Career Choices in Chemical and Biochemical Engineering
An Sc.B. Degree in Chemical Engineering provides a solid foundation for understanding and working with the complex coupling of physical and chemical processes, such as in the hypothetical example presented above. A chemical engineering education can serve as a springboard into a number of related fields, such as biochemical and biomedical engineering, environmental management, medicine, applied mathematics, nuclear engineering, and metallurgy. Many chemical engineers also apply their rigorous technical background in fields such as banking and finance, politics, business, and teaching everything from high school science to civil engineering, electrical engineering, physics, mathematics, computer science, and chemistry at the university level. Brown graduates from this program have entered a wide range of professions in the United States and abroad, both immediately following graduation, and/or after continuing their education in graduate and professional schools.
A partial listing of graduate/professional schools and industrial concerns where Brown chemical engineering graduates have gone on to includes:
- Graduate Schools
- Carnegie Mellon University
Cornel University
Georgia Tech
Harvard Business School
M.I.T.
Northwestern University
Princeton University
University of California at Berkeley
University of Washington
V.P.I.
Wharton - Industrial Employment
- Air Products and Chemicals Co.
I.C.I.
3M Co.
Advanced Microdevices
GE
Georgia Environmental Division
GTE
IBM
Inhale Therapeutic Systems
Intel
Morgan-Stanley
Procter & Gamble
Rogers Corp.
Summit Polymers - Agricultural Chemicals
- Catalysts
- Specialty Chemicals
- Industrial Gases
- Paints, Varnishes, Lacquers, Pigments, Inks
- Petrochemicals
- Petroleum Products
- Plastics, Synthetic Resins, and Composites
- Polymers
- Pulp and Paper
- Rubber and Rubber Products
- Soaps, Detergents, Perfumes, Fats, Oils, and Cosmetics
- Synthetic Fibers, Textiles, and Films
- Aerospace
- Automotive
- Glass
- Ceramics
- Electronics
- Refractories
- Metals
- Metallurgical Products
- Minerals Processing
- Photographic Products
- Business
- Finance
- Insurance
- Law
- Publications
- Education
- Government
- More General Career Information
What do Chemical Engineers do?
Chemical engineers are employed in a very wide variety of industries, representing a diverse range of products, employers, and services. Some examples are presented below.
Chemical Process Industries (CPI)
The CPI are concerned with the development, extraction, isolation, combination, and use of chemicals and chemical by-products. Chemical engineers in the CPI design and operate the processes and systems to combine, transport, separate, handle, recycle, and store chemicals and their by-products. Some examples of the CPI are:
Biotechnology
The biotechnology industry uses living cells and materials produced by cells, and biological techniques developed through research, to create products for use in other industries. Work in the field of biotechnology has produced antibiotics, insulin, interferon, artificial organs, recombinant DNA, techniques for waste reduction and recycling, and hybrid plants that are insect resistant. Chemical engineers in the biotechnology industry develop and design the processes to grow, handle, and harvest living organisms and their by-products.
Design & Construction
The design and construction industry works with all other industry sectors to design and build the facilities, specify the machinery, and design and troubleshoot processes that will allow companies to operate safe and efficient plants. Chemical engineers in the design & construction industry are involved with process design and project management, and work closely with other engineering disciplines.
Electronics
Chemical engineers in the electronics industry are involved with material development and production, and process control equipment design. Knowing how process equipment in a chemical plant, for example, is supposed to function gives the chemical engineer an advantage in designing control equipment to monitor each process. Chemical engineers are also involved in the manufacturing of microchips and intricate circuitry, using their training to develop the materials and processes that allow such circuits to be properly assembled. Chemical engineers?contributions to the field include producing components that better dissipate heat, and operate faster.
Environment, Safety & Health
In almost every industry, chemical engineers are involved in areas that concern the environment, waste minimization, and personal health and safety. With every process that involves the use and manipulation of raw materials, some by-products are produced. The chemical engineer is employed to minimize the production of by-products, if they are of no use, or find an appropriate use for them. Chemical engineers help minimize waste through process monitoring and control, and by designing new processes that are more efficient. This category also includes those chemical engineers who are involved in waste treatment and disposal, and process safety and loss prevention. Process safety involves how people safely work with and handle certain materials.
Food & Beverages
The food and beverage industry includes the handling, processing, preparation, packaging, and preservation of food and beverages. Chemical engineers in the food and beverages industry formulate new products to meet consumer demand, change ingredients for better flavor, change handling processes for more consistent texture, and freeze dry products or design aseptic packaging to ensure a longer shelf life.
Fuels
These industries include petroleum and petroleum products production, and refining, as well as nuclear and synthetic fuels. Typically known for their work in refineries, chemical engineers are also involved in developing alternative energy sources. Chemical engineers in the fuels industries work on production processes, environmental monitoring, research and development, and process safety.
Advanced Materials
Chemical engineers help develop materials with different properties such as weight, strength, heat transfer, reflectivity, and purity. Industries that employ chemical engineers in these capacities include:
Other
The technical training that chemical engineers receive also makes them well suited for work in the following areas:
Chemical engineers use their training to manage, analyze, and insure businesses in the chemical process industries. They can work as patent attorneys, applying their knowledge to intellectual property. Chemical engineers also work as technical writers, teachers and professors. Within the government, the US Environmental Protection Agency, Department of Energy, US Navy, NASA, Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and Department of Agriculture, to name a few, all employ chemical engineers.
