Chemical and Biological Engineering

308 Furnas Hall
North Campus
Buffalo, NY 14260-4200

Mark T. Swihart, Ph.D.
Chair
swihart@buffalo.edu

David A. Kofke, Ph.D.
Director of Undergraduate Studies
cbedus@buffalo.edu

Chemical Engineering Overview

Chemical engineers are uniquely equipped to tackle some of the most pressing problems facing society, including those related to energy, health, food, water, and the environment. Building on a foundation of physics, chemistry, math, and biology, chemical engineers invent, design, and deploy the means to produce the materials needed by society, in ways that are safe, economical, scalable, and sustainable. Chemical engineers also use their skills to design and optimize new materials and products, such as water purification devices, drug-delivery patches, biodegradable plastics, or artificial tissues and organs. Moreover, chemical engineering is a professional degree, meaning it provides graduates with a path to management roles where an even greater impact on society can often be realized.

The program at UB is broadly based to prepare graduates for diverse roles as engineers, and to prepare them for employment in a vast array of industries. Most graduates enter the work force immediately, but some continue on to graduate study and careers in research, and a few pursue degrees in medicine, business or law. A new co-op program provides an option to gain industrial experience before graduation, and many students conduct research with the Department’s award-winning faculty.

The Chemical Engineering BS program is accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET.

The curriculum is designed to meet several educational objectives. These program education objectives (PEOs) are broad statements that describe the expected accomplishments of graduates within a few years after graduation. Specific PEOs are that graduates will:

Demonstrate engineering competence, broadly defined.
Demonstrate engineering competence, via promotions and/or advancement to positions of increasing responsibility; via satisfactory progress towards completion of an advanced degree; or via a successful transition from the “traditional” chemical engineering career path into medicine, business, government, education, etc.
Apply engineering and science to bring value to an organization and society.
Show proficiency in the application of engineering and science in the presence of practical and economic constraints to solve problems or generate improvements while demonstrating excellence in ethical standards.
Interact well with a broad range of people.
Grow continuously in the range of people with whom they interact professionally, demonstrating the ability to communicate effectively with and relate well to co-workers at all levels, inside or outside the organization, perhaps involving difficult circumstances. Provide input that enables others to do their job better.

Academic Advising

Students obtain academic advice and guidance from the academic advisors in the SEAS Office of Undergraduate Education (410 Bonner Hall) and from faculty advisors in their program of study. The SEAS Office of Undergraduate Education advises all students throughout their first two years of study. In the junior and senior years, students seek advisement primarily from departmental faculty advisors.

Academic Advising Contact Information

SEAS Office of Undergraduate Education
410 Bonner Hall
North Campus, Buffalo, NY 14260-1900
Phone: 716-645-2774

Programs

Majors

Chemical Engineering BS

Combined

Chemical Engineering BS/MBA