WELCOME
Welcome to the Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (MRSEC) at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.
The Center unites the efforts of 34 faculty from 6 departments (Biochemistry, Chemical Engineering, Chemistry, Plant Biology, Physics, and Polymer Science and Engineering) of the University, and has research collaborations and outreach programs with over 12 other institutions. The Center builds on a tradition of excellence in multidisciplinary research and education in polymer science and engineering in Amherst that has been fostered by 29 years of support from the National Science Foundation for interdisciplinary research at the frontiers of polymer science.
The University of Massachusetts has been committed to interdisciplinary education in polymer science and engineering since 1966, and grants approximately 15% of all Ph.D. degrees awarded in polymer science in the United States. The University's Department of Polymer Science and Engineering is multidisciplinary by design, with faculty having earned doctoral degrees in chemistry, chemical engineering, civil engineering, physics and polymer sci-ence and engineering. There are 92 Ph.D. candidates in the Department (34% women and 7% minorities) and 20 postdoctoral scientists. This effort is augmented by polymer research programs in 6 other departments where over 30 doctoral students are engaged in the study of polymers. UMass has developed a productive, dynamic environment for polymer research. Annual research support of the faculty totals ~$6M including MRSEC support and funding from 40 corporations and 6 federal agencies.
Students are trained in a core curriculum that includes lectures and laboratory courses covering all aspects of polymer synthesis, characterization and engineering. The quality of these programs was recognized in 2000 by a Department of Education award for Graduate Assistance in Areas of National Need (GAANN), where the UMass proposal was the highest ranked in all engineering disciplines. The program is the top-ranked Polymer Chemistry Department (U.S. News & World Report, 2001) and was ranked first in the 2001 National Doctoral Program Survey and second by the National Research Council in a 1995 decadal report on the quality of doctoral education in the broader field of materials science.
The Center enhances educational programs through a distinguished visitors program, partial support of staff who teach the skills of experimental design and execution, annual workshops on topics relevant to the Center's research objectives, and three international programs with Materials Science Centers in Europe and Asia. The annual research reviews of the Center will involve lectures and poster sessions with substantial student participation.
Complementing MRSEC at the University of Massachusetts is the Center for UMass / Industry Research on Polymers (CUMIRP). This program, established in 1980 under the NSF format for Industrial/University Cooperative Research Centers, is the University's liaison to the polymer industry. CUMIRP promotes and facilitates research collaborations with industrial partners. MRSEC and CUMIRP work in close association for the advancement of Polymer Science and provide a conduit for the transfer of technology among academic, industrial and government laboratories.
