New College of Sciences Launches Today at NC State

North Carolina State University has officially launched its new College of Sciences. The new college, which combines the programs of the College of Physical and Mathematical Sciences with several of the biological sciences programs from the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, will offer interdisciplinary educational and research opportunities for students and faculty.

The College of Sciences includes physical and chemical sciences, mathematical and statistical sciences, biological sciences and earth-system sciences. It was created to enhance collaborative opportunities for students and faculty, as well as to bring NC State in line with national best practices for the alignment of related physical and biological science departments.

According to Dean Daniel Solomon, cross-disciplinary training and research is the future of science. “The convergence of the sciences is the key to addressing many of the world’s greatest problems in health, energy production and environmental sustainability,” Solomon says. “These problems are incredibly complex, but by working together across disciplines we improve our ability to solve them.”

The college should prove to be a research and teaching powerhouse, with 400 active research projects providing more than $40 million in annual research expenditures. The faculty includes two members of the prestigious National Academy of Sciences and nine fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

The College of Sciences will build on NC State’s proven reputation for scientific outreach by continuing to forge partnerships across the state of North Carolina to improve scientific literacy and the human condition within the state’s borders and beyond.

Additionally, Solomon believes that supporting and fostering a spirit of entrepreneurship will aid the college’s success. “The college will facilitate the creation of new companies and partner with existing businesses to advance research,” he says. “Science holds the keys to bringing products and solutions to market that benefit humanity.”

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