ACS Bridge Fellows

The ACS Bridge Program is primarily funded through a grant from the National Science Foundation. Due to funding requirements, applicants and/or students selected for funding through the ACS Bridge Program must be U.S. Citizens or permanent residents.

However, if you fall under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, you may apply to have your application circulated to our departments. While you cannot receive direct ACS Bridge Program funding, some departments may offer alternative sources of funding.

Yes, you are eligible to apply to the ACS Bridge Program. 

Although women are underrepresented in chemical sciences and some STEM fields, the ACS Bridge Program focuses on increasing the number of Ph.D.s awarded to underrepresented (UR) students, including African American, Hispanic American, and Native American students. Individuals who identify with historically marginalized racial and ethnic groups are encouraged to apply to the Bridge Program.

There is no fee to apply to the ACS Bridge Program. If you are accepted into a graduate program, you may be asked to formally apply to the institution you plan to attend.

The ACS Bridge Program encourages all students to apply to graduate school through the traditional process. Our program is intended to help students who have not received an offer from a graduate program or who have decided not to apply traditionally.

By applying through the ACS Bridge Program, applicants gain the opportunity to submit a single, free application that will be reviewed by our Bridge departments within the United States. Our departments will reach out to applicants to conduct interviews and extend offers of admission to their graduate programs for the upcoming academic year. While we expect most applicants to receive offers from one or more programs, it is important to note that this is not guaranteed.

For advice on your application, consider talking with your undergraduate advisor, research mentor, PhD-level chemical scientists, or other individuals fimilar with graduate school applications. Additionally, it is recommended to set personal goals and priorities by considering factors such as stipend needs, location, and research opportunities offered by the department, among other relevant factors.

The deadline for completed applications is generally the end of March. Students are encouraged to submit complete applications well before the deadline to avoid technical issues. Please view the student page for more information about the specific deadlines for each application year. Keep in mind that we need your complete application by this time. This includes your application, transcripts, and letters of recommendation. Please allow some time (usually at least two weeks) to make sure your letter writers are able to get their letters uploaded before the deadline.

When your application is complete, you will receive a confirmation email regarding your application status. Students accepted into bridge programs will receive admission offers in May and June through direct email contact with department leaders.

Although most offers go out in May and June, some institutions may make offers for fall enrollment later in the summer. As such, you should be sure to 1) make sure that the email listed on your Bridge application is one that you will use after graduation and that you check often, and 2) Keep an eye out for contact from institutions throughout the summer. The application cycle closes in early September, and no offers will be made after this deadline.

Yes, you can apply even if you completed your bachelor's degree several years ago. If your degree was from further back, you may be a bit rusty on your chemical science concepts. We recommend you talk with an advisor or contact us to determine your level of preparation to pursue a doctoral degree.

Yes, you are eligible. The goal of the program is to increase the number of underrepresented minority students that receive PhDs in the chemical sciences. Departments of biochemistry, chemical biology, or related disciplines are eligible to be Bridge Partner Departments. ACS circulates your application to Bridge Partner Departments.

Students with degrees closely related to chemical sciences may apply to the program, but they must have completed many of the advanced undergraduate core chemical science requirements or their applications will not be considered. These include courses in advanced biochemistry, calculus I-III, organic chemistry II, physical chemistry II (quantum/thermos), and polymer chemistry. Students without undergraduate chemical science degrees should be sure to include in their application strong reasons for why their studies have prepared them to pursue a Ph.D. in the chemical sciences.

Bridge Departments use the information provided in the "Research Interest" area of the application in different ways so it would be beneficial for you to look up individual sites and their statements on how they use this information (available through links from Bridge Sites). Departments may use this information in order to determine possible mentor matches and whether your interests align with the research areas that the university has to offer. Being unsure is OK, but you should discuss your research experience and broad interests with mentors.

The ACS Bridge Program only has Bridge Departments established in certain areas in the US.

Students that do not receive or accept offers from ACS Bridge Sites will have their applications circulated to ACS Bridge Partner Departments for consideration. It will be more likely that one of the Partner Departments is closer to home than that of the Bridge Sites. Alternatively, you can look into graduate programs closer to home. Many programs have informal bridge programs built into their graduate programs that you might be able to benefit from. We recommend you contact faculty at institutions you are interested in attending.

Additional questions can be sent to bridge@acs.org.

Visit “Planning for Graduate Work” developed by the ACS Committee on Professional Training.

You can explore numerous careers for chemical scientists through Careers and the Chemical Sciences or ChemIDP^TM, the career planning tool for chemists.