CBE

Reports of the Undergraduate Education Committee

Summary of Student Outcomes Assessments (PDF's)

Program Educational Objectives, Chemical Engineering (May 1, 2024)

Mission Statement
Current Program Educational Objectives
Process: Program Educational Objectives Review, Spring 2024
Process: Periodic Review Of Program Educational Objectives, Established 2012
Table: ABET Student Outcomes
Process: Assessing And Evaluating Attainment Of Student Outcomes
Joint Majors
Enrollment

Mission Statement

The mission of the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering is:

  • To educate for careers of leadership and innovation in chemical engineering and related fields;
  • To expand the base of engineering knowledge through original research and by developing technology to serve the needs of society; and
  • To benefit the public through service to industry, government, and the engineering profession.

Fulfillment of this mission is achieved in part by the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering's accredited undergraduate degree program in chemical engineering. The undergraduate curriculum comprises both a technical curriculum, and breadth requirements.

The goals of chemical engineering breadth requirements are to teach the arts of writing clearly and persuasively, to develop the skills to read carefully and evaluate evidence effectively, and to instill an awareness of humanity in historical and social contexts. The Berkeley Campus American Cultures requirement affirms the value of diversity in acquiring knowledge.

The technical curriculum in chemical engineering seeks to provide students with a broad education emphasizing an excellent foundation in scientific and engineering fundamentals.

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Current Program Educational Objectives

Chemical Engineering Program Educational Objectives, May 1, 2024

  1. Apply the Berkeley education in chemical and biomolecular engineering to meet the needs of society through problem-solving and integrating interdisciplinary perspectives.
  2. Effectively pursue the advancement of lifelong learning through self-improvement, teaching others, and being adaptive and receptive to changes in their chosen fields and to novel perspectives.
  3. Lead positive change, and make contributions to their chosen fields through effective communication, teamwork, critical thinking, ethical decision-making, innovation, and adaptability.

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Process: Program Educational Objectives Review, Spring 2024

  1. A panel of three department alumni were consulted via email, for their feedback and suggestions on the PEOs.
  2. A panel of seven current students was convened to review the PEOs and provide suggestions for revision. An additional two students provided feedback by email. Participants were selected to represent insightful and responsible students from all four years of study, domestic plus international, freshman admits plus junior transfers, women, and men.
  3. The Undergraduate Education Committee considered feedback from the alumni and student panels and proposed a set of revised PEOs to the faculty.
  4. The Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering faculty reviewed the suggestions and proposed revisions, and approved a new set of PEOs at the May 1 faculty meeting. Additional documentation and details of each step are available.

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Process: Periodic Review Of Program Educational Objectives, Established 2012

  1. The PEOs will be formally reviewed for update or approval every third fall, beginning fall 2015. (The Fall 2021 review was not conducted due to the COVID-19 lockdown.)
  2. An alumni panel of at least four department alumni will be contacted via email for their feedback on the whether the current PEOs are appropriate and meeting their needs.
  3. A panel of at least four current students will be consulted via a focus group for their feedback on the whether the current PEOs are appropriate and meeting their needs.
  4. At a fall faculty meeting, the faculty will review the PEOs in light of the feedback from the alumni and student panels, and examine the PEOs for consistency with the current ABET definitions of PEOs and mission of the University of California.
  5. The faculty will revise PEOs if needed, or approve the current PEOs.

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ABET Student Outcomes
Course1234567
ChE 40 - Intro to Chem Eng Design x x x x
ChE 140 – Chem. Process Analysis x x
ChE 141 - Thermodynamics x
ChE 142 – Reaction Engineering x x x
ChE 150A - Transport x
ChE 150B – Transport and Separations x x
ChE 154 – Unit Operations Laboratory x x x x
ChE 160 – Process Design x x x x x
ChE 162 – Process Dynamics and Control x
ChE 170L – Biochemical Engineering Laboratory x x x x

1-An ability to identify, formulate, and solve complex engineering problems by applying the principles of engineering, science, and mathematics

2-An ability to apply engineering design to produce solutions that meet specified needs with consideration of public health, safety, and welfare, as well as global, cultural, social, environmental, and economic factors

3-An ability to communicate effectively with a range of audiences

4-An ability to recognize ethical and professional responsibilities in engineering situations and make informed judgments, which must consider the impact of engineering solutions in a global, economic, environmental, and societal context

5-An ability to function effectively on a team whose members together provide leadership, create a collaborative and inclusive environment, establish goals, plan tasks, and meet objectives

6-An ability to develop and conduct appropriate experimentation, analyze and interpret data, and use engineering judgment to draw conclusions

7-An ability to acquire and apply new knowledge as needed, using appropriate learning strategies

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Process: Assessing And Evaluating Attainment Of Student Outcome

  1. Direct Measures: Student Course Work
    1. Each Student Outcome is assessed in at least two core chemical engineering courses that apply the Outcome to a high degree.
      1. See Student Outcome-Course Matrix for mapping.
      2. For each Outcome, core courses are chosen from different levels of the curriculum (such as sophomore and senior) so that the development of each Student Outcome may be monitored over time.
      3. Each core course in the curriculum is used to assess at least one Student Outcomes.
    2. Faculty and graduate student instructors of each course assess student course work and use the course Outcome Assessment Template to report the number of students who fail, pass, or pass with distinction each of the Student Outcomes.
      1. Outcome Assessment Templates are also used for course-level outcome assessment.
      2. When a course-level outcome is highly similar to the given Student Outcome, the same measure is used for both.
      3. See Outcome Assessment Templates for Student Outcomes for details.
      4. Outcome Assessment Templates are collected each semester by instructor submission to a specified site in the Berkeley online course management system, administered by the department ABET coordinator.
    3. In June of each year, the ABET coordinator generates a Quantitative Student Outcome Attainment report using the data from the Outcome Assessment Templates.
      1. For each Student Outcome, the lower level course is analyzed in odd calendar years, and the higher level course is analyzed in even calendar years. For example, Student Outcome 2 is analyzed in 40 (freshman) in 2019 and in 160 (senior) in 2020.
      2. The Outcome Assessment Template data are used to calculate a percentage pass rate for each Student Outcome.
      3. Trends in pass rate are monitored over time.
  2. Indirect Measures: Student Survey and Focus Groups
    1. Graduating seniors are surveyed about the Student Outcomes on the senior graduation survey administered by the College of Chemistry.
      1. Graduating seniors are asked to rate the level to which the curriculum prepared them to attain each Student Outcome.
      2. The survey is administered in spring of each year.
      3. Survey completion is required for tickets to the Commencement ceremony
      4. Survey results are reported to the Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering Department in spreadsheet format by August of the same calendar year.
    2. Student focus groups occur twice each academic year, giving student representatives a forum to discuss curricular issues with faculty representatives.
      1. The AIChE Lunch is each fall semester, with 5-10 students from the Berkeley AIChE Student Section, including officers and non-officers across all years of study.
      2. The Honors Tea is each spring semester, with 10-15 chemical engineering honors students across all years of study.
      3. During these focus groups, students are asked to consider the Student Outcomes and comment on those that the curriculum addresses well, and those that should be improved.
      4. The student feedback is recorded in the meeting minutes.
  3. Evaluation and Action
    1. The results from the direct and indirect measures of student outcome attainment are considered by the Undergraduate Education Committee prior to the departmental Annual Faculty Retreat each year.
      1. A pass rate of 50% or lower in direct measures is considered to be an action threshold for any given Student Outcome.
    2. Strategies for addressing any areas for improvement in the attainment of Student Outcomes are discussed at the Faculty Retreat.
    3. All actions requiring curricular change are voted on by the faculty at the retreat, and implemented as soon as possible.
    4. Results of the Student Outcome assessment and evaluation are published online in Reports of the Undergraduate Education Committee.

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Joint Majors

Chemical Engineering also has two joint major programs, with Materials Science and Engineering, and Nuclear Engineering. All of these joint majors meet the same Chemical Engineering program educational objectives and student outcomes as the Chemical Engineering single major, listed above.  In addition, each of these joint majors meets the program educational objectives and outcomes of their other respective single major programs.

The ChemE/MSE joint major also meets the Materials Science and Engineering program objectives and student outcomes.

The ChemE/NE joint major also meets the Nuclear Engineering program educational objectives and student outcomes.

Joint majors lie at the intersection between two fields and cannot be cataloged in a specific bin; therefore, they are not ABET accredited programs. However, joint majors (like all engineering majors at Berkeley) are, and will continue to be, accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC).

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Enrollment

In Spring 2024, 376 students were enrolled in the chemical engineering program, three were enrolled in the joint chemical and nuclear engineering program, and one was enrolled in the joint chemical and materials science engineering program. In the academic year 2023-2024 - as of April 25th, 2024 - 37 bachelors degrees were awarded thus far in the chemical engineering major. None were awarded in the joint chemical and materials science engineering program. None were awarded in the joint chemical and nuclear engineering program.

We expect to have a SP24 awarded degree list around the end of July and a Su24 list closer to Sep/Oct.

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