About the Program

At Berkeley, graduate work in chemical and biomolecular engineering emphasizes the excitement of original research in frontier areas of applied science. Graduate students may pursue a PhD in Chemical Engineering, or they may apply to either the Product Development or Bioprocess Engineering concentration to obtain an MS in Chemical Engineering. While formal courses are necessary to provide scientific fundamentals and intellectual breadth, the primary characteristic of Berkeley's graduate experience is to participate in the quest for new knowledge. Graduate students and faculty collaborate as partners in scholarship, in learning, and in intellectual discovery.

Master's Concentrations

Product Development Program (MS)

The PDP is a graduate-level degree program whose central aim is to fill the unmet need at national and international levels for graduates of chemical engineering and related disciplines who have knowledge and field experience in the complex process of transforming technical innovations into commercially successful products. In the space of one calendar year, PDP graduates will gain exposure to real-world product development practices in a range of chemical process-intensive industries including biotechnology, microelectronics, nanoscience, and consumer products (concentrations within the program). The PDP does not require a research thesis, but students will find completing the extensive coursework and field study assignment challenging. By combining elements of advanced technical knowledge with focused business-related training, the PDP aims to fill a specific niche in the “choice space” of graduate education options for engineering graduates.

The academic content of the program is the result of a careful design process using as input the results of extensive interviews with industry, faculty and students. Each component of the program has been thoroughly vetted with several representatives from each one of these stakeholder groups. As currently structured, the program will offer a one calendar year course of study that will result in the award of a Master’s of Science Degree in Chemical Engineering with an emphasis in product development.

Bioprocess Engineering (MS)

The Master of Science in Chemical Engineering with a concentration in Bioprocess Engineering (MSCEBE) will provide you upon completion of a 9-month program with an understanding and ability to apply Bioprocess Engineering to a number of key technological needs spanning multiple industries. These include ways to produce biofuels, pharmaceuticals, and other high-value biologics; how to design and/or operate appropriate unit operations (e.g., fermentation systems), mammalian-cell culture systems, and instrumentation to monitor and control biotechnological processes; and how to apply and test bioproduct separation technologies. Unlike other programs, the new program at UC Berkeley will have access to state-of-the-art bioprocessing equipment at the Advanced Biofuels Process Demonstration Unit (ABPDU), which is part of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.  Access to the ABPDU will afford you with an integrated didactic experience. As a result, you will be able to immediately apply hands-on knowledge and become specialized in knowing how to relate engineering concepts to biological system sand organisms.

PhD Program

The PhD program is designed to enlarge the body of knowledge of the student and, more importantly, to discover and develop talent for original, productive, and creative work in chemical and biomolecular engineering. Breadth of knowledge and professional training are achieved through advanced course work. To develop the creative talents of the student, a paramount emphasis in the PhD program is placed on intensive research, a project on which students work closely with one or more members of the faculty.

PhD students may choose to add a designated emphasis (DE) to their program. A designated emphasis is a specialization, such as a new method of inquiry or an important field of application, which is relevant to two or more existing doctoral degree programs. Designated emphases open to students in this PhD program include: Nanoscale Science and Engineering (NSE); Energy Sciences and Technology (DEEST); Communication, Computation and Statistic; Computational and Genomic Biology; and New Media.

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Admissions

Admission to the University

Minimum Requirements for Admission

The following minimum requirements apply to all graduate programs and will be verified by the Graduate Division:

1. A bachelor’s degree or recognized equivalent from an accredited institution;
2. A grade point average of B or better (3.0);
3. If the applicant comes from a country or political entity (e.g., Quebec) where English is not the official language, adequate proficiency in English to do graduate work, as evidenced by a TOEFL score of at least 90 on the iBT test, 570 on the paper-and-pencil test, or an IELTS Band score of at least 7 (note that individual programs may set higher levels for any of these); and
4. Sufficient undergraduate training to do graduate work in the given field.

Applicants Who Already Hold a Graduate Degree

The Graduate Council views academic degrees not as vocational training certificates, but as evidence of broad training in research methods, independent study, and articulation of learning. Therefore, applicants who already have academic graduate degrees should be able to pursue new subject matter at an advanced level without need to enroll in a related or similar graduate program.

Programs may consider students for an additional academic master’s or professional master’s degree only if the additional degree is in a distinctly different field.

Applicants admitted to a doctoral program that requires a master’s degree to be earned at Berkeley as a prerequisite (even though the applicant already has a master’s degree from another institution in the same or a closely allied field of study) will be permitted to undertake the second master’s degree, despite the overlap in field.

The Graduate Division will admit students for a second doctoral degree only if they meet the following guidelines:

1. Applicants with doctoral degrees may be admitted for an additional doctoral degree only if that degree program is in a general area of knowledge distinctly different from the field in which they earned their original degree. For example, a physics PhD could be admitted to a doctoral degree program in music or history; however, a student with a doctoral degree in mathematics would not be permitted to add a PhD in statistics.
2. Applicants who hold the PhD degree may be admitted to a professional doctorate or professional master’s degree program if there is no duplication of training involved.

Applicants may apply only to one single degree program or one concurrent degree program per admission cycle.

Required Documents for Applications

1. Transcripts: Applicants may upload unofficial transcripts with your application for the departmental initial review. If the applicant is admitted, then official transcripts of all college-level work will be required. Official transcripts must be in sealed envelopes as issued by the school(s) attended. If you have attended Berkeley, upload your unofficial transcript with your application for the departmental initial review. If you are admitted, an official transcript with evidence of degree conferral will not be required.
2. Letters of recommendation: Applicants may request online letters of recommendation through the online application system. Hard copies of recommendation letters must be sent directly to the program, not the Graduate Division.
3. Evidence of English language proficiency: All applicants from countries or political entities in which the official language is not English are required to submit official evidence of English language proficiency. This applies to applicants from Bangladesh, Burma, Nepal, India, Pakistan, Latin America, the Middle East, the People’s Republic of China, Taiwan, Japan, Korea, Southeast Asia, most European countries, and Quebec (Canada). However, applicants who, at the time of application, have already completed at least one year of full-time academic course work with grades of B or better at a US university may submit an official transcript from the US university to fulfill this requirement. The following courses will not fulfill this requirement:
   • courses in English as a Second Language,
   • courses conducted in a language other than English,
   • courses that will be completed after the application is submitted, and
   • courses of a non-academic nature.

If applicants have previously been denied admission to Berkeley on the basis of their English language proficiency, they must submit new test scores that meet the current minimum from one of the standardized tests.

Where to Apply

Visit the Berkeley Graduate Division application page . 

Admission to the Program

Admission is granted by the University's Graduate Division on the recommendation of the department. Applicants generally are required to provide the following: evidence of superior performance in the last two years of undergraduate studies; test scores for the aptitude portion of the Graduate Record Examination (the advanced GRE or subject test is not required); and three letters of recommendation from professors or colleagues familiar with the applicant's academic and professional aptitudes. International students whose native language is not English must provide evidence of English language proficiency. The weight of evidence from all sources determines admission. Students do not need a master's degree to apply for a doctoral degree. Most applicants will have completed a typical undergraduate program in chemical engineering. However, admission may be granted to students with undergraduate degrees in a related discipline. In this case, necessary background courses in chemical engineering are taken as part of the program for the first year.

Doctoral Degree Requirements

Curriculum

A total of 18 units of letter-graded courses must be taken during residence in the graduate program. In the first semester a minimum of 9 units must be obtained from the core chemical engineering courses in the areas of mathematics, thermodynamics, reaction engineering, and transport phenomena. In addition students are required to take the CHM ENG 375 pedagogy course and two semesters in CHM ENG 300. Students should be registered full time with a minimum of 12 units.

Master's Degree Requirements

Product Development Concentration

The Master's PDP program places equal emphasis on advanced course work in new product development principles, specific industry practices, and the field study assignment. Successful completion of each of these elements is a prerequisite to graduation. The specific courses taken in the PDP program are selected in consultations between the student, the PDP executive director, and a faculty adviser. Upon entrance to the program, students will be required to declare an industry area specialization so that an appropriate academic schedule can be constructed. Students must complete a minimum of 28 units with at least 18 of those units from letter-graded courses which include a minimum of 12 units in graduate-level (i.e., 200 series) courses.

Specific coursework to pursue an industry track will vary based on the individual student's interests and the availability of course offerings in a given year.

For examples of representative curricula for each industry track, please visit:

http://chemistry.berkeley.edu/grad/cbe/pdp/graduation-requirements

Bioprocess Engineering Concentration (available for 2017-18)

The Master of Science in Chemical Engineering with a concentration in Bioprocess Engineering (MSCEBE) will provide you upon completion of a 9-month program with an understanding and ability to apply Bioprocess Engineering to a number of key technological needs spanning multiple industries. These include ways to produce biofuels, pharmaceuticals, and other high-value biologics; how to design and/or operate appropriate unit operations (e.g., fermentation systems), mammalian-cell culture systems, and instrumentation to monitor and control biotechnological processes; and how to apply and test bioproduct separation technologies. Unlike other programs, the new program at UC Berkeley will have access to state-of-the-art bioprocessing equipment at the Advanced Biofuels Process Demonstration Unit (ABPDU), which is part of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. Access to the ABPDU will afford you with an integrated didactic experience. As a result, you will be able to immediately apply hands-on knowledge and become specialized in knowing how to relate engineering concepts to biological system sand organisms.

Courses

Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering

Faculty and Instructors

+ Indicates this faculty member is the recipient of the Distinguished Teaching Award.

Faculty

Keith Alexander, Adjunct Professor. New Product Development; Technology Commercialization.

Nitash P. Balsara, Professor. Chemical engineering, synthesis and characterization of soft microstructured polymer materials, nucleation, neutron scattering, depolarized light scattering.
Research Profile

Alexis T. Bell, Professor. Understanding the fundamental relationships between the structure and composition of heterogeneous catalysts and their performance.
Research Profile

Elton J. Cairns, Professor. Electrochemistry and electrocatalysis.
Research Profile

Carlo Carraro, Adjunct Professor.

Douglas S. Clark, Professor. Biochemical engineering and biocatalysis.

David B. Graves, Professor. Plasma processing and electronic materials.
Research Profile

Teresa Head-Gordon, Professor. Computational chemistry, biophysics, bioengineering, biomolecules, materials, computational science.
Research Profile

Enrique Iglesia, Professor. Chemical engineering, catalytic materials, heterogeneous catalysis, chemical reaction engineering, methane and biomass coversion processes, refining processes, hydrogen generation, alkane activation deoxygenatiion and desulfurization catalysis, zeolites.
Research Profile

Alexander Katz, Assistant Professor. Chemical engineering, nanoengineering, catalytic imprinted silicas, catalysts in biological systems, catalysis, chemical sensing.
Research Profile

Jay Keasling, Professor. Microorganism metabolic engineering for environmentally friendly product.
Research Profile

Sanjay Kumar, Professor. Biomaterials, molecular and cellular bioengineering, stem cells, cancer biology, translational medicine.
Research Profile

Markita Landry, Assistant Professor.

Jeffrey R. Long, Professor. Inorganic and solid state chemistry, synthesis of inorganic clusters and solids, controlling structure, tailoring physical properties, intermetal bridges, high-spin metal-cyanide clusters, magnetic bistability.
Research Profile

Roya Maboudian, Professor. Surface and interfacial science and engineering, thin-film science and technology, micro-/nano-systems technology, harsh-environment sensors, silicon carbide, biologically-inspired materials synthesis.
Research Profile

Brian Maiorella, Adjunct Professor.

Kranthi K. Mandadapu, Assistant Professor. Statistical Mechanics, Continuum Mechanics — Polycrystalline Materials, Biological Membranes, Bacterial Motility.

Bryan D. McCloskey, Assistant Professor. Electrochemical energy storage, electrocatalysis, molecular and ionic transport through polymers.

Ali Mesbah, Assistant Professor. Process Systems and Control.
Research Profile

Susan J. Muller, Professor. Chemical engineering, fluid mechanics, Rheology, complex fluids, microfabrication processes, Genetic Engineering of Protein Polymers, Finite Element Modeling of Bubbles, Stress Fluids, Taylor-Couette instabilities.
Research Profile

John M. Prausnitz, Professor. Molecular thermodynamics of phase equilibria.
Research Profile

+ Clayton J. Radke, Professor. Surface and colloid science technology.
Research Profile

+ Jeffrey A. Reimer, Professor. Materials chemistry, applied spectroscopy, alternative energy, nuclear spintronics.
Research Profile

David Schaffer, Professor. Neuroscience, biomolecular engineering, bioengineering, stem cell biology, gene therapy.
Research Profile

Berend Smit, Professor.

Wenjun Zhang, Assistant Professor. Natural product biosynthesis and engineering for health and bioenergy applications.

Lecturers

Joanna Bechtel Dahl, Lecturer.

Colin Cerretani, Lecturer.

Shannon Ciston, Lecturer.

Dean C. Draemel, Lecturer.

Gregory R. Schoofs, Lecturer.

Steve Sciamanna, Lecturer.

Ravi Upadhye, Lecturer.

P. Henrik Wallman, Lecturer.

Marjorie Went, Lecturer.

Emeritus Faculty

Harvey W. Blanch, Professor Emeritus. Biochemical Engineering.
Research Profile

Morton Denn, Professor Emeritus.

Jean M. J. Frechet, Professor Emeritus. Materials chemistry, catalysis, drug delivery, analytical chemistry, organic synthesis, polymer science, macromolecules, chiral recognition, control of molecular architecture at the nanometer scale, reactive surfaces.
Research Profile

Simon Goren, Professor Emeritus.

C. Judson King, Professor Emeritus. Separation processes, spray drying, and higher education.
Research Profile

Scott Lynn, Professor Emeritus.

John S. Newman, Professor Emeritus. Chemical engineering, electrochemical systems, lithium batteries, industrial electrochemical processes, methanol fuel cells.
Research Profile

+ Michael C. Williams, Professor Emeritus.