<p>I am in the exact same boat as you are. At my university they do not have a chem e degree but have all the other engineering degrees offered. If I were you, I would say go for it buddy. Brush up on your mathematics all the way. Chem E from what I hear is math intensive. Nothing to be scared of though, I feel math fear is blown totally out of proportion. </p>
<p>Back to the subject, I too want to work in the pharmaceutical industry or chemical industry. However since my school does not offer the Chem E program they do have biochemistry which is what I am doing. At my school there is a fast track from biochemistry to masters biomedical engineering ( tissues) or imaging. I rather do tissues.</p>
<p>I am not sure what other engineering students want to do in the end with their degree but I definitely want to work in science/chemistry/pharmacy/medicine. That is a huge scope but the reality is, just because I get a degree in biochemistry does not exactly mean I will be a biochemist. I really wanted to do chemical engineering, however it is not offered in my area, and I do not have the luxury of up and moving to a college that offers it.</p>
<p>After working in the lab industry for about two years now and being a non traditional student, I do see many things. </p>
<p>As far as chem e working in pharmaceuticals, yes you can, but I am not sure it will be exactly as you expect. I would say biochemists, chemists, and chem Es all work together to help formulate and mass produce drugs. I might be a slight bit wrong on this but my perception from my own experience in the industry already is that. The biochemists and chemists work together to find how drugs interact in the body, look at the molecular structure and many other things. Lets say we design a new drug we then would meet with chemical engineers who can use their knowledge to mass produce the drug and make it available in larger quantities than just what we formulate in the lab. Ensuring the chemical compositions do not change and quality assurance is met. </p>
<p>You can do research with a Chem E degree but most usually need masters or PhD to get funding for research, same goes for biochemists and chemists. </p>
<p>If you want to become a doctor, to be honest, save the time and get a biochem degree. I prefer not to work with people, I rather work behind the scenes.</p>
<p>Just follow whatever makes you happy, and in time… so they say… the money will come and it will be well rewarding that you followed something you are passionate about. Hope this helps some. Good Luck!</p>