning now to find therapies for more of these diseases.”

Senior Spotlight: Patricia Sicat
Photo by Sarah Wallock '19

Senior Spotlight: Patricia Sicat

“The Chemistry Program is a small, tight-knit community,” says Patricia Sicat ’20. “And you’re all struggling with the same thing!” she laughs. Her most rewarding class so far has been Physical Chemistry, taught by Professor Chris LaFratta, her adviser. “It was hard, but he was there to help. I have a problem with asking for help,” she admits, “and he would come up to me first because he realized that I hated to ask. He knew because it’s such a small group.”

For her Senior Project, Patricia is researching plastic-degrading enzymes with Professor Atahualpa Pinto at the Bard Summer Research Institute. Patricia will be a teaching fellow for Citizen Science next year, and she's eager to apply what she's learned working with Bard faculty in the labs.

Chemistry Resources

  • American Chemical Society
  • Division of Science, Math, and Computing at Bard
Bard College
Campus Road, PO Box 5000
Annandale-on-Hudson, New York 12504-5000
Phone: 800-BARDCOL
Admission Phone: 845-758-7472
Admission E-mail: admission@bard.edu
©2020 Bard College
Follow Us on Twitter
Like us on Facebook
Follow Us on Instagram
You Tube
Information For:
Prospective Students
Current Employees
Alumni/ae 
Families
Quick Links
Employment
Travel to Bard
Site Search
Support Bard