Chemical Graduate Degrees Offered

The department offers a Master’s degree in Chemical Engineering with either a Plan I (thesis) or Plan II (non-thesis) option, as well as a PhD in Engineering with a concentration in Chemical Engineering. General requirements for the degrees offered follow.

Information presented here provides a quick overview of the degree programs; consult the UNM catalog for complete details.

Core Courses (MS, PhD)
Students in the chemical engineering MS program are required to take the core courses listed below. Students admitted to the chemical engineering doctoral program and not already possessing an MS in Chemical Engineering are generally required to complete the chemical engineering core courses.

  • ChNE 501/502: Graduate Seminar (required every semester up to 4 semesters for MS students, up to 8 semesters for PhD students) – 1 cr
  • ChNE 521: Advanced Transport Phenomena I – 3 cr
  • ChNE 525: Methods of Analysis in Chemical and Nuclear Engineering – 3 cr
  • ChNE 561: Kinetics of Chemical Processes – 3 cr
  • ChNE 542: Advanced Chemical Engineering Thermodynamics – 3 cr

MS, Plan I (Thesis option)

  • 24 hrs of course work, including core courses
  • 6 hrs thesis
  • Significant milestones:
    • Thesis defense
    • Submission of completed thesis

MS, Plan II (Non-thesis option)
NOTE: The non-thesis option is available only with prior approval

  • 33 hrs coursework, including core courses, and maximum of 6 hrs of ChNE 551/552: Problems
  • Completion of Master’s project under the direction of a faculty member (typically be done as part of a Problems course)
  • Significant milestones:
    • Master’s Examination, consisting of an oral presentation and defense of the student’s major project, as well as oral examination of the student’s discipline principles

PhD

  • A minimum of 48 hrs of coursework beyond the bachelor’s degree (excluding dissertation hrs)
    • At least 24 hours of coursework applied to the degree must be completed at UNM
    • At least 18 hours must be completed after formal admission to the doctoral program (or approval of Change of Degree Form for students continuing from the MS).
    • 30 hours maximum credit applied to a master’s degree, which may include up to 6 hours of thesis credit
  • 18 hours dissertation
  • Significant milestones:
    • Qualifying Exam: The qualifying exam in chemical engineering consists of a written and oral exam and is required for all students to proceed in the doctoral program. The Exam should be taken at the first opportunity after completing the required core courses.
    • Comprehensive Exam
    • Dissertation defense
    • Submission of completed dissertation

More Information