Hi, i am a grade 12 high school studen and I am interested in this field. I have read this
http://chemeng.mcmaster.ca/undergraduate/BioEng.htm

1) What courses will I need in Engineering I to apply for chem/bio engineering, and if i do not get accepted can i still go to chemical engineering?

2) how is it diff from chemical engineering? is it like MUCH MUCH harder?

3) its five years :( !

4) pros/ cons ... anything you guys know about this program and chemical engineering program!

ANYTHING WILL BE USEFUL!! THANKS IN ADVAAANCE

also you guys know how good is the field, i mean i dont know anybody going in chem/bio eng. does it have better prospects/ demand than just chemical engineering? how is salary working condition etc?

I'm not in ChE nor ChBioE, but I'll try to answer some questions.

1) Other than the two electives, all first years take the same courses. Then you'll need a certain average to get into 2nd year ChE. So read the undergrad calendar on Engineering 1 you will find a list of course req'd for Eng 1.

3) 5-years courses is quite common among engineers here because a considerable amount of people takes management/society option, or do a full year internship. Remember you are not wasting that one year, but rather spend one more year to take courses. Whether this is worth the time & money & effort its your decision.

Welcome to Macinsiders

1) All of the first year engineering students at McMaster take the same 10 core courses. These courses can be found here: http://registrar.mcmaster.ca /CALEN...nt/pg1197.html
In addition, you will be taking 2 electives, they are not necessary for getting into second year, but taking them means more units and a higher gpa to get you into a competitive program in 2nd year like civil or mechanical.
Chemical engineering is usually a 4.0 program(4.0 >> (60-62)%), but i heard that last year it was slightly higher..

2)I can't comment on the difficulty, but in chemical engineering you don't take biology, but in chem&bio eng you take some bio courses.

3)Yes, it's a five year program: http://registrar.mcmaster.ca /CALEN...nt/pg1206.html

That's all i know about both programs, hopefully someone in either program can answer the rest of your questions.

Engineering I: 37 Units {0730}
Engineering I Co-op {0730003}

3 units CHEM 1E03
10 units ENGINEER 1C03, 1D04, 1P03
3 units MATLS 1M03
9 units MATH 1ZA3, 1ZB3, 1ZC3
6 units PHYSICS 1D03, 1E03
6 units approved complementary studies electives. (See Elective Courses Available to Level I Students in the Degrees, Programs and Courses section of this Calendar.)
1 course WHMIS 1A00 (or ENGINEER 1A00)




what are units? are they same as courses? so to go into second year engineering lets say chem/bio engineering, its only dependent on marks?

i thought if u wanna go into chem/bio eng. you take a couple of bio courses in addition to 1st year courses. :S

1) As people have mentioned, you're going to take the same courses as everyone else in first year including:
Chemistry 1E03
Engineer 1C03 (Design), 1D04 (Programming), 1P03 (Professionalism)
Materials 1M03
Math 1ZA3, 1ZB3, 1ZC3
Physics 1D03, 1E03
Plus two electives that you can choose from a long list of approved electives. (Any bio or chem courses won't count as an elective, but if you really want to get ahead you can take them in summer school)
http://www.eng.mcmaster.ca/eng1/requirements.html

2) In chem and bio you're basically taking all the necessary chemical engineering courses plus things like biology, biochemistry, anatomy, etc. There are also some specialized chem eng courses for bioengineering.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H_XbVHh2oq4
It shouldn't be that much harder than chemical engineering, you do have an extra year to study all this awesome stuff.
http://registrar.mcmaster.ca /calendar/2012-13/pg1206.html

3) Five year programs are quite common in engineering. This includes people who are in management, society, international, chem and bio, co-op, and lots of random people. It'll go by so fast you won't even notice.

4) Pros: It's awesome.
Cons: Nothing.

Originally Posted by superman208

Engineering I: 37 Units {0730}
Engineering I Co-op {0730003}

3 units CHEM 1E03
10 units ENGINEER 1C03, 1D04, 1P03
3 units MATLS 1M03
9 units MATH 1ZA3, 1ZB3, 1ZC3
6 units PHYSICS 1D03, 1E03
6 units approved complementary studies electives. (See Elective Courses Available to Level I Students in the Degrees, Programs and Courses section of this Calendar.)
1 course WHMIS 1A00 (or ENGINEER 1A00)




what are units? are they same as courses? so to go into second year engineering lets say chem/bio engineering, its only dependent on marks?

i thought if u wanna go into chem/bio eng. you take a couple of bio courses in addition to 1st year courses. :S

Usually courses at Mac are indicated by the number of units they have..most first year engineering courses are 3 units. The higher the number of units, the better (or worse) you average would be in that specified year/term.
3units x 7 = 21 points
4units x 7 = 28 points
So you can see that taking a course worth more units can either boost your average or drop it down.

All of the first year engineering courses are 3 units except for programming (eng 1d04)..so if you do really well in that course, it will boost your average a bit more.

Getting into second year engineering requires the completion of all 10 core courses and getting an overall 4.0..if you drop/fail anything you will take it in the summer. You are allowed 4 courses in summer school, 2 each semester ( 2 in the spring term (May-June), and 2 in the summer term (June-August)).
Getting into a competitive 2nd year engineering program requires the same as above except that it requires a higher gpa. I can't comment much on the cut-offs, but if you get a 7 with a full course load you will probably get into anything except for management. Also, if you drop/fail anything in first year you need to get a higher gpa than someone who did not drop/fail anything.

Unit in university courses is almost like 'how much it worth in your degree'. Its the number at the end of the course code. E.g. CHEM 1E03 has 3 units.
Usually a course has 3 units, but some has more.

Getting into second year is based on your choice and your average (Provided you pass all the mentioned courses)

You don't need bio courses to get into ChBioE, but I heard they have some Biochem courses in 3/4 year.

Speaking as a chem/bio, you'll want grade 12 bio because you start taking bio courses in second year, and if you've taken high school bio it will be repetitive and easy.

First year is the exact same no matter what you want to go into. Pick electives that will raise your average.

The main difference between us and straight chem engineers is that we get less electives and take bio instead. Our second year is pretty similar to the straight chems except they get electives and we get anatomy and first year bio. They take one more chem eng course that gets pushed to our third year.

Its third year thats really different. Basically they split our third year chemical engineering courses over 3rd and 4th year so that they can mix a bunch of biochem, biology, and bioengineering.

Our 5th year is basically straight chem's 4th year. Its not any harder or easier as a program, its the same courses with a bunch of extra bio and biochem courses (and those darn two anatomy). Some of the courses like Bio 1A03 will help your chemical engineering course average, and others like anatomy will hurt your average (to any bio-engineers who had anatomy raise their average, I tip my hat to you sir!), so it basically all balances out.

Think about whether a 5 year program is right for you or not, but lots of engineers extend to 5 years, its quite normal around here so its really not a big deal with the extra year. All of my friends are taking 5 years except for like 1. You graduate with all the same courses as a chemical engineer so you are at no loss for taking the bio program in terms of job prospects (a year's worth of time and university money on the other hand...).

I like the program because you get to know the 20 people in chem and bio of your year. You develop a network of people who can help you out.

If you have any more specific questions I'd be more than happy to try to answer them, shoot me a message.

Hey thank you to all of you ! much appreciated!

Now to look into the future...
Are bio/chem engineers in demand? how do you think their salaries would be?
cause i know chem eng have a GOOD salary. so would bio/chem eng. make BETTER money, going on with that logic?

Hi there! I am a chem eng student (pure chem eng) who was initially going to do chem/bio, but decided against it. Seeing from my friends though, the stuff they learn seems quite interesting!

1) You will need to complete all your first year courses. You need to make sure that you do well enough (sometimes chem/bio is competitive to get into). Chem eng is easier to get into so if chem/bio doesn't work out you can get into chem eng

2) It's different in that you need to take biology/anatomy courses along with all your regular chem eng courses. If you enjoy learning about biological stuff this will definitely keep you well interested as it has a nice mix of bio courses added into the regular program to keep the bio geeks happy enough

3) It might even be 6 years if you put in a 16 month co-op in there. But 5 years is quite the norm at McMaster. Personally, I opted out of the chem/bio simply because I do not want to be in university for all those years. This is something you will have to think of...time vs. learning some interesting stuff. It's a very personal decision!

4) The pro is that you can really use the bio grades to boost your average if you have a knack for biology. The cons are that you will have to put forth time and effort learning biology courses, but you are more "well-rounded"

This program is perfect for those people who aim to get into research. Chem eng research has lots of cool bio stuff going on right now. So if you think you can see yourself working in pharma/research then go for it! Some people even apply to medical school using this program...

If you see yourself pursuing any of the above mentioned careers or just really love biology you should definitely go for it! Good luck

See post below

Originally Posted by superman208

Hi, i am a grade 12 high school studen and I am interested in this field. I have read this
http://chemeng.mcmaster.ca/undergraduate/BioEng.htm

1) What courses will I need in Engineering I to apply for chem/bio engineering, and if i do not get accepted can i still go to chemical engineering?
Just pass first year with the right average
2) how is it diff from chemical engineering? is it like MUCH MUCH harder?
Just take extra bio / anatomy courses. I've seen opposite spectrums. Some people do well. Some people do really bad. It is a very packed semester with tons of labs with even more readings/memorization cause it is bio classes
3) its five years :( !
Yea that's because you take extra courses
4) pros/ cons ... anything you guys know about this program and chemical engineering program!
You are more knowledgeable. Some people like bio. Some people are interested in bioengineering. The benefits is that you get a larger "base" for future learning
ANYTHING WILL BE USEFUL!! THANKS IN ADVAAANCE

also you guys know how good is the field, i mean i dont know anybody going in chem/bio eng. does it have better prospects/ demand than just chemical engineering? how is salary working condition etc?
IDK myself but since I'm in chem eng people say it's always a "higher" starting sal and pays well. Just may be harder to find jobs around the area (may need to move, tons in Albera)

But guys the degree awarded for chem/bio is the same as chemical engineering right

everything is the same as chemical engineering except chem/bio has more bio.
Wouldnt taking chem/bio result in keeping you open to more jobs?

Originally Posted by superman208

But guys the degree awarded for chem/bio is the same as chemical engineering right

everything is the same as chemical engineering except chem/bio has more bio.
Wouldnt taking chem/bio result in keeping you open to more jobs?

No, the degree is not the same: http://chemeng.mcmaster.ca/programs.html

And yes, if the courses are the same except one program has additional courses in a complementary field, obviously that would open more doors than having just the core courses without the complementary stuff - that goes for any field. You just need to decide whether or not there is a point in taking those courses, and that's the problem. If you don't want to do anything with bio, then you might decided that there's no point and that's fine...but it will be harder for you to get a job in a bio-related field should you eventually choose to do so.

Yes, you get the same degree (in terms of the engineering, you just get a tack on at the end). Instead of your degree saying "chemical engineering", it will say "chemical engineering and biosciences". Same degree, just bio, biochem, and anatomy courses added in. Same as doing "chemical engineering and management" or "chemical engineering and society".

Realistically as I look to apply for jobs, most jobs that would take a chem and bio engineering would also take a straight chemical engineer, because our degree is mostly chemical engineering. If two identical candidates were applying and one had bio, it might be an advantage then, but in my personal experience your grades, work experience exc will matter more.
The degree might make you more attractive to industries more bio related, and might make you more attractive to grad schools if you want to do more bio research. But really, the people in chem and bio have a real interest in bio and that's why they are in the program. (This is just my personal experience, if any chem and bio have further insight please feel free to add on)

If you have an interest in bio and want to study it, chem and bio is great. If you don't really like bio and are just looking for more job opportunites, chem and bio might not be right for you. If you have an interest in and want to go into a bio related field though, it might be an advantage.

my bio mark is high 90s while my physics mark is BAD :( but ill get it up (Y)

I like bio!

and I had one more question, do you know how hard it is to make it to chem/bio since ONLY 25 ppl make it :(. Does your GPA have to be greater than 8? how many ppl apply. I want to know how hard it is.