The M.S. programs are designed to be a mixture of advanced course work and an individual research project leading to an acceptable thesis. Whereas provisions exist to offer a non-thesis degree, departmental policy is to require a thesis of all resident graduate students. After selection of a research project and during your first semester, you should select a thesis committee. The primary purposes of this committee are to examine the thesis, make constructive criticisms of its content and presentation, and administer the final oral examination. The final oral examination is normally, but not necessarily, limited to a defense of the thesis. An important component of the final examination is the presentation of a formal seminar on your research results before faculty and graduate students. The specific requirements for each of the three M.S. programs offered by the department are as follows:

CONVENTIONAL PROGRAM (For B.S. in Chemical Engineering)

Thesis Program

Non-thesis Program

1. ChE 510 or the equivalent.
2. ChE 541 or the equivalent.
3. ChE 596 and 597 or the equivalent.
4. Twelve additional graded credits to be chosen from chemical engineering graduate course offerings.
5. Five additional credits approved by your advisor.
6. Minimum of 4 credits in ChE 702.
7. Submit program within first semester after admission into program.

BS/GRAD PROGRAM

If a student is selected for this program, it affords the opportunity to complete an M.S. in Chemical Engineering within 12 months of being awarded the B.S. degree in ChE and to accelerate progress towards a Ph.D. degree if that is the ultimate goal. Here is the way the program works during the M.S. course of study.

During the Senior Year:
Six credits from ChE or technical electives can be reserved for graduate credit (3 each semester). These 6 credits are then waived by the department as requirements for the B.S. degree.

ChE 499 can be taken to fulfill the remaining 3 credits of ChE electives and the research topic can be the subject of the M.S. thesis. This is an opportunity to get started on the M.S. research project during the senior year.

Stipends for BS/Grad Program

Students may be appointed to a research assistantship (RA) for two
months in the summer following receipt of the B.S. degree.

During the M.S. program, students receive an RA for the nine-month academic year, which can be extended for one summer or one additional semester, if satisfactory progress on the thesis project has been made.

If a student desires to pursue a Ph.D. degree and is accepted by the department, the department commits to full support (11 months/yr) for the duration of the program (~3-4 years from the BS degree)

CONVERSION PROGRAM (For Non-ChE Degrees)

1. Removal of Undergraduate deficiencies: equivalent of Math 315, ChE 201, Physics 201/202, ChE 310, Chem 331/336, ChE 321, ChE 332, Chem 340, and ChE 334.
2. ChE 510, 596 and 597
3. Three credits from ChE 527, 529, or 546.
4. Nine credits in supporting courses. Also, see policy concerning electron microscopy course.
5. Minimum of 9 credits in ChE 700.
6. Submit program within first semester of admission into graduate program.

This Conversion program is set up to accommodate individuals possessing degrees in chemistry. However, the program can also accommodate students with degrees in other scientific/engineering disciplines on an individual basis.

Normal department policy is not to place students in this program on appointment status (i.e., on graduate stipend) until they have completed one full semester while taking three chemical engineering undergraduate courses from the deficiency list given above. It is expected that a student should be able to earn at least a 3.2 GPA during that semester in order to be put on subsequent appointment. Once a student is put on appointment, the remaining deficiencies can be removed while simultaneously meeting the specific M.S. requirement (numbers 2-5 above) as well as the responsibilities for the student's research project (~20 hrs/wk).