Major in Chemical and Biological Engineering

Chemical and biological engineering is a powerful blend of basic sciences and the skills to quantitatively describe, predict, and control all changes of matter. This provides the foundation to create cutting-edge materials and products, to design new devices to improve health or the environment, and to design processes for the safe production of chemicals and biochemicals, the production of alternative energy sources, and prevention of hazardous waste.

The Chemical and Biological Engineering curriculum is based on the sciences of physics, chemistry, biology, and mathematics. It includes engineering science and design methods, as well as humanities and social sciences. Students can pursue interdisciplinary studies programs or minors. Popular options include minors in chemistry, mathematics, environmental engineering, and biomedical engineering. The curriculum is well-aligned to meet pre-health profession requirements. The Chemical and Biological Engineering program provides an environment that promotes a sense of professionalism, the development of project management skills, and an appreciation for the value of life-long learning. Graduates of our program are well prepared to enter a variety of professions, or to pursue further education. The broad, strong scientific basis of chemical and biological engineering has kept our graduates consistently near or at the top in salary and demand among B.S. graduates.

The Chemical and Biological Engineering major is accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET.

Program Educational Objectives

The Chemical and Biological Engineering program at CSU will empower graduates with the educational foundation to:

• Be highly successful, as defined by accomplishments, advanced certifications, and job satisfaction, in chemical and biological engineering practice, post-graduate education, or other careers making use of engineering knowledge.
• Be identified for both their mastery of fundamental chemical and biological engineering principles and their creative application of those principles to the solution of problems across a diverse range of career disciplines.
• Be recognized as critical, creative and independent thinkers who use their technical expertise and leadership to address the needs of society and advance their fields of expertise.
• Be recognized for their effectiveness in teamwork, communication, and service to society through their professional contributions.
• Hold paramount health and safety of the public and the environment.
• Demonstrate the highest standards of professional, ethical, and civic responsibility in all endeavors.
• Demonstrate continued professional growth through a commitment to lifelong learning.

Student Outcomes

Graduates of the undergraduate Chemical and Biological Engineering programs will have:

• an ability to identify, formulate, and solve complex engineering problems by applying principles of engineering, science, and mathematics
• 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
• an ability to communicate effectively with a range of audiences
• an ability to recognize ethical and professional responsibilities in engineering situations and make informed judgments, which must consider the impact of engineering solutions in global, economic, environmental, and societal contexts
• 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
• an ability to develop and conduct appropriate experimentation, analyze and interpret data, and use engineering judgment to draw conclusions
• an ability to acquire and apply new knowledge as needed, using appropriate learning strategies.

Potential Occupations

Chemical and Biological Engineering graduates find employment in the biotechnology, biomedical, microelectronics, environmental, consulting, alternative energy, petroleum, chemical, food, pharmaceutical and other private sector industries and with government agencies. Participation in undergraduate research, internships, volunteer activities, or cooperative education opportunities is highly recommended to enhance practical training and development. Graduates who go on for advanced studies can attain more responsible positions with the possibility of rising to top professional levels. In addition to pursuing M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in chemical and biological engineering and related fields, some of our graduates have obtained M.D., D.V.M., law, and M.B.A. degrees.

Effective Fall 2023

Bioscience Electives

Select a minimum of 3 credits from the following.

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
BC 401	Comprehensive Biochemistry I	3
BC 403	Comprehensive Biochemistry II	3
BC 404	Comprehensive Biochemistry Laboratory	2
BC 411	Physical Biochemistry	4
BC 441	3D Molecular Models for Biochemistry	1
BC 463	Molecular Genetics	3
BC 464	Molecular Genetics Recitation	1
BC 517	Metabolism	2
BC 521/CHEM 521	Principles of Chemical Biology	3
BMS 300	Principles of Human Physiology	4
BMS 301	Human Gross Anatomy	5
BMS 302	Laboratory in Principles of Physiology	2
BMS 305	Domestic Animal Gross Anatomy	4
BMS 325	Cellular Neurobiology	3
BMS 330	Microscopic Anatomy	4
BMS 345	Functional Neuroanatomy	4
BMS 360	Fundamentals of Physiology	4
BMS 409	Human and Animal Reproductive Biology	3
BMS 420	Cardiopulmonary Physiology	3
BMS 430	Endocrinology	3
BMS 450	Pharmacology	3
BMS 460	Essentials of Pathophysiology	3
BMS 500	Mammalian Physiology I	4
BMS 501	Mammalian Physiology II	4
BMS 503/NB 503	Developmental Neurobiology	3
BMS 505/NB 505	Neuronal Circuits, Systems and Behavior	3
BMS 545	Neuroanatomy	5
BMS 575	Human Anatomy Dissection	4
BSPM 302	Applied and General Entomology	2
BSPM 361	Elements of Plant Pathology	3
BZ 310	Cell Biology	4
BZ 311	Developmental Biology	4
BZ 348/MATH 348	Theory of Population and Evolutionary Ecology	4
BZ 350	Molecular and General Genetics	4
BZ 360	Bioinformatics and Genomics	4
CM 501	Advanced Cell Biology	4
CM 502/NB 502	Techniques in Molecular & Cellular Biology	2
LIFE 201B	Introductory Genetics: Molecular/Immunological/Developmental (GT-SC2)	3
LIFE 202B	Introductory Genetics Recitation: Molecular	1
LIFE 203	Introductory Genetics Laboratory	2
LIFE 210	Introductory Eukaryotic Cell Biology	3
LIFE 211	Introductory Cell Biology Honors Recitation	1
LIFE 212	Introductory Cell Biology Laboratory	2
LIFE 320	Ecology	3
MIP 300	General Microbiology	3
MIP 302	General Microbiology Laboratory	2
MIP 315	Pathology of Human and Animal Disease	3
MIP 334	Food Microbiology	3
MIP 335	Food Microbiology Laboratory	2
MIP 342	Immunology	4
MIP 343	Immunology Laboratory	2
MIP 351	Medical Bacteriology	3
MIP 352	Medical Bacteriology Laboratory	3
MIP 420	Medical and Molecular Virology	4
MIP 432/ESS 432	Microbial Ecology	3
MIP 433/ESS 433	Microbial Ecology Laboratory	1
MIP 443	Microbial Physiology	4
MIP 450	Microbial Genetics	3

Engineering Electives 

Select a minimum of 3 credits from the following.

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
ATS 555	Air Pollution	3
ATS 560	Air Pollution Measurement	2
BIOM 300	Problem-Based Learning Biomedical Engr Lab	4
BIOM 350A	Study Abroad--Ecuador: Prosthetics	1-2
BIOM 421	Transport Phenomena in Biomedical Engineering	3
BIOM 422	Quantitative Systems and Synthetic Biology	3
BIOM 517/ECE 517	Advanced Optical Imaging	3
BIOM 525/MECH 525	Cell and Tissue Engineering	3
BIOM 526/ECE 526	Biological Physics	3
BIOM 531/MECH 531	Materials Engineering	3
BIOM 532/MECH 532	Materials Issues in Mechanical Design	3
BIOM 533/CIVE 533	Biomolecular Tools for Engineers	3
BIOM 537/ECE 537	Biomedical Signal Processing	3
BIOM 573/MECH 573	Structure and Function of Biomaterials	3
BIOM 574/MECH 574	Bio-Inspired Surfaces	3
BIOM 576/MECH 576	Quantitative Systems Physiology	4
BIOM 579/MECH 579	Cardiovascular Biomechanics	3
CBE 406	Introduction to Transport Phenomena	3
CBE 501	Chemical Engineering Thermodynamics	3
CBE 502	Advanced Reactor Design	3
CBE 503	Transport Phenomena Fundamentals	3
CBE 504/BIOM 504	Fundamentals of Biochemical Engineering	3
CBE 505	Biochemical Engineering Laboratory	1
CBE 514	Polymer Science and Engineering	3
CBE 521	Mathematical Modeling for Chemical Engineers	3
CBE 522/BIOM 522	Bioseparation Processes	3
CBE 524	Bioremediation	1
CBE 540/CIVE 540	Advanced Biological Wastewater Processing	3
CBE 570	Biomolecular Engineering/Synthetic Biology	3
CIVE 260	Engineering Mechanics-Statics	3
CIVE 261	Engineering Mechanics-Dynamics	3
CIVE 322	Basic Hydrology	3
CIVE 330	Ecological Engineering	3
CIVE 360	Mechanics of Solids	3
CIVE 401	Hydraulic Engineering	3
CIVE 413	Environmental River Mechanics	3
CIVE 423	Groundwater Engineering	3
CIVE 438	Fundamentals of Environmental Engr	3
CIVE 439	Applications of Environmental Engr Concepts	3
CIVE 440	Nonpoint Source Pollution	3
CIVE 442	Air Quality Engineering	3
CIVE 520	Physical Hydrology	3
CIVE 531	Groundwater Hydrology	3
CIVE 538	Aqueous Chemistry	3
CIVE 560	Advanced Mechanics of Materials	3
ECE 204	Introduction to Electrical Engineering	3
ENGR 510	Engineering Optimization: Method/Application	3
ENGR 531	Engineering Risk Analysis	3
MECH 262	Engineering Mechanics	4
MECH 307	Mechatronics and Measurement Systems	4
MECH 324	Dynamics of Machines	4
MECH 325	Machine Design	3
MECH 331	Introduction to Engineering Materials	4
MECH 403	Energy Engineering	3
MECH 407	Laser Applications in Mechanical Engineering	3
MECH 424	Advanced Dynamics	3
MECH 425	Mechanical Engineering Vibrations	4
MECH 432	Engineering of Nanomaterials	3
MECH 507	Laser Diagnostics for Thermosciences	3
MECH 530	Advanced Composite Materials	3
MECH 543	Biofluid Mechanics	3
MECH 552	Applied Computational Fluid Dynamics	3

Technical Electives

Select a minimum of 6 credits from the following, or select additional credits from the Bioscience Electives or Engineering Electives lists above.

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
Technical Electives - A
AB 410	Understanding Pesticides	3
BSPM 576/MIP 576	Bioinformatics	3
BZ 348/MATH 348	Theory of Population and Evolutionary Ecology	4
CHEM 261	Fundamentals of Inorganic Chemistry	3
CHEM 311	Introduction to Nanoscale Science	3
CHEM 334	Quantitative Analysis Laboratory	1
CHEM 335	Introduction to Analytical Chemistry	3
CHEM 338	Environmental Chemistry	3
CHEM 431	Instrumental Analysis	4
CHEM 433	Clinical Chemistry	3
CHEM 440	Advanced Organic Chemistry Laboratory	2
CHEM 461	Inorganic Chemistry	3
CHEM 522	Methods of Chemical Biology	2
CHEM 532	Advanced Chemical Analysis II	3
CHEM 537	Electrochemical Methods	3
CHEM 539A	Principles of NMR and MRI: Basic NMR Principles	1
CHEM 539B	Principles of NMR and MRI: NMR Diffusion Measurements-2D NMR and MRI	1
CHEM 539C	Principles of NMR and MRI: Advanced NMR and MRI Techniques	1
CHEM 541	Organic Molecular Structure Determination	2
CHEM 543	Structure/Mechanisms in Organic Chemistry	2
CHEM 545	Synthetic Organic Chemistry I	3
CHEM 547	Physical Organic Chemistry	3
CHEM 555	Chemistry of Sustainability	3
CHEM 569	Chemical Crystallography	3
CHEM 570	Chemical Bonding	3
CHEM 575	Fundamentals of Chemical Thermodynamics	1
CHEM 576	Statistical Mechanics	2
CHEM 577	Surface Chemistry	3
CHEM 579	Chemical Kinetics	3
CS 165	CS2--Data Structures	4
CS 220	Discrete Structures and their Applications	4
CS 270	Computer Organization	4
ECE 430/MATH 430	Fourier and Wavelet Analysis with Apps	3
ENGR 550/MATH 550	Numerical Methods in Science and Engineering	3
ERHS 320	Environmental Health--Water Quality	3
ERHS 332	Principles of Epidemiology	3
ERHS 410	Environmental Health-Air and Waste Management	3
ERHS 446	Environmental Toxicology	3
ERHS 448	Environmental Contaminants	3
ERHS 450	Introduction to Radiation Biology	3
ERHS 502	Fundamentals of Toxicology	3
ERHS 503	Toxicology Principles	1
ERHS 510/VS 510	Cancer Biology	3
ERHS 530	Radiological Physics and Dosimetry I	3
ERHS 542	Biostatistical Methods for Qualitative Data	3
ERHS 547	Equipment and Instrumentation	3
ESS 353	Global Change Impacts, Adaptation, Mitigation	3
F 311	Forest Ecology	3
FTEC 447	Food Chemistry	2
GEOL 150	Physical Geology for Scientists and Engineers	4
GEOL 452	Hydrogeology	4
GEOL 454	Geomorphology	4
GES 441	Analysis of Sustainable Energy Solutions	3
GES 542	Biobased Fuels, Energy, and Chemicals	3
HES 307	Biomechanical Principles of Human Movement	3
HES 319	Neuromuscular Aspects of Human Movement	4
HES 403	Physiology of Exercise	3
HES 420	Electrocardiography and Exercise Management	3
HORT 579	Mass Spectrometry Omics-Methods and Analysis	3
MATH 301	Introduction to Combinatorial Theory	3
MATH 331	Introduction to Mathematical Modeling	3
MATH 332	Partial Differential Equations	3
MATH 360	Mathematics of Information Security	3
MATH 366	Introduction to Abstract Algebra	3
MATH 369	Linear Algebra I	3
MATH 405	Introduction to Number Theory	3
MATH 419	Introduction to Complex Variables	3
MATH 450	Introduction to Numerical Analysis I	3
MATH 451	Introduction to Numerical Analysis II	3
MATH 455	Mathematics in Biology and Medicine	3
MATH 460	Information and Coding Theory	3
MATH 466	Abstract Algebra I	3
MATH 467	Abstract Algebra II	3
MATH 469	Linear Algebra II	3
MATH 525	Optimal Control	3
MATH 530	Mathematics for Scientists and Engineers	3
MATH 532	Mathematical Modeling of Large Data Sets	3
MATH 535	Foundations of Applied Mathematics	3
MATH 546	Partial Differential Equations II	3
MATH 560	Linear Algebra	3
MECH 431	Metals and Alloys	3
MECH 502	Advanced/Additive Manufacturing Engineering	3
MECH 509	Design and Analysis in Engineering Research	3
MECH 513	Simulation Modeling and Experimentation	3
MECH 524	Principles of Dynamics	3
MECH 527	Hybrid Electric Vehicle Powertrains	3
MECH 529	Advanced Mechanical Systems	3
MIP 425	Virology and Cell Culture Laboratory	2
MIP 530	Advanced Molecular Virology	4
MIP 543	RNA Biology	3
MIP 550	Microbial and Molecular Genetics Laboratory	4
MIP 555	Principles and Mechanisms of Disease	3
MSE 501	Materials Technology Transfer	1
MSE 502A	Materials Science & Engineering Methods: Materials Structure and Scattering	1
MSE 502B	Materials Science & Engineering Methods: Computational Materials Methods	1
MSE 502C	Materials Science & Engineering Methods: Materials Microscopy	1
MSE 502D	Materials Science & Engineering Methods: Materials Spectroscopy	1
MSE 502E	Materials Science & Engineering Methods: Bulk Properties and Performance	1
MSE 502F	Materials Science & Engineering Methods: Experimental Methods for Materials Research	1
MSE 503	Mechanical Behavior of Materials	3
MSE 504	Thermodynamics of Materials	3
MSE 505	Kinetics of Materials	3
NR 319	Introduction to Geospatial Science	4
NR 323/GR 323	Remote Sensing and Image Interpretation	3
NR 505	Concepts in GIS	4
PH 314	Introduction to Modern Physics	4
PH 315	Modern Physics Laboratory	2
PH 341	Mechanics	4
PH 351	Electricity and Magnetism	4
PH 353	Optics and Waves	4
PH 361	Physical Thermodynamics	3
PH 451	Introductory Quantum Mechanics I	3
PH 452	Introductory Quantum Mechanics II	3
PH 517	Chaos, Fractals, and Nonlinear Dynamics	3
PH 521	Introduction to Lasers	3
PH 522	Introductory Laser Laboratory	1
PH 531	Introductory Condensed Matter Physics	3
PH 561	Elementary Particle Physics	3
PH 571	Mathematical Methods for Physics I	3
PH 572	Mathematical Methods for Physics II	3
PHIL 410	Gödel's Incompleteness Theorems	3
SOCR 330	Principles of Genetics	3
SOCR 400	Soils and Global Change-Impacts and Solutions	3
SOCR 455	Microbiomes of Soil Systems	3
SOCR 456	Soil Microbiology Laboratory	1
SOCR 467	Soil and Environmental Chemistry	3
SOCR 470	Soil Physics	3
SOCR 471	Soil Physics Laboratory	1
SOCR 567	Environmental Soil Chemistry	4
STAT 305	Sampling Techniques	3
STAT 315	Intro to Theory and Practice of Statistics	3
STAT 341	Statistical Data Analysis I	3
STAT 342	Statistical Data Analysis II	3
STAT 400	Statistical Computing	3
STAT 420	Probability and Mathematical Statistics I	3
STAT 421	Introduction to Stochastic Processes	3
STAT 430	Probability and Mathematical Statistics II	3
STAT 460	Applied Multivariate Analysis	3
STAR 512	Design and Data Analysis for Researchers II	4
Technical Electives - B
A maximum of 3 credits may be selected from the following courses:
ENGR 422	Technology Entrepreneurship	3
ENGR 502	Engineering Project and Program Management	3
ENGR 525	Intellectual Property and Invention Systems	3
FIN 305	Fundamentals of Finance	3
IDEA 310B	Design Thinking Toolbox: 3D Modeling	2
IDEA 310D	Design Thinking Toolbox: Digital Imaging	1
MGT 305	Fundamentals of Management	3
MGT 340	Fundamentals of Entrepreneurship	3
MKT 305	Fundamentals of Marketing	3

Distinctive Requirements for Degree Program:

TO PREPARE FOR FIRST SEMESTER:  The curriculum for this major assumes students enter college prepared to take calculus.