Newcastle University

Chemical Engineering BEng Honours
UCAS Code: H810 (3 Years)

• Course Overview
• Modules
• Entry Requirements
• Careers
• Finance

Chemical engineers are responsible for the chemical and biochemical transformations behind thousands of everyday products. The application of these changes is essential to a wide variety of industries, from the manufacture of medicines to freeze-drying food.

This degree will equip you with knowledge and skills across the full spectrum of chemical engineering topics, allowing you to keep your career options open.

Professional accreditation

This degree is accredited by the Institution of Chemical Engineers (IChemE), providing industry-wide recognition of the quality of your qualification.

You will also have the opportunity to take modules that are professionally accredited by the Institute of Measurement and Control and the Energy Institute.

See the MEng or BEng section below for more information about professional accreditation and the difference between studying to BEng and MEng level.

Quality and ranking

At Newcastle you will join a School of Chemical Engineering and Advanced Materials with a long-standing reputation for teaching quality and student support.

We are ranked in the top 5 universities in the UK for Chemical Engineering in The Times Good University Guide 2013, The Guardian University Guide 2013 and The Complete University Guide 2013.

Teaching and assessment

Teaching is a combination of lectures, tutorials, seminars, computer practice sessions and an extensive hands-on laboratory practical component. You will also spend time working on industrially relevant case studies and design projects in small groups. Further information can be found on our undergraduate web pages about the approach to teaching and learning at Newcastle University.

Assessment is by class tests, laboratory reports, multi-choice questions, project reports, oral presentations, closed book examinations, and interviews. Teaching and assessment methods may vary from module to module, more information can be found in our individual module listings.

Flexible degree structure

All of our Chemical Engineering degrees (except our Chemical Engineering with Industry degree) cover the same study programme for the first three years.

Through case study-led teaching, we introduce you to core engineering, maths and science principles underpinning the design of a chemical engineering process plant, from controlling chemical reaction rates to using specialist computer software to solve chemical and process engineering problems.

We teach you how to perform, measure, analyse and manipulate chemical reactions. We introduce you to basic types of mass, heat and momentum transfer, as well as the design criteria for heat exchangers and other plant equipment used in process plants.

Consultants from industry deliver classes on current industrial practice as well as issues surrounding safety management and environmental protection.

In the third year you bring all this knowledge together to design a process plant in teams. This tests your knowledge of process selection, conceptual design, equipment design, process safety and sustainability, and economic analysis.

This shared curriculum provides you with a broad foundation of chemical engineering knowledge. It also gives you the flexibility to transfer between our chemical engineering MEng degrees (except Chemical Engineering with Industry) up to the end of Stage 3 should your ideas change as your skills develop and you gain more experience of different aspects of chemical engineering.

Transfer to or from our Chemical Engineering with Industry degree is possible up to the end of Stage 2 before the accredited industrial placement begins in Stage 3.

Please note: Transfer from the BEng degree to one of our MEng degrees is subject to you achieving the appropriate academic standard.

Work placement

You can choose to take a paid year out in industry after the second year. This is a great opportunity to gain essential industry experience to help you stand out in the graduate marketplace.

This year does not count directly towards your final degree and extends your degree to four years.

We have strong links with over 100 companies, including P&G, MSD and ExxonMobil and can provide support to help you find a suitable placement.

School of Chemical Engineering and Advanced Materials

As a chemical engineering student at Newcastle, you will join the School of Chemical Engineering and Advanced Materials. Our state-of-the-art labs and facilities have benefited from considerable investment in the last few years. They include:

• A recently upgraded pilot plant laboratory
• Modern bench-top experimental equipment
• An interactive video teaching system
• High specification fume cupboards for handling volatile chemicals
• Two dedicated computing suites, running specialised industry-standard computer software

Visit the School of Chemical Engineering and Advanced Materials' website, where you can:

• Find out more about studying chemical engineering at Newcastle
• Take a virtual tour of our facilities
• Watch a video featuring some of our current students

Student profiles:

Newcastle University has allowed me to have a balance between work and play. The academic side of university is challenging and interesting. There are many societies and clubs to get involved in. All the students that go here are nice and friendly.

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My course is challenging but rewarding as well. Each of my classes builds on one another which can make it difficult at times, but this forces me to understand and examine each one of my subjects and how it relates to an overall perspective.

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