This course addresses fundamental issues in chemistry of transition metals and main group elements that are relevant to a variety of important areas, including applications in organic synthetic transformations, medicine, and industrial and biological catalysis. The course introduces symmetry and group theory concepts, and applies them in a systematic approach to the study of structure, bonding, and spectroscopy of coordination and inorganic compounds. The course also covers selected inorganic and organometallic reactions and their mechanisms and bioinorganic chemistry. Primary literature and review articles are used to discuss recent developments and applications in the field. The course is supported by a laboratory which involves experiments closely tied to lectures, and introduces techniques for handling air-sensitive materials and research into catalysts.