Student Guide to CHBE
Staff and faculty members in CHBE have tabulated comprehensive answers to the most common questions asked by APSC 100 students on the CHBE website, linked directly here: Frequently asked questions about CHBE
Please do reach out if you have any further questions!
The content below is a more condensed version of the information, selected specifically for your APSC 100 assignments.
The Profession
What is chemical and biological engineering?
Chemical and biological engineers design, develop, improve, operate, and manage processes that transform materials into useful products. These processes are used to make the things society depends on, including fuels and renewable energy, food, medicines, clean water, advanced materials, and consumer products.
A central idea in chemical and biological engineering is understanding how physical, chemical, and biological phenomena operate at different scales and using that understanding to design systems or processes. Students study topics such as advanced thermodynamics and fluid mechanics, heat and mass transfer, process and system design, process control, and project management.
What are the types of careers that a degree in chemical and biological engineering will offer?
Chemical and biological engineers often work with processes and systems, or individual components as part of processes of systems, rather than working on individual components isolated from their purpose. For example, as part of a large scale process, a chemical engineer would make all decisions about the design, sizing, specifications for materials, control elements, sensor type and placement, and safety features for a piece of equipment in the context of the broader process, and then hand over the design to a mechanical or electrical engineer, who does not need to know anything beyond those specifications, for the actual construction. Their work can include:
- determining the sequence of steps needed to manufacture a product like medicine or fuel;
- designing and sizing process equipment;
- modelling how materials, heat, fluids, and chemical or biological reactions move through a system;
- developing control systems and strategies for operating processes;
- improving the efficiency, cost, safety, or environmental performance of an existing process;
- troubleshooting problems in industrial systems;
- developing and testing new processes at laboratory or pilot scale;
- scaling a process from a laboratory experiment to commercial production;
- evaluating energy use, emissions, waste, and environmental impacts; and
- managing the construction, commissioning, or operation of industrial facilities.
The scale of these systems varies considerably. A chemical or biological engineer might work on a small biotechnology process used to manufacture a pharmaceutical, a municipal water-treatment process, or a large industrial system producing fuels or materials.
Chemical and biological engineers increasingly use process simulation, programming, data analysis, automation, machine learning, and other computational tools to model and optimize these systems. Because of their knowledge of system design and operation and project management, which is a unique skill set affording them deep understanding of processes, chemical engineer are often also hired to do work more commonly associated with civil, material, mechanical, environmental, biomedical, aerospace, food, and even electrical engineers when more complex systems are involved.
Programs and Coursework
What are the programs offered by the Department of Chemical & Biological Engineering?
The Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering offers two programs:
- Chemical Engineering (CHML) builds on a foundation of chemistry and physics, and applies it to the design and operation of processes.
- Chemical and Biological Engineering (CHBE) includes the same core process-engineering foundation but provides greater emphasis on biological tools and processes
Both programs are accredited and lead to a Bachelor of Applied Science (B.A.Sc.) degree. Principles of sustainability are integrated into the coursework of both programs. Through their academic courses, students also become proficient in computation, product and process design, and the use of process simulation software.
What does the coursework look like?
The curriculum develops from fundamental science and engineering principles toward increasingly complex process analysis and design.
Important topics include:
- material and energy balances;
- thermodynamics;
- fluid mechanics;
- heat transfer;
- mass transfer;
- chemical reaction engineering;
- biological processes;
- process dynamics and control;
- numerical methods and computing;
- process simulation;
- engineering economics, safety, and sustainability; and
- process and plant design.
Laboratory work is incorporated throughout the program so that students can connect theoretical concepts with physical processes and equipment. Laboratory activities are generally completed in teams.
In fourth year, students have access to dedicated technical electives allowing them to specialize in clean and renewable energy, genetic engineering, biotechnology and biomanufacturing, environmental engineering, advanced computational methods and machine learning, and entrepreneurship.
Students also complete a major capstone design experience in which they apply knowledge from across the program to the development and design of a process.
What is a typical course load in Chemical and Biological Engineering?
Chemical and Biological Engineering has a course load comparable to other accredited engineering programs at UBC. Students completing the program on the standard four-year schedule after first year normally take several technical courses simultaneously, together with laboratories and design work.
The workload can be demanding because courses in areas such as thermodynamics, transport phenomena, reaction engineering, process control, and design build on one another. Laboratory and team-based project work also form an important part of the program.
Students can choose to complete their degree over a longer period, and students participating in co-op normally alternate periods of academic study with work terms.
Career
What types of industries and jobs does someone in Chemical and Biological Engineering work in?
Because chemical and biological engineers are trained to analyze and design processes, graduates work in a particularly wide range of industries.
These can include:
- clean and conventional energy;
- biotechnology and biomanufacturing;
- pharmaceuticals;
- food and beverage production;
- water and wastewater treatment;
- environmental technology;
- carbon capture and climate technology;
- chemicals;
- advanced materials;
- pulp and paper and bioproducts;
- mining and mineral processing;
- manufacturing;
- engineering consulting;
- high technology; and
- government and regulatory organizations.
Typical roles include process engineer, design engineer, project engineer, production or operations engineer, environmental engineer, research and development engineer, process-control engineer, energy engineer, and engineering consultant.
Some graduates move into areas such as management, entrepreneurship, finance, software, or technical consulting. Others pursue graduate studies and careers in research.
What is the job market like for Chemical and Biological Engineering?
Chemical and biological engineering graduates work across many sectors rather than within a single industry.
Historically, chemical engineering has been strongly associated with industries such as oil and gas, chemicals, and pulp and paper. Those sectors continue to employ chemical engineers but in much lower numbers, and the areas in which chemical engineers work have expanded considerably. Common current sectors in which CHBE graduates work include biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, clean energy (including nuclear), carbon capture, hydrogen, batteries and energy storage, sustainable materials, water treatment, and other environmental technologies.
This breadth means that employment conditions can vary among industries and over time. The underlying skills developed in the program—particularly process analysis, modelling, systems thinking, optimization, and design—can be applied in many different sectors. In fact, as stated above, given their unique skill set, chemical engineers are often hired to do work more commonly associated with civil, material, mechanical, environmental, biomedical, aerospace, food, and even electrical engineers when more complex systems are involved.
Most positions are located in large cities and involve predominantly office, laboratory, or design work, while others involve industrial facilities, field work, or a combination of environments.
What are typical student experiences in co-op like for Chemical and Biological Engineering?
Chemical and Biological Engineering students undertake co-op placements in a wide range of industries and work environments.
Students may find themselves:
- modelling or optimizing an industrial process;
- assisting with the design of new equipment or facilities;
- collecting and analyzing operating data;
- developing process-control or automation systems;
- conducting laboratory or pilot-scale research;
- working on energy or environmental projects;
- supporting manufacturing operations;
- investigating technical problems at an operating facility; or
- contributing to engineering consulting and project-management work.
Recent CHBE students and graduates have worked with organizations spanning energy, manufacturing, biotechnology, technology, engineering consulting, utilities, and other sectors.
Co-op is one way students gain industry experience. The program also incorporates industry exposure through field trips, guest speakers, industry events, industry-connected design projects, and unique networking events.
Student Experience
What is it like to be a student in Chemical and Biological Engineering?
Students spend much of their time combining mathematical and scientific analysis with laboratory work, computing, design, and team projects.
Early courses establish the fundamentals needed to understand how materials and energy behave. As students progress, they increasingly apply those ideas to design processes and systems. A problem might begin with understanding what is happening inside a pipe, heat exchanger, reactor, or biological system and eventually expand to designing and controlling an entire production process, or designing full product prototypes.
Students encounter progressively larger and more complex laboratory and design activities as they advance through the degree.
What are the unique student experiences in Chemical and Biological Engineering?
CHBE provides several opportunities for students to connect their academic work to research and industry.
These include:
- laboratory courses throughout the program;
- field trips to industrial facilities;
- industry-sponsored and industry-connected capstone projects;
- industry nights and technical presentations;
- undergraduate research opportunities;
- co-op placements;
- a Research Scholar pathway providing additional research exposure; and
- an Industrial Scholar pathway providing additional interaction with industry.
The department is also home to major research activities in areas including clean energy, biotechnology, environmental engineering, advanced materials, and bioproducts. Undergraduate students can become involved in this work through summer research positions, co-op, research projects, and undergraduate thesis courses.
There are also several opportunities for interested CHBE students to pursue their entrepreneurial ambitions. Chemical engineers are very highly represented in the startup and entrepreneurship communities, with, for example, the largest number of startups and company spinoffs coming out of the UBC incubators being led by chemical engineers.
How difficult / challenging is the program?
Chemical and Biological Engineering is a technically demanding engineering program. To be a good chemical engineer, you need to know a lot of things, in a wide range of areas. Students study mathematically intensive subjects such as thermodynamics, transport phenomena, reaction engineering, process dynamics, and control, while also completing laboratory and design work.
Given the nature and versatility of the field, Chemical and Biological Engineering is arguably one of the most challenging engineering disciplines, although, as in other engineering programs, the perceived difficulty depends considerably on the individual student. Someone creative who enjoys applying mathematics, physics, chemistry, and—in the CHBE option—biology to interconnected systems will find the material challenging but interesting and engaging.
The curriculum is cumulative: later courses rely heavily on concepts introduced earlier in the program. Developing a strong understanding of the fundamentals, rather than treating courses as isolated subjects, is therefore particularly important.