CHEMICAL AND MATERIALS ENGINEERING UNIVERSITY OF ALBERTA
A degree in chemical or materials engineering provides you with extreme opportunities for intellectual, financial, and personal rewards. Whether you're employed in the chemical, petrochemical, food processing, forest products, pharmaceutical, or semi-conductor industry, as a chemical or materials engineer your options for fulfilling employment, career success, and exciting life experiences are unlimited!
It all begins with your entrance into the Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering at the University of Alberta.
Meet Paul
Chemical engineering student Paul has spent two co-op terms in the CME department working in molecular sieve technology research. It’s a field that has numerous applications in the oil sands and in consumer products. Paul plans on achieving his master’s degree—and thanks to the co-op program—he’ll be “debt-free with a buff resume.” www.cme.profiles/paul www.engineering.ualberta.ca/cme
Meet Natasha
Materials engineering student Natasha is instrumental in the technical set-up of a biochemical business. Whether it’s the group work involved in creating the “clean” lab from scratch or exploring nano worlds with the aid of the Electronic Scanning microscope, Natasha loves combining her love of materials with her passion for biotech. www.cme.profiles/natasha.
What are the opportunities for a Chemical or Materials Engineer?
As a chemical engineer you know how to alter the chemical, biochemical, or physical state of a substance so you can develop everything from fuels to computer chips. This type of engineering affects almost all aspects of our lives.
As a materials engineer you know how to design and engineer materials over a vast range of scales—from the extremely tiny to the tremendously huge (and all points in between)—to develop technological solutions to societal challenges.
What skills will I develop as a student in Chemical and Materials Engineering?
What sort of “real world” projects could I be involved in?
Chemical and Materials Engineers enjoy using their intellectual and creative abilities to make a difference in the real world. Along with a firm foundation in chemical or materials engineering, you will also gain the following from our program:
A series of design courses are built into both the Chemical and Materials Engineering programs. These courses allow you to apply your classroom knowledge towards practical engineering projects. The design courses culminate in a major project within your final year.
• critical and analytical thinking skills • a solid understanding of math and the physical sciences • an interest in technology and problem-solving
The following are a few examples of such projects:
and • the passion to bring all the above skills together to change the world!
Chemical Engineering • Diesel quality improvement • Natural Gas Liquids (NGL) fractionation plant creation • CO2 sequestration integration Materials Engineering • Hydrogen-powered cars • WII mote refinement • Rapid deployment temporary shelter www.engineering.ualberta.ca/cme
What will I do as a Chemical or Materials Engineering student?
Both Chemical and Materials Engineering offer extensive options for career placement, career advancement, and career satisfaction. You can do anything and go anywhere.
What are the different career opportunities available in the Chemical and Materials Engineering program? Chemical Engineering Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering
Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering with a Computer Process Control Option
The name “chemical” engineering can be confusing. These types of engineers don’t study chemicals on a molecular level—instead they study the physics and math involved in heat and mass transfer of large amounts of substances (chemicals) such as those used in designing and running industrial plants.
It’s one thing to produce a particular chemical in a lab. It’s an entirely different thing to produce tonnes of it every day. As many types of industries rely on automated computerized systems, computer process control engineers are in constant demand to work in such industries as
A BSc in Chemical Engineering from the University of Alberta prepares you for direct entry into the chemical engineering profession.
• Biotechnology • Oil & gas • Polymers
NEW! Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering with a Biomedical Option
Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering: Oil Sands Elective Stream
The operation of a healthy human body is surprisingly similar to the operation of a large industrial plant. Knowledge of basic principles of chemical engineering is combined with biomedical knowledge to create such advancements in health care as
Alberta’s oil sands contain an estimated 1.7 trillion barrels of oil, second only to Saudi Arabia. Developing this resource involves a number of challenges such as
• New methods of drug delivery • Artificial skin and organs • Healing and regenerative medicine
• Reducing environmental impact • Increasing process efficiency • Improving oil quality Students in this program take additional courses specific to employment in the oils sands in addition to the core chemical engineering courses.
Materials Engineering Bachelor of Science in Materials Engineering
NEW! Bachelor of Science in Materials Engineering with a Biomedical Option
It’s all about materials—everything in our world is made up of a finite amount of substances. Materials engineers use their knowledge of chemistry—along with physics and mechanics—to create new materials and to find ways to apply new and existing materials, such as metals, alloys, polymers, and ceramics.
Make your contribution to health care by developing or combining materials engineered for medical procedures. These may include • Protein nanoparticles • Materials to speed healing • Biodegradable gene carriers
An undergraduate degree in Materials Engineering from the U of A provides excellent preparation for a career in industry or for graduate studies.
Bachelor of Science in Materials Engineering with a Nano and Functional Materials Option
• Creating “next generation” computers • Developing nanoscale medical devices • Perfecting microelectronic materials
www.engineering.ualberta.ca/cme
What can I specialize in?
When materials are rendered very tiny they possess very different properties from their "regular size" counterparts. Discover the unique qualities of nano materials that will lead to breakthroughs in such area as
Meet Kirsten
2002 materials engineering grad Kirsten’s original career goal was to become a forensic investigator. As Project Leader of Measurement Engineering, Kirsten likens her investigations into corrosion failure to detective work. Working on-site demands Kirsten's knowledge of how to best adapt engineering principles to increase safety and efficiency. www.cme.profiles/kirsten
What positions could I be employed in?
What kinds of companies could I be employed with?
Our Chemical and Materials Engineering graduates are equipped to compete with the best engineering graduates in the world for positions in industry and government, as well as in the top graduate schools.
Our Chemical and Materials Engineering graduates receive employment offers from a broad range of companies throughout numerous industries, including the following:
As a chemical engineer you could be employed as a • • • •
Process Designer Facility Operator Computer Simulation Specialist Environmental Assessment Officer
As a materials engineer you could be employed as a • • • •
Failure Investigator Corrosion Analyst Materials Designer Materials Tester
• • • • • •
Petrochemical Food processing Metallurgy Forest products Pharmaceutical Semi-conductor
• • • • • •
Oil & gas Pulp & paper Manufacturing High tech Consulting Transportation
How do I find jobs in Chemical and Materials Engineering? The Engineering Employment Centre offers a big hand to help tomorrow’s engineers find a fulfilling placement with leading companies. Check out their website
www.engineering.ualberta.ca/employment.cfm
www.engineering.ualberta.ca/cme
What are my employment opportunities?
As a graduate there's a wide range of job possibilities for you to put your individual stamp on.
How do I apply to Chemical and Materials Engineering? It's a 1-2-3 step process:
1
Apply to the Faculty of Engineering
2
Complete two terms of general engineering and maintain a high GPA
3
Select Chemical and Materials Engineering as your #1 choice of department!
What kinds of student and professional organizations are available to help me? As a Chemical or Materials Engineering student you’re part of a large community of potential and professional engineers who are accessible, knowledgeable, and supportive. Undergraduate Student Societies Engineering Students’ Society of the University of Alberta
www.ess.ualberta.ca
Chemical Engineering Students Society (ChESS)
www.ualberta.ca/CMENG/StudentGroups/ChemClub Materials Engineering Technical Society (METS)
www.engineering.ualberta.ca/cme/mets.cfm Engineers Without Borders U of A Chapter
www.ualberta.ewb.ca
Professional Chemical and Materials Engineering Organizations APEGGA
www.apegga.org
Chemical Engineering Society
www.aiche.org
American Society for Materials
www.asminternational.org
Who can help me decide if Chemical and Materials Engineering is right for me? "You see some of the things materials engineers are doing and you think 'That will be cool to do once I get my degree' but you're doing it right now!" 2nd year materials engineering student Alex Unrau
Associate Chair, Undergraduate Advisor, inspires students to achieve their full potential: "Pick up as much and as broad a knowledge as possible. You can’t solve a complex problem with a limited amount of knowledge—employers don't want to hire a textbook; they want to hire someone who's been educated to provide a unique solution."
PHONE : 780 • 492 • 3321 EMAIL : ChemMat.BSc@ualberta.ca
4th year chemical engineering (co-op) student Rebecca Pinto
“CME provides you with a skill set that you can take anywhere and succeed. Their holistic approach provides you with a great all-around experience that really sets you up for success. I’m very proud to be an alum.” 2002 Chemical Engineering graduate Samia Sarkar; Energy Conservation Engineer at Petro-Canada Edmonton Refinery
www.engineering.ualberta.ca/cme
Who do I contact for more information?
MEET
Dr. Phillip Choi
“I love this department! Chemical engineering is a great field because it’s very broad, but you also have the opportunity to specialize. You can make chemical engineering anything you want it to be and if you follow your interests the opportunities are endless.”
Top five reasons to enrol in Chemical and Materials Engineering at the University of Alberta 1. Learn from world-renowned and awardwinning educators 2. Communicate with accessible and friendly professors 3. Work on exciting real-world projects in state-of-the-art facilities 4. Join one of the top Materials Engineering programs in Canada 5. Enrol in one of the top Chemical Engineering programs in the world
For more information, contact us! Chemical and Materials Engineering 7th Floor, ECERF Building University of Alberta 9107 - 116 Street Edmonton, Alberta, Canada T6G 2V4
Phone: 780 • 492 • 3321 Fax: 780 • 492 • 2881 Email: ChemMat.BSc@ualberta.ca Website: www.engineering.ualberta.ca/cme