Head's Welcome | Department of Chemistry HKU

Prof. Chi-Ming Che, Head of the Department of Chemistry

The Department of Chemistry seeks to sustain its excellence as a top Chemistry Department both in the region and in the world through world-class research and teaching excellence. Our faculty members are top researchers committed to push back the frontiers of science and discover new knowledge, as well as transmit that knowledge through quality teaching to nurture our next generation.

The Department of Chemistry has a long tradition of excellence in teaching and research. I invite you to explore the history of our Department in this website.
The Department was ranked No. 1 among all chemistry departments in Hong Kong in the Research Assessment Exercise (RAE) in 2014. The achievements of our staff have been recognized by numerous international awards. Two faculty members in our Department are Members of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Foreign Associates of The National Academy of Sciences, USA. Our younger professors are also rising stars: one was recently awarded the Rao Makineni Lectureship by the American Peptide Society.

Research in the Department encompasses an array of areas and are focused in the following four research foci: Synthetic chemistry, Physical chemistry and computation, Chemical biology, and Material science and energy. We are also committed to promote knowledge exchange through research excellence, and to provide professional services to the community. I invite you to explore our website and visit our department to know more about our research work and achievements.
An equally important mission of the Department is to provide excellent teaching to our undergraduate and postgraduate students. At the undergraduate level, the Chemistry curriculum includes core courses covering foundational topics in physical, inorganic, organic, and analytical chemistry. We also provide a wide range of elective courses on current and emerging areas in chemical science and technology, such as chemical biology, computational chemistry, environmental chemistry, interfacial science, materials, and medicinal chemistry. Students can choose to complete the typical 96-credit major curriculum and opt to broaden their education in other areas. Alternatively, students who wish to specialize in chemistry can follow the intensive 144-credit major programme, which was the first chemistry undergraduate program to have been accredited by the Royal Society of Chemistry.

At the postgraduate level, students are invited to apply for MPhil and PhD programs to participate in the cutting-edge research in the Department. I invite prospective students to explore the website to learn about the Department’s offerings and research achievements, and get to know potential research supervisors. I also invite current students to visit the website often to keep connected with the chemistry family, and find resources to support your education.