Department of Chemistry
College of Letters & Science

GSFLC Events

Snout-Out Picnic

Chemistry ends the summer and kicks off the new academic year in style with a legendary department picnic. It starts with a pig roast and other summertime foods to sate the appetite, and follows with the annual department Softball Tournament. Enjoy an afternoon full of games, friendly interdepartmental rivalries, sociable scientists, and good food. Advertisements and tickets will be sent out over the summer, and will be available on the website. Check back as the date approaches!

This is an accordion element with a series of buttons that open and close related content panels.

Wellness

Coffee Hour

Pet of the Week

Community Building

Bonfire

Fall semester kickoff event at Picnic Point to welcome new students to the department in a casual environment away from chemistry. Particularly benefits first-year students who are joining research groups.

Department Breakfast

Biannual catered breakfast in chemistry room 9341 for department members to meet outside of their paths. Fall breakfast particularly benefits first-year students who are joining research groups.

Ice Cream Social

Summer event with ice cream from Babcock Dairy on biochemistry lawn. Way to meet people outside of groups people regularly interact with, take a break from work, and enjoy the outdoors.

Capitols Hockey Game

Winter outing to minor league hockey game provides group organization and transit directly to and from game to encourage large group outing to bond over a shared interest.

Mallards Baseball Game

Summer outing to minor league baseball game provides group organization game to encourage large group outing to bond over a shared interest.

Paintball

Fall match at Apocalypse Paintball to facilitate activity that requires large group, encouraging team building, physical activity, and stress relief through a shared interest at an off-campus location.

Ice Skating

Winter activity at the Shell or Bakke ice rink to enjoy the winter sport at a convenient campus location.

Mini Golf

Summer outing to Vitense Mini Golf to facilitate activity that requires large group, encouraging team building, physical activity, and stress relief through a shared interest at an off-campus location.

Game Nights

Causal way to get to know department members while enjoying a mentally stimulating non-work activity.

Career Development

Travel Grants: These awards offer graduate students (with dissertator status) funding to apply towards conference expenses.

Mentor Awards: The purpose of the Mentor Awards is to recognize graduate students, postdocs, and academic staff/faculty who have had a positive and profound impact on their mentees. All members of the chemistry community that have aided in the guidance, growth, and development of student’s careers are eligible to be nominated. Undergraduate students, graduate students and postdoctoral fellows are allowed to write letters. Nominations from undergraduate and graduate students are strongly encouraged. There are separate nominee categories for graduate students (who will receive a monetary award), postdocs, and faculty/staff (who will receive a certificate).

Career Support Circle: Join your fellow graduate students/postdocs in the Career Support Circle to meet up for an hour of dedicated time to applying to jobs, updating resume/LinkedIn, etc. We will meet on the following Wednesdays during Spring 2026 from 5:30pm-6:30pm in 8351. Come and go whenever is best for you!

  1. Feb 4
  2. Feb 18
  3. March 4
  4. March 18
  5. April 1
  6. April 15

Contact Brittany Trinh (btrinh2@wisc.edu) if you have questions or want to RSVP.

Career Development Seminar Series:

  1. November 11, 2025: Q&A with Dr. Jim Tung, Lacamas Laboratories
  2. Aug. 13, 2025: Applying to Faculty Positions at Primarily Undergraduate Institutions (PUIs), Dr. Bryan Wakefield
  3. November 8, 2024: Graduate’s Guide to Negotiation: Turn Job Offers into Win-Win Deals, Dr. Charlie Trevor

Outreach