Chemical Engineering Upper Division Requirements

Chemistry. 120A, or Physics 137A.

CBE. 142, 150B, 154* or C170L§, 160, 162, plus 3 units of lower- or upper-division engineering electives (please note: this requirement is repeated under each set of concentration requirements).

Electives and Concentrations

In addition to the requirements listed above, students must complete the requirements for either an open elective program, consisting of science and engineering electives chosen from a broad range of courses, or a concentration, noted on the student's official transcript after the B.S. degree is conferred.

  • A course used toward satisfaction of the open elective program or a concentration cannot also be used toward satisfaction of another ​C​ollege​ of Chemistry​ ​requirement​ or​ Chemical Engineering​ major requirement.
  • A maximum of six units of research can be applied toward electives.
  • Only one lower division engineering course may be used toward the engineering elective requirement, for the open elective program or for a concentration.

Open Elective Program

Students who do not choose a concentration must complete the following requirements for the open elective program:

  • 3 units of science elective selected from the list of Physical and Biological Science Electives
  • 3 units of CBE elective (CBE 196 may not be used as a CBE elective)
  • 6 units of upper division engineering electives selected from the list of Engineering Electives. Other engineering courses may be approved by the CBE Department.
  • Plus 3 units of lower- or upper-division engineering electives (required for all CBE majors)

Concentrations

The concentrations are biotechnology, chemical processing, environmental technology, materials science and technology, applied physical science, and business and management. Students who plan to declare a concentration must do so no later than the end of their junior year. To declare a concentration, complete the Chemical Engineering Concentration Declaration Form and turn it in to your adviser in 121 Gilman. Double concentrations are not permitted.

Biotechnology

  • CBE 170A (3) Biochemical Engineering
  • CBE 170B (3) Biochemical Engineering**
  • Chemistry 12B+ or Molecular and Cell Biology C112 or Molecular and Cell Biology 104
  • Choose one from the following:
    • CBE C170L (3) Biochemical Engineering Laboratory
    • CBE 182 (3) Nanoscience and Engineering Biotechnology
    • CBE 274 (3) Biomolecular Engineering (requires consent of instructor)
    • BioE 103 (4) Engineering Molecules
    • BioE 111 (4) Functional Biomaterials Development and Characterization
    • BioE 114 (4) Cell Engineering
    • BioE 140L (4) Synthetic Biology Laboratory
    • BioE C144 (4) Protein Informatics (Students must sign up for BioE C144L (2) if taking C144)
    • BioE 148 (3) Bioenergy and Sustainable Chemical Synthesis: Metabolic Engineering and Synthetic Biology Approaches
    • BioE C213 (3) Fluid Mechanics of Biological Systems
    • MCB 130 (4) Cell and Systems Biology
    • MCB 150 (4) Molecular Immunology
    • CBE 196 or CBE H194 (3-4) Undergraduate Research in a biotechnology research laboratory will be considered. Requires approval from the faculty. Send requests to Professor Wenjun Zhang.
  • 3 units of upper- or lower-division engineering electives
  • BioE11 or Chemistry 135 or Molecular and Cell Biology 102, instead of Biology 1A, are required for Biotechnology Concentration students. Note that Biology 1A is a prerequisite for Chemistry 135 and Molecular and Cell Biology 102. Scores of 4 or 5 on the AP Bio test do not fulfill the Biotechnology Concentration requirement.

Chemical Processing

  • Chemistry 104A or 12B+
  • 6 units of CBE electives chosen from the following: 170A, 170B, C170L, 171, 176, C178, 179, H194 (up to 3 units)
  • 3 units of engineering selected from the following: Civil and Environmental Engineering C30, 111, 114, 173; Materials Science and Engineering 111, 112, 113, C118, 120, 121, 122, 123; Mechanical Engineering 140, 151
  • Plus 3 units of lower- or upper-division engineering electives (required for all CBE majors)

Energy and Environment

The Energy and Environment Concentration offers in-depth studies of flows of mass and energy within and between the earth's terrestrial and ocean systems and the atmosphere, greenhouse gases, the earth's changing climate, climate models, and solutions to climate change including materials and technologies that provide clean soil, water, air, and sustainable energy.

Engineering elective options span the breadth of energy generation and distribution including courses on thermal power, alternative and renewable energy technologies, nuclear power, the electric power grid, and pollution control technology. Science electives emphasize water and soil, environmental science, carbon cycle, and climate dynamics.

  • 3 units chosen from the following science courses:
    • ENE RES 102, 131
    • EPS 80, 102, C180***, C181, C183
    • ESPM 15, C46, C125, 152***, C170, C133
    • GEOG 40, C135, 139, 142***, C148
    • Students graduating Fall 2021 or earlier may also use: CHEM 12B+, or CHEM 104A, 143 (2 units), or PHYS 7C
  • 9 units chosen from the following engineering courses:
    • CHM ENG 90, 176, 183, 195/295 (Carbon Sequestration, Energy from Biomass, or other approved topics)
    • CIV ENG 11, C103N, 105, 106***, 107, 110, 111, 111L, 113, 114, C116, 173
    • EL ENG 134, 137A, 137B
    • MAT SCI 136
    • MEC ENG 140, 146
    • NUC ENG 100, 101, 150, 161, 180
    • Students graduating Fall 2021 or earlier may also use: CHM ENG 170A, C178, 179

A maximum of 4 units of lower division coursework total can be applied from the courses above.

  • Plus 3 units of lower- or upper-division engineering electives (required for all CBE majors)

***Courses with significant content overlap are restricted, such that students may use one, but not both of the paired courses listed below to fulfill the concentration:

ESPM 152 OR GEOG 142
EPS C180 OR CIV ENG 106

Materials Science and Technology

  • One of Chemistry 104A, 108, or 12B+
  • 3 units of CBE elective selected from the following: 176, C178, 179
  • 6 units chosen from the following: Civil and Environmental Engineering C30; Electrical Engineering 130, 143; Materials Science and Engineering MSE 45/L, 102, 103, 111, 112, 120, 121, 122, 123, 125; Mechanical Engineering 122, 127
  • Plus 3 units of lower- or upper-division engineering electives (required for all CBE majors)

Students may take Mechanical Engineering 122 without the prerequisites of Civil and Environmental Engineering 130N and Mechanical Engineering 108.

Applied Physical Science

  • 6 units of chemistry or physics courses selected from the list of Physical and Biological Science Electives
  • 3 units of CBE elective (CBE 196 may not be used as a CBE elective)
  • 3 units of engineering electives selected from the list of Engineering Electives
  • Plus 3 units of lower- or upper-division engineering electives (required for all CBE majors)

Business and Management

This revised Business and Management concentration applies to students who have junior-level (or lower) class standing at the start of Fall semester 2017. Students who have higher (e.g., senior or 5th year senior) class standing at the start of Fall semester 2017 are “grandfathered” into the previous version.

  • 3 units of science elective selected from the list of Physical and Biological Science Electives.
  • IND ENG 120
  • 3 units of engineering electives selected from the list of Engineering Electives.
  • 6 units chosen from the following UGBA courses. CBE students should consider taking the following business courses, or their equivalent at another institution, early in their college career:

UGBA 102A – 3 Units – Introduction to Financial Accounting
UGBA 105 – 3 Units – Leading People
UGBA 106 – 3 Units – Marketing
UGBA 119 – 3 Units – Leading Strategy Implementation
UGBA 152 – 3 Units – Negotiation and Conflict Resolution (UGBA 105, listed above, is a prerequisite for UGBA 152.)
UGBA 155 – 3 Units – Leadership
UGBA 160 – 3 Units – Consumer Behavior (UGBA 106, listed above, is a prerequisite for UGBA 160.)
UGBA 161 – 3 Units – Marketing Research: Data and Analytics (UGBA 106, listed above, is a prerequisite for UGBA 161.)
UGBA 162 – 3 Units – Brand Management and Strategy (UGBA 106, listed above, is a prerequisite for UGBA 160.)
UGBA 169 – 3 Units – Pricing
UGBA 175 – 3 Units – Legal Aspects of Management
UGBA 179 – 3 Units – International Consulting for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises
UGBA 192P – 3 Units – Sustainable Business Consulting Projects
UGBA 195A – 3 Units – Entrepreneurship
UGBA 195P – 3 Units – Perspectives on Entrepreneurship

  • Plus 3 units of lower- or upper-division engineering electives (required for all CBE majors)

Courses counted toward the Business and Management concentration must be in addition to any courses used to satisfy breadth requirements.

* Students who took E 45 instead of MSE 45 + 45L must complete 4 units of engineering electives instead of 3.

** Students graduating before May 2021 may replace CBE 170B with a second course chosen from the "Choose one from the following" select electives list for the Biotechnology Concentration.

† Chem 12B = Chem 112B for Spring 2017 or earlier.

§ CBE C170L may be used to satisfy the Chemical Engineering lab requirement in lieu of CBE 154 beginning in Spring 2022, not before. Students who take both C170L and 154 may use one to satisfy the lab requirement and the other to satisfy either the CBE elective requirement or an engineering elective. C170L may NOT be used to satisfy both the lab requirement AND an elective or concentration requirement.