Awards and Honors

College of Chemistry awards and honors featured in the news.

A scientific pipeline to the Nobel Prize fueled by immigrants

December 10, 2025
By William J. Broad | NY Times
(NY TImes) As three immigrants claim Nobel Prizes in science for the United States this year, experts warn that immigration crackdowns could undo American innovation.

University of California sets world record with five Nobel Prizes in one week

October 10, 2025
By Aidin Vaziri, Staff Writer | SF Chronicle
(SF Chronicle) The University of California made history this week, as its faculty and alumni won five Nobel Prizes across medicine, physics and chemistry — the most ever awarded to a single institution in one year. Photo: ©Nobel Prize Outreach, Clément Morin.

Alexis Bell elected to Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS)

December 2, 2025
By Veronica Bartell | College of Chemistry
The prestigious academy has recognized Professor Bell for his fundamental and sustained contributions to the field of catalysis.

Shining a light on misleading data

August 25, 2025
By Veronica Bartell | College of Chemistry
Teng-Jui (Owen) Lin and Kylee Hillman, two graduate students in the Landry Lab, have been awarded the NINDS Early-Career Rigor Champions Prize.

Grad student wins national award for groundbreaking materials research

November 5, 2025
By Veronica Bartell | College of Chemistry
Chemistry grad student Bailey Raine Nebgen has earned a 2025 ACS Physical Chemistry Graduate Award in Experimental Chemistry.

Michael Zuerch awarded Scialog Award by the Research Corporation for Science Advancement

November 18, 2025
Press Release | College of Chemistry
The 18 individual awards of $60,000 in direct costs will go to 17 scientists from colleges, universities, and research institutions in the United States.

Markita Landry receives the 2020 Emerging Leader in Molecular Spectroscopy Award

October 19, 2020
UC Berkeley, College of Chemistry Press Release
By combining single-molecule biophysics and nanomaterial-polymer science, Markita Landry Assistant Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at the University of California, Berkeley has developed new tools for understanding biological systems.

Omar Yaghi: 2019 Innovator of the Year

April 19, 2020
By Patricia Miller | Innovation and Tech Today
Omar Yaghi, the James and Neeltje Tretter Chair
 Professor of Chemistry at UC Berkeley, has been announced as the 2019 Innovator of the Year by Innovation & Tech Today.

William Lester: Lifetime achievement award

February 5, 2020
Top Industry Professionals | Issue 43 2020
Dr. William Alexander Lester, Jr was recently selected for the Lifetime Achievement Award for 2019 and as Top Chemist Educator of the Year for 2018 by the International Association of Top Professionals (IAOTP) for his outstanding leadership and commitment to the field.

Mars work by UC Berkeley’s George Pimentel recognized with national historic landmark

May 24, 2017
Tracey Taylor | Berkeleyside
(Berkeleyside) A bronze plaque designating the Mars Infrared Spectrometer as an ACS National Historic Chemical Landmark was unveiled at the May 15 ceremony, and a version of the Mars IRS is on view inside Pimentel Hall. It is accompanied by a display of historical materials and photographs tracing the efforts of the Pimentel team to create and launch the spectrometer.
http://www.berkeleyside.com/2017/05/24/mars-work-uc-berkeleys-george-pimentel-re…