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Chemical Engineering MEng

2024-25 (also available for 2025-26)

It’s not too late to apply for September.
It’s not too late to apply for September.

Start date

16 September 2024

Duration

4 years full-time
5 years inc placement

Entry requirements

A Level - AAB-BBB

See full entry requirements

Places available (subject to change)

50

About the course

Reasons to study

  1. This course is accredited by the Institution of Chemical Engineers and could help you to achieve Chartered Chemical Engineer status after graduation.
  2. Your learning will take place in new £18.2 million facilities such as our dedicated chemical engineering labs with which include pilot-scale rigs.
  3. Launch your career: recent graduates are now employed by BAE Systems, National Nuclear Laboratory, Halliburton and more.

Chemical engineering is a specialised branch of engineering that’s constantly innovating ways to address the universal need for food, water, energy, and materials. Tap into this vital field within our Chemical Engineering MEng course, which provides you with the advanced skills and knowledge needed for potentially exciting career opportunities which will allow you to make an impact on the world. Chemical engineers are more in-demand than ever in the 21st century, thanks to global challenges like climate change and fossil fuel depletion.

Why study Chemical Engineering MEng

This MEng course is a step up from the undergraduate Chemical Engineering BEng(Hons) course. It’s accredited by the Institution of Chemical Engineers (IChemE), meaning it will provide you with in-depth coverage of industry-relevant Chemical Engineering material, from the fundamentals all the way to process design. You’ll be prepared to start your journey towards achieving Chartered Chemical Engineer status after completion.

This course is strong on the subject of chemistry in the context of chemical engineering, as well as on the following skills: systems thinking, mathematics, and process safety.

You’ll gain relevant real-world experience throughout this course. You’ll be taught by leading academics through lectures, seminars, and sessions, which will be supplemented by modern industry instruments in our specialist chemical sciences and chemical engineering labs which feature pilot-scale rigs. Following your first two years in the course, you’ll put your knowledge and skills to the test in an optional supervised work placement. During this placement year, you’ll:

  • Experience working in a real-world environment within the industry, in the UK or internationally.
  • Explore employment opportunities within organisations related to your studies and chosen pathway.
  • Network with potential employers and construct work experience profiles to prepare for a future Chemical Engineering career.

This advanced course will prepare you for a variety of potentially exciting careers in a range of fields in the industry. You could work in oil and gas, materials, pharmaceuticals and more.

Course detail

Core modules:

Organic Chemistry 1

This module teaches you to recognise a range of functional groups and to name systematically compounds that contain them. Structure and bonding in organic compounds are discussed, as are the concepts of the octet rule, orbital hybridisation, formal charge, bond polarisation and resonance. The importance of molecular geometry is introduced and the basic principles of molecular conformation and of stereochemistry are covered. In preparation for the chemistry to follow, an integrated treatment of the 'language of chemical change' is presented. The ideas of mechanism and reaction intermediates are met, together with the curly arrow symbolism which chemists use to represent the electron movement inherent in chemical reactions. In the second half of the module, the chemistry of the principal functional groups is considered, using the ideas developed earlier. The lecture programme is reinforced by regular tutorials in which problems are worked. Running parallel to the lecture programme is a continuously assessed practical course that introduces you to the basic techniques of preparative organic chemistry.

Physical Chemistry 1

This module covers four areas of physical chemistry: properties of ideal and non-ideal introductory thermodynamics, solution chemistry of acids, bases and salts and reaction kinetics, including catalysis.

Chemical Engineering Design 1

This module introduces you to the industrial manufacture of important chemicals and prepares you to formulate and solve material and energy balances on chemical systems. It also lays the foundation for subsequent courses in unit operations and chemical reaction engineering. It introduces the principles of operation and analysis of operations in chemical processes and the use of computer software packages including chemical engineering simulation software.

Heat Transfer and Fluid Flow

This module introduces you to the fundamental concepts of fluid flow and heat transfer with emphasis on practical design and rating calculations.

Chemical Engineering Labs and Sustainability

This module covers two distinct areas of learning relevant to chemical engineers: practical chemical engineering laboratory skills; and an introduction to sustainability. The Chemical Engineering Laboratory component of the module engages you with practical laboratory skills in a chemical engineering context. You'll have the opportunity to learn skills of safe laboratory practice; data recording, analysis, presentation and interpretation; practical application of fundamental chemical engineering knowledge; and basic technical report writing skills. The sustainability component of the module introduces you to the fundamental concepts and methodologies in sustainability. It will introduce the 17 sustainable development goals set by the United Nations, as well as covering environment protection, carbon footprint, carbon capture, water footprint and life cycle assessment.

Mathematics

In this key first year module you will gain fundamental knowledge and practical techniques in Engineering Mathematics to deal with analytical modules in the subsequent years of your course. Amongst the subjects you will study will be: functions, linear mathematics, calculus and numerical techniques to solve real world engineering problems.

The first year of the course covers the key concepts in chemical engineering and the underlying chemistry and maths, with lectures supported by tutorial and workshop classes, along with practical laboratory sessions. Subsequent years build on the first year and cover industry relevant areas of chemical engineering, process and plant design. The final year offers you the opportunity to undertake a substantial research project and advanced modules that enable you to broaden and deepen your knowledge of chemical engineering. You also have the option of incorporating a Supervised Work Experience placement in the third year of the course.

Entry requirements

AAB-BBBat A Level including Maths and either Chemistry or Physics. The endorsement for practical work is an essential part of Science A Level study, and is a requirement for entry to our degree course.

136-120 UCAS tariff points from a combination of Level 3 qualifications including A Levels in Maths and either Chemistry or Physics. The endorsement for practical work is an essential part of Science A Level study, and is a requirement for entry to our degree course.

If you do not have the appropriate qualifications for direct entry to this degree you may be able to apply to our Science Extended Degree (BCF0).

If your first language is not English, you will need to meet the minimum requirements of an English Language qualification. The minimum for IELTS is 6.0 overall with no element lower than 5.5, or equivalent. Read more about the University’s entry requirements for students outside of the UK on our Where are you from information pages.

Other suitable experience or qualifications will be considered. For further information please see the University's minimum entry requirements.

Meet our students


Jamie studied Chemical Engineering MEng. Watch his film to find out why Jamie chose the University of Huddersfield after coming to an Open Day, how he was impressed with the 'spectacular' equipment available on his course and the work placement he undertook in his first year. 

Placements


In the third year of this course, you’ll get the chance to step out of the classroom and into the real world on an optional placement year working for an organisation related to your areas of interest. This is when you’ll really be able to see your knowledge in action, pick up invaluable skills for your future career and boost your employability to help you hit the ground running after graduation.

You could stay to do your placement in the UK or experience a new culture and work abroad for one year. Where could this year take you?

Previous students in the Chemical Engineering subject area have undertaken placements with Brenntag, Seagates, Thornton & Ross, University of Huddersfield, Pepsico, Stephenson Group, CPI (Centre for Process Innovation) and Verdant Specialty Solutions (nee Solvay).

During my placement year, as a Junior Process Engineer, I gained hands-on experience in chemical engineering, design and conducting hazard and operability studies (HAZOP).  It was good to see the applications of what I'd studied in my degree in the context of the real world.

Jamie-Wordsworth

Jamie Wordsworth, Chemical Engineering MEng, placement at Manrochem

Your career


The chemical industry is an important industrial sector employing many chemical and process engineers, and chemical engineers are unique in being able to design chemical processes. But chemical engineers can do much more, and chemical engineering graduates find employment in many other sectors that value the numerate and joined-up thinking that characterises the chemical engineer and gives them their power. As a graduate of this course, you may consider a career in a wide range of areas, including chemical manufacturing, environmental consultancy, nuclear engineering, scale-up and plant design, process plant trouble shooting, oil and gas, water, food and energy, research and development, patent law and teaching.

Previous graduates from our courses in the subject area of Chemical Engineering have gone on to work in roles such as Process Engineer at Spirit Energy, Process Operator at Dow, Process Engineer at Sterling Pharma Solutions, Safety Engineer at BAE Systems, Drilling Fluids Engineer at Halliburton, Process Safety Engineer at Flogas, Radiological Safety Assessor at National Nuclear Laboratory and Supply Chain Manager at Procter & Gamble.**

*85% of graduates from this course were in work or further study 15 months after graduation (HESA Graduate Outcomes 20/21, UK Domiciled).

**University of Huddersfield

85% Graduates employed*

Student support

At the University of Huddersfield, you'll find support networks and services to help you get ahead in your studies and social life. Whether you study at undergraduate or postgraduate level, you'll soon discover that you're never far away from our dedicated staff and resources to help you to navigate through your personal student journey. Find out more about all our support services.

Important information

We will always try to deliver your course as described on this web page. However, sometimes we may have to make changes as set out below.

Changes to a course you have applied for

If we propose to make a major change to a course that you are holding an offer for, then we will tell you as soon as possible so that you can decide whether to withdraw your application prior to enrolment.

Cancellation of a course you have applied for

Although we always try and run all of the course we offer, we may occasionally have to withdraw a course you have applied for or combine your programme with another programme if we consider this reasonably necessary to ensure a good student experience, for example if there are not enough applicants to ensure you have a good learning experience. Where this is the case we will notify you as soon as reasonably possible and we will contact you to discuss other suitable courses with us we can transfer your application to. If we notify you that the course you have applied to has been withdrawn or combined, and you do not wish to transfer to another course with us, you may cancel your application and we will refund you any deposits or fees you have paid to us.

Changes to your course after you enrol as a student

We will always try to deliver your course and other services as described. However, sometimes we may have to make changes as set out below:

Changes to option modules

Where your course allows you to choose modules from a range of options, we will review these each year and change them to reflect the expertise of our staff, current trends in research and as a result of student feedback or demand for certain modules. We will always ensure that you have a range of options to choose from and we will let you know in good time the options available for you to choose for the following year.

Major changes

We will only make major changes to the core curriculum of a course or to our services if it is necessary for us to do so and provided such changes are reasonable. A major change in this context is a change that materially changes the services available to you; or the outcomes, or a significant part, of your course, such as the nature of the award or a substantial change to module content, teaching days (part time provision), classes, type of delivery or assessment of the core curriculum.

For example, it may be necessary to make a major change to reflect changes in the law or the requirements of the University’s regulators; to meet the latest requirements of a commissioning or accrediting body; to improve the quality of educational provision; in response to student, examiners’ or other course evaluators’ feedback; and/or to reflect academic or professional changes within subject areas. Major changes may also be necessary because of circumstances outside our reasonable control, such as a key member of staff leaving the University or being unable to teach, where they have a particular specialism that can’t be adequately covered by other members of staff; or due to damage or interruption to buildings, facilities or equipment.

Major changes would usually be made with effect from the next academic year, but this may not always be the case. We will notify you as soon as possible should we need to make a major change and will carry out suitable consultation with affected students. If you reasonably believe that the proposed change will cause you detriment or hardship we will, if appropriate, work with you to try to reduce the adverse effect on you or find an appropriate solution. Where an appropriate solution cannot be found and you contact us in writing before the change takes effect you can cancel your registration and withdraw from the University without liability to the University for future tuition fees. We will provide reasonable support to assist you with transferring to another university if you wish to do so.

Termination of course

In exceptional circumstances, we may, for reasons outside of our control, be forced to discontinue or suspend your course. Where this is the case, a formal exit strategy will be followed and we will notify you as soon as possible about what your options are, which may include transferring to a suitable replacement course for which you are qualified, being provided with individual teaching to complete the award for which you were registered, or claiming an interim award and exiting the University. If you do not wish to take up any of the options that are made available to you, then you can cancel your registration and withdraw from the course without liability to the University for future tuition fees and you will be entitled to a refund of all course fees paid to date. We will provide reasonable support to assist you with transferring to another university if you wish to do so.

When you enrol as a student of the University, your study and time with us will be governed by a framework of regulations, policies and procedures, which form the basis of your agreement with us. These include regulations regarding the assessment of your course, academic integrity, your conduct (including attendance) and disciplinary procedure, fees and finance and compliance with visa requirements (where relevant). It is important that you familiarise yourself with these as you will be asked to agree to abide by them when you join us as a student. You will find a guide to the key terms here, along with the Student Protection Plan, where you will also find links to the full text of each of the regulations, policies and procedures referred to. You should read these carefully before you enrol. Please note that this information is subject to change and you are advised to check our website regularly for any changes before you enrol at the University. A person who is not party to this agreement shall not have any rights under or in connection with it. Only you and the University shall have any right to enforce or rely on the agreement.

The Office for Students (OfS) is the principal regulator for the University.

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