Welcome from the Head of Department
On behalf of the Department of Chemistry and Earth Sciences (DCES) at Qatar University, it gives me great pleasure to welcome you to our website. We plan to go from strength to strength with your support and the hard work of our students, faculty and staff.
DCES is an interdisciplinary department founded in 1973 within the College of Education, and then became part of the College of Science upon its establishment in 1977. In 2004, following a major reform process within Qatar University, the Colleges of Science and Humanities merged into the College of Arts and Sciences. This resulted in the inclusion of some departments within the College including Chemistry, Geology, and Marine Science, which ultimately became the "Department of Chemistry and Earth Sciences”. A few years later, in 2008, the Marine Science Program merged with the Biology Department and hence, the “Department of Chemistry and Earth Sciences” currently consists of two programs, Chemistry and Geology.
The BSc degree program in Chemistry is an accredited qualification recognized by the Canadian Society for Chemistry (CSC). We have successfully been awarded another 5 years accreditation (as of 2020), which will run through to the end of 2025.
The department currently is home to more than 50 staff members (30 full-time faculty members with expertise across all areas of chemistry, 10 teaching assistants, and 11 technicians). Our outstanding personnel of faculty and staff are aware of the sanctity of their duties. We realize how honorable and exciting our job is. We strive to build a generation equipped with knowledge, competence, modern and comprehensive education in chemistry.
The department currently has more than 200 students (Major and Minor in Chemistry). In addition, the department offers courses to various programs in Qatar University including Biology, Environmental Sciences, Biomedical Sciences, Engineering, Health Sciences, Human Nutrition, Medicine and Pharmacy.
All faculty members are active in teaching and research, and several have been awarded major funding from Qatar Foundation for the National Priorities Research Projects (NPRP) and Undergraduate Research Experience Program (UREP).
The department is equipped with a wide range of modern instrumentation including ICP-MS, LC-MS, GC-MS, and UV and IR spectrophotometers.
The department has been collaborating with both national and international communities such as the Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC, UK), the American Chemical Society (ACS, USA), United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), and United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) in numerous aspects. Fields of collaboration include but are not limited to: organizing symposiums, public lectures and hosting workshops and symposia together with other international communities. The Chemistry faculty have also been involved in providing special workshops and training to employees from many sectors in industry.
I wish you a fruitful and informative time browsing our website.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Prof. Dr. Mazen Khaled
Head of the Department of Chemistry and Earth Sciences