Overview
Our faculty are leading experts in a cross-cutting range of technical areas, and bring state-of-the-art technology, knowledge and teaching methods to the classroom, creating an intellectually stimulating environment for students to engage in advanced learning through our MS/ME degree offerings. Our programs are rigorous but have a high completion rate within a period of about 1.5 years. In addition to undergraduate majors in chemical engineering, our Master’s program is also suitable for students from related disciplines including physics, chemistry, biology, and other engineering backgrounds (e.g., Material Science, Mechanical Engineering, etc.).
Biological Chemical Engineering is a rapidly-growing field. The Master of Engineering in Biological Chemical Engineering provides graduates with the flexibility to adapt to a variety of industrial experiences and forms the foundation for an expanding career in biomolecular and biopharmaceutical engineering. Graduates from this program will have the skills to identify, evaluate and manage cost and performance decisions throughout the major stages of life in large-scale developments in the pharmaceutical and related industries.
Lehigh graduates have consistently acknowledged the critical role that their Lehigh Master's Degree played in enabling the pursuit and achievement of their goals for career advancement along both technical and management career ladders.
Requirements:
The master’s degree in biological chemical engineering is a 30 credit hour program. This is a non-thesis program. It is comprised of 12 credit hours of core chemical and biotechnology courses, 6 credit hours of elective chemical engineering courses of importance to the field, 6 credit hours of biology elective courses, and 6 credit hours of chemistry elective courses at the following levels:
- Not less than 30 credit hours of graduate work at 300- or 400-level;
- Not less than 18 credit hours of coursework at the 400-level;
- Not less than 18 credit hours in the field of Chemical Engineering.
Students choose their coursework and complete their degree requirements by selection of any set of courses consistent with these requirements. Once accepted, the Master’s degree performance requirements will apply as follows:
- No course with a grade below “C-” may be included in the degree program;
- More than four grades (regardless of the number of credits) below “B-“ terminates the student’s eligibility for continued graduate work at Lehigh.
Admission:
The program is open to applicants with an undergraduate degree in Chemistry, Biology, Physics, or Chemical Engineering as well as other related engineering disciplines. As of Fall 2020, Lehigh CHBE program no longer requires submission of GRE scores as part of the graduate application process. International applicants must still submit TOEFL scores. Applicants with a degree other than Chemical Engineering may be encouraged to take the bridging course, *Fundamentals of Chemical Engineering III, ChE 283; and depending on their background, one additional bridging course. These courses will not count toward degree requirements.
In order to be considered for admission in the Master’s of Engineering in Biological Chemical Engineering, an applicant must have a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher, and a GPA of 3.0 or higher for the last two semesters of undergraduate studies. A personal essay summarizing your career objectives and work experience with respect to your chosen field of study must be submitted along with the application for admission and two letters of recommendation. In addition to the minimum requirements, successful applicants often have the following: one undergraduate course in Molecular Biology; one undergraduate course in Molecular Genetics; a minimum of two semester of Organic Chemistry; and a minimum two semesters of Calculus. Applicants that do not meet the above mentioned requirements may be admitted at the department’s discretion.
Curriculum:
Required Core Courses:
- ChE 400: Chemical Engineering Thermodynamics (3 credits)
- ChE 410: Chemical Reaction Engineering (3 credits)
- ChE 441: Biotechnology I (3 credits)
- ChE 442: Biotechnology II (3 credits)
Electives: Elective coursework enable students to customize their degree program to meet their career goals. Electives are chosen from among those offered within and outside Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Chemistry, and Biological Sciences.
Common recent Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering electives (CHE-designated) taken by our students include:
- Separation Processes (3 credits)
- Quantitative Biology (3 credits)
- Biochemical Engineering Laboratory (3 credits)
- Numerical Methods for Scientists and Engineers (3 credits)
- Electrochemical Engineering (3 credits)
- Engineering in Medicine (3 credits)
- Data Driven Modeling for Chemical Sciences and Engineering (3 credits)
- Rheology of Soft Materials (3 credits)
- Metabolic Engineering (3 credits)
- Soft Materials: Mechanics & Physics (3 credits)
Common recent Chemistry electives taken by our students include:
- Topics in Biochemistry
- Clinical Chemistry
Common recent Biological Science electives taken by our students include:
- Physical Biochemistry
- Molecular Genetics
- Elements of Biochemistry I
- Elements of Biochemistry II
Outside of these electives, have access to graduate level electives offered in other fundamental sciences (Physics), other engineering disciplines (Materials Science and Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Bioengineering, Electrical Engineering, Industrial and Systems Engineering), and Lehigh’s Technical Entrepreneurship Program.
Curriculum/Transfer of credits:
A maximum of up to nine credits taken at the graduate level elsewhere may be transferred from an accredited graduate college or graduate university to a Lehigh University Engineering Master’s Program. All courses must be submitted to the department along with a course description (syllabus), a letter from the university stating that the credits were actual graduate level courses, and not used toward a previous degree, and also an official transcript if not already provided. If transcripts are not provided electronically to the email address below, they can be mailed directly to the Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering Department.
E-mail contact: inchegs@lehigh.edu
