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Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
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In the past decade, the scope of chemical and biomolecular engineering has expanded dramatically. While chemical engineers continue to work in the chemical and petroleum industries, they are just as likely to be employed in biotechnology or pharmaceutical companies, at electronics manufacturing facilities, or in the environmental divisions of corporations or government institutions. In each of these industries, the chemical engineering concepts of transport phenomena, reaction kinetics, and thermodynamics are fundamental to technical issues addressed by engineers.
To recognize the growing need for chemical and biomolecular engineers to acquire a broad range of skills in the basic sciences and related engineering fields, in addition to advanced training in core chemical and biomolecular engineering competencies, Johns Hopkins has developed a flexible Master of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering program with concentrations in four defined areas: Cell and Molecular Biotechnology, Nano/Microtechnology, Biomaterials/Drug Delivery, and Colloids and Interfaces. Hopkins will also continue to offer the traditional Master of Chemical Engineering degree in which the student develops a core program in chemical and biomolecular engineering augmented with elective courses from related engineering fields, the basic sciences, and mathematics. This degree encompasses a professional, non-thesis curriculum for practicing engineers.
Program Committee
Dilip Asthagiri, Program Chair
Assistant Professor, Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
Whiting School of Engineering
Konstantinos Konstantopoulos, Department Chair
Professor, Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
Whiting School of Engineering
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Admissions Requirements
Applicants must be in the last semester of their undergraduate study or hold a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from an accredited college or university. They must have earned a grade point average of at least 3.0 on a 4.0 scale in upper-level undergraduate courses or hold a graduate degree in a technical discipline. Applicants with a bachelor’s degree in a related science or engineering field may be considered if they have taken a sufficient number of undergraduate chemical and biomolecular engineering courses. (See additional admission requirements for non-chemical engineering majors below.) All admission decisions are made by the program committee on a case-by-case basis. Program Requirements
Upon entering the program, students must complete a program plan and submit it to the program chair for approval. Students who choose to pursue a Master of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering with concentration in one of the four defined areas must select courses that do not overlap significantly in technical content with those courses that are part of the core curriculum. Faculty advisers will assist students in making this determination. As one of the program electives, students may complete a faculty-supervised Independent Project, involving in-depth study or critical review of a chemical engineering subject area. Candidates must complete the required course work within five years of admission. Core Courses
There are four required courses. The student selects additional engineering or science courses with the help of the graduate adviser to design a curriculum appropriate for the student’s engineering interest. Requirements for Master of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
To earn the Master of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering degree, a student must complete at least 10 one-term courses approved by the student’s adviser. These include the four core courses listed above plus six additional courses (for which prerequisites have been met)—three to six selected from the Whiting School’s Engineering for Professionals program (EP) and no more than two courses selected from the Krieger School of Arts and Sciences Advanced Academic Program in Biotechnology (courses listed under Group III). Requirements for Master of C.B.E. with a Concentration in Cell and Molecular Biotechnology
Within the past two decades, remarkable advances have taken place in the life sciences. Chemical and biomolecular engineers will be essential for putting many of these basic science discoveries into practical use. To accomplish these goals, chemical engineers must understand biology and communicate with the life scientists. As a result, we have developed a program which provides chemical engineering students with complementary exposure to the life sciences and biomedical engineering. To earn the Master of Chemical Engineering/Cell and Molecular Biotechnology a student must complete the core courses listed above plus six additional electives which may include:
Requirements for Master of C.B.E. with a Concentration in Nano/Microtechnology
Nano and microtechnology involves the science and technology of extreme miniaturization. We live in an era wherein it has become possible to structure materials and devices on the nanometer length scales to allow for unprecedented control over the chemical, electronic and optical properties of materials. Moreover, when the size of the structures and devices approaches the nanometer-length scales, quantum and atomistic properties dominate giving rise to new and novel phenomena such as quantum conductance and unusual chemical, mechanical and optical properties. This degree will focus on the challenges of fabricating such small structures and devices, methods to characterize the structures, fundamental properties and applications. To earn the Master of Chemical Engineering Nano/Microtechnology, a student must complete the four required core courses plus six electives (of the six at least three electives must be from below):
Requirements for Master of C.B.E. with a concentration in Biomaterials/Drug Delivery
The diversity of polymer biomaterials provides a wealth of opportunities to develop new materials by manipulating chemical architecture or macromolecular morphology. Chemical engineers working in the biomaterials industry require a unique set of skills in the fundamentals of chemical engineering science and polymer/biomaterials science. To earn the Master of Chemical Engineering Biomaterials/Drug Delivery, students must complete the required four core courses, plus six additional electives, (of the six at least three electives must be selected from the following: Requirements for Master of C.B.E. with a Concentration in Colloids and Interfaces
The chemical, physical, and biological properties of an interface often differ significantly from that of the bulk due to surface energetic and entropic effects. The composition and conformation of molecules at an interface are responsible for a wide range of phenomena observed in materials science and biology. Solid-liquid interfaces, for example, are crucial in lubrication, biocompatibility, drug delivery, and corrosion. Liquid-liquid and liquid-gas interfaces are important in lipid membrane fusion, water pollution, and acid rain. Solid-gas interfaces are critical in heterogeneous catalysis. The courses in this degree will also deal with the interaction of colloidal (microscale particles), stabilization and flocculation and the structuring of microparticles in 3D for photonic applications. To earn the Master of Chemical Engineering/Colloids and Interfaces, a student must complete the four core courses listed above plus six electives (of the six at least three electives must be from the following list). Group I: Whiting School Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering Elective Courses
Group II: Whiting School Applied Biomedical Engineering Courses
Group III: Krieger School Biotechnology Core Courses and Elective Courses
Additional Admission Requirements for Non-Chemical Engineering Majors
In order to be considered for the Master of Chemical Engineering Program, undergraduates with a bachelor’s degree in a science or other engineering discipline must have a background in mathematics through differential and integral calculus and differential equations and have completed undergraduate course work in physical chemistry and thermodynamics. In addition, the applicants must complete the following undergraduate chemical engineering courses from the day program of the Whiting School of Engineering or other peer institution: Group IV: Whiting School of Engineering Non-Chemical Engineering Majors Prerequisite Courses
In some cases, undergraduate courses from other engineering or science disciplines may be substituted for these chemical engineering courses when there is significant overlap in course material. For those applicants who can demonstrate significant undergraduate preparation in a particular area, the related undergraduate course requirement may be waived. Permission to substitute other undergraduate courses or waive course requirements will be at the discretion of the program chair. |
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