Bachelor of Science in Biochemical Engineering

As a biochemical engineering major, you will begin your study with an extensive series of foundation courses in biology, chemistry, physics and mathematics. At the upper division level, you will take advanced courses in specific topics in biochemical and chemical engineering. These courses will include fundamental process engineering courses (transport phenomena, thermodynamics, kinetics, process control, engineering economics) as well as specific courses in bioreactors, bioseparations, biotechnology facility design, regulatory compliance, technoeconomic analysis and biochemical engineering laboratory.

Biochemical engineerswith their strong foundations in chemistry, biological sciences, and chemical process engineeringare in a unique position to tackle these problems. Biochemical engineers apply the principles of cell and molecular biology, biochemistry, and engineering to develop, design, scale up, optimize, and operate processes that use living cells, organisms, or biological molecules for the production and purification of products (such as monoclonal antibodies, vaccines, therapeutic proteins, antibiotics, and industrial enzymes), for health and/or environmental monitoring (such as diagnostic kits, microarrays, biosensors), or for environmental improvement (such as bioremediation). An understanding of biological processes is also becoming increasingly important in the industries that traditionally employ chemical engineers, including the industries that process materials, chemicals, foods, energy, fuels, and semiconductors.