chance of getting in a chemistry engineering program with a chemistry background

[mario2013]

Hi

 

I just have few quick questions for your guys and wonder if you can help you out here. I am a chem major student and planning to get into a chemistry engineering graduate program. what is the chance of getting into the program with a chemistry background? is it possible to be admitted in a graduate program without research experience? Thank you very much!

[Quantum Buckyball]

It depends on your credentials. Your chance is pretty slim if you....

(1) lack of research experiences involved chemical engineering

(2) lack of letters of recommendation from chemical engineers

(3) lack of computer programming skills (C++, matlab, and others)

(4) lack of advanced level of math courses (probability theory, linear algebra, etc.)

[synorg]

as someone who did both chemistry and chemical engineering in undergrad, i think you'd have a very difficult time. i think it's much more reasonable to go from chem e to chemistry. you would be woefully unprepared for classes. and while research is more important in grad school, you still must have some fundamental understanding that an undergrad chemistry curriculum likely would not provide. combined with a lack of research experience, i think you'd be wasting your time.

why do you want to go into chem e to begin with? if you're young enough, just change majors. otherwise, that ship has probably sailed. :/

[Quantum Buckyball]

as someone who did both chemistry and chemical engineering in undergrad, i think you'd have a very difficult time. i think it's much more reasonable to go from chem e to chemistry. you would be woefully unprepared for classes. and while research is more important in grad school, you still must have some fundamental understanding that an undergrad chemistry curriculum likely would not provide. combined with a lack of research experience, i think you'd be wasting your time.

why do you want to go into chem e to begin with? if you're young enough, just change majors. otherwise, that ship has probably sailed. :/

A girl from my cohort class got her BS in ChemE and she is doing okay in my program right now (she did not get into the research group she wanted). I think ChemE is a good degree but it does not prepare you enough for a typical Chem program or vice versa. I think that as long as you're good at math and programming and a quick learner then it won't be too bad.

[theoretician]

Also, I don't know what kind of research you are interested in, but keep in mind that a lot of programs in chemistry, for instance, allow you to perform research with faculty in other related departments (like engineering, applied math, physics, biology, etc) so you may get your degree in chemistry which correlates better with what you are doing in your undergraduate studies, but you can do chemical engineering research.

[synorg]

A girl from my cohort class got her BS in ChemE and she is doing okay in my program right now (she did not get into the research group she wanted). I think ChemE is a good degree but it does not prepare you enough for a typical Chem program or vice versa. I think that as long as you're good at math and programming and a quick learner then it won't be too bad.

when i said "you would be woefully unprepared for classes" i was speaking directly to the OP. chem Es get enough chemistry coursework under their belts to do fine in grad classes. a typical undergrad chemE curriculum includes most of the undergrad chemistry curriculum, in addition to more math and about ten chemE-specific classes...

[UBackwardsChemistry]

what is the chance of getting into the program with a chemistry background?

This really depends on the program and degree you choose. For instance, at UToronto you can study towards a masters of applied science (MASc) with a natural sciences bachelors degree while to get admitted for a maters of engineering (MEng) you NEED an engineering degree. If you stick more to the science and less to the flow analysis/hardcore process research you should be able to squeeze into a ChemE program somewhere.

 

 

is it possible to be admitted in a graduate program without research experience?

It's technically possible, but realistically you need research experience to be considered for most graduate schools; (un?)surprisingly coursework is a poor indicator for whether or not you will succeed in lab.

[Eigen]

when i said "you would be woefully unprepared for classes" i was speaking directly to the OP. chem Es get enough chemistry coursework under their belts to do fine in grad classes. a typical undergrad chemE curriculum includes most of the undergrad chemistry curriculum, in addition to more math and about ten chemE-specific classes...

 

This may be true of your program, but it's definitely not universally applicable. 

 

We have a number of ChemE students try to take some graduate courses here in Chemistry, to meet elective requirements, and 90% of them drop out by the second test, as they aren't even remotely prepared for the material. 

 

At my undergrad, ChemEs only took up through sophomore chemistry classes- quantitative analytical, general organic, general inorganic. And they take even less than that at my current institution- Gen & Orgo, and then two electives in chemistry. In other words, less than a minor, usually. That's not nearly enough background to prepare you for a grad program in chemistry. 

 

That said, I do know people that have gone Chemistry -> ChemE and been successful. Usually, all you need to pick up are the more specific engineering classes- systems design, etc. And depending on the research of the lab you're interested in, the Chemistry background may be more beneficial than not. 

 

Generally, transitioning from physical sciences -> engineering or vise versa is quite difficult, owing to the fact that while there's a substantial overlap in background and material, the approach is quite different between the two, and preparation for one really doesn't suit for the other. 

[Quantum Buckyball]

ChemE is all about approximation and optimization, they don't really teach you anything about separation, spectroscopy, and any other analytical techniques...nor physical techniques...nor bioinorganic...nor biochemistry......nor computational techniques (maybe a little, but not like biomolecular modeling work).

[MADMONEYHARVARDBITCHES]

Also, I don't know what kind of research you are interested in, but keep in mind that a lot of programs in chemistry, for instance, allow you to perform research with faculty in other related departments (like engineering, applied math, physics, biology, etc) so you may get your degree in chemistry which correlates better with what you are doing in your undergraduate studies, but you can do chemical engineering research.

Very true.  For example, my laboratory is in the chemistry department, my PI is a chemical engineer, and our lab group is a mix of physicists, mechanical engineers, chemical engineers, chemists, and theorists.  The program name on the degree doesn't really matter.