<p>Hey all i'm currently a sophomore majoring in chemistry, on track to graduate in 3 and a half years. I've been working in a lab working on supramolecular synthesis and am fascinated by it but am frustrated by the lack of a end goal that the lab group displays. Instead of working to design the nano tubes that we are synthesizing to serve a specific purpose or improve on an existing idea it is simply research for research's sake. And while this is really interesting i do not want to go through the grinder of getting a phd in chemistry/post docs and all that jazz. So i thought about making the switch to chemical engineering and i could actually make this change and still graduate in four years, but it would require taking 3-4 chemical engineering classes every single semester on top of technical electives, and i do not think this course load is manageable. So i'm facing a dilemma, do i stay in school for an extra year and a half and accumulate more debt or do i blow through my chemistry major, which is really not difficult at all, and try to get into a chemical engineering graduate program and make the switch then. I know that boston college offers a program that transitions science majors into a chemical engineering graduate program. Furthermore since my interests really lie with nanotechnology and applied science is chemical engineering the correct route to go? I'm really trying to ensure that i pick a track that will have the best pay and job prospects, but then thats what everyone wants right? haha thanks in advance.</p>
<p>My school (UCI) and a neighboring one (UCSD) actively welcome Chemistry students into Chemical Engineering grad school. You must take the following classes to be eligible:</p>
<p>Mass Balance, Thermodynamics, 1 year of transport phenomena, Reaction Kinetics and Reactor Design.</p>
<p>So in your opinion should i simply fill those classes in the empty spots in my schedule? Doing this i would be able to graduate in four years, saving myself some 10k in debt, and allow me to keep my gpa at a 3.7. so obviously this would be the preferred option as it keeps me on track to graduate early. Also do chemical engineering graduate schools look favorably upon research experience and publications? Right now the lab group i’m in is on the brink of a breakthrough and i’m looking at getting a second authorship on the paper.</p>
<p>Many Engineering students finish up their undergrad in longer than 4 years anyway. But you don’t want that, so how about graduating chem major and getting a Master’s in ChemE? You’ll be more qualified and get more research-related jobs. You can take undergrad courses you missed before you begin the program to make up.</p>
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<p>No ****</p>
<p>OP, are you sure Boston College provides that transition from Chemistry to Chemical Engineering? Can you post a link please?</p>
<p>yg7s7 about the research experience do you mean No as in YES it’s good or No as in it’s not necessary???</p>
<p>Yes (10 char)</p>
<p>Well the reason why i don’t want to stay in school longer is pure economics. Every year i spend in undergrad is another 10k of debt i accumulate. So if instead of spending an extra year in undergrad i can spend that year in graduate school getting paid, albeit very little, thats money in my pocket. With regards to the boston college comment i mis spoke. Boston college doesn’t even have a chem e graduate program. I know that i read about a transition program from chemistry to chemical engineering somewhere, just can’t remember where. But basically as long as i take the required courses it wouldn’t be a problem to go to chemical engineering graduate school and i would not be at a competitive disadvantage to someone who has an undergraduate degree in chemical engineering? I have about 18-24 hours in my schedule that are semi free that i could plug full of chem e classes which would cover about half of the required courses in the major. </p>
<p>And with regards to the research, that was a dumb question, i should have phrased it instead as how much of a benefit does it play? I know that chemistry graduate programs love seeing undergraduate students with research experience especially if it includes second or first authorships, both of which are likely to develop in the next few months for me. </p>
<p>And finally, and maybe most importantly, could someone tell me if this sounds like the domain of a chemical engineer rather than a chemist. In my current lab group we are working on developing nano tubes using pyridines as the building block. Essentially the problem that we have run into now is that after a certain size the tubes begin to twist and form a double helix which destroys their usefulness. So what we are trying to do is react metal to form an organo metallic framework that will support a larger inner cavity. Now when i see this project i view it as a means to an end, not an end in itself. When i see the nano tubes i think okay what can we do with them that is useful and profitable? To me the really cool part is taking these nano tubes and applying them to reactions that previously had been non usable in industry due to their low yields and using them as a catalyst so that, due to the steric hinderance of the cavity, the desired product is favored almost exclusively over that of the non desired products. Think of the use of pallidum as a catalyst with hydrogen gas. Thus what really interests me is not necessarily the research itself but rather the applications of it. In other words its taking process from a lab and ramping it up to industrial uses and making it marketable that really interests me. this is more of a chemical engineer than a chemist correct?</p>
<p>^Chemical Engineers’ job is to use what Chemists have discovered and mass-produced the chemical for industrial use, so you’re correct. As for research, Science and Engineering are actually very similar when it comes to it, and so are Chemistry and Chemical Engineering. </p>
<p>Are you sure you’re not talking about Boston University’s LEAP program? Well BU doesn’t have ChemE major either.</p>
<p>Yup thats it, the leap program. But then i’m a chemistry major so not sure if that would apply to me.</p>
<p>A Chemistry major, along with other majors like math, other sciences, and even humanities or education, can enter LEAP program. What I meant was it doesn’t provide you a transition TO Chemical Engineering.</p>
<p>[BU</a> Engineering | LEAP](<a href=“http://www.bu.edu/eng/leap/at-a-glance/overview.html]BU”>http://www.bu.edu/eng/leap/at-a-glance/overview.html)</p>
<p>Actually one of the disciplines they teach is Materials Science and Engineering. I think that’s the one closest to Chemical Engineering, if you’re interested.</p>