Chemical engineering
Chemical engineering
What do chemical engineers do?
Chemical engineering blends chemistry with engineering and other fields including biological science, environmental science, nanotechnology, pharmaceutical science, mathematical modelling, mineral processing, management and economics. Many everyday items involve chemical engineering during some stage of their production: pharmaceuticals, computer chips, mobile phones, catalysts, food and water, and our fossil fuel and renewable energy sources, to name just a few.
Chemical engineers invent, develop, design and improve the sustainability of processes that convert raw materials into useful products, with minimal environmental impact. They’re also involved with pollution control, energy generation and conservation, recovering energy from waste and renewable resources, and protection of the environment.
Your future career options
When you graduate as a chemical engineer, you could play a leading role in solving the challenge of providing society with food, energy and water. Exciting career opportunities are also available for highly trained chemical engineers in emerging industries of nanotechnology and biotechnology.
As a chemical engineer, you can:
- develop alternative fuels and renewable sources for chemicals, pharmaceuticals and power production
- design, develop or improve industrial processes and equipment for large-scale chemical and biochemical manufacturing
- plan and test methods of manufacturing
- improve energy efficiency or reduce water and resource consumption at manufacturing sites
- develop sustainable methods for the treatment of byproducts and waste from manufacturing processes
- devise green production processes that are safe, efficient, profitable and environmentally sound
- research naturally-occurring chemical reactions so that these processes can be copied for human benefit
- conduct environmental impact studies
- develop and implement lower emission production technologies
- research and develop new processes and products including mathematical modelling
- design, develop and use advanced and renewable materials.
- design processes to capture carbon to combat global warming
You could also have a career in law, mining, business or government. Our graduates have gone on to successful careers in top companies including DuPont, Tesla, ExxonMobile, PPG, Goldman Sachs, NASA, Apple, Nestlè, Tata, BHP, PepsiCo and BASF.
Graduate work-ready
Leverage our world-wide industry connections, find your entrepreneurial spirit, discover your leadership and professional style and kick-start your career with an internship. There’s a range of extracurricular programs to prepare you for success and your dream career.
The new Co-operative Education Program provides relevant work experience opportunities through internships with our partner organisations. Undertake a three, six or 12 month paid internship and explore different industry sectors, understand what it is to be a working engineer and connect the experience to your studies in a practical way. You’ll enhance your technical and professional skills, build industry connections and gain skills to give you the edge in a competitive employment market.
Our Career Connect program gives you access to experienced coaches and industry based professionals. Take part in employability workshops, small group career conversations and, in your final year, one-on-one coaching.
The Monash Engineering Career Ready Series has been developed to provide all Monash Engineering students with opportunities to extend their learning beyond the classroom, helping them to stand out from the crowd as they move into the workforce.
The series is structured around a range of professional development events and activities that are focused on finetuning each student’s employability skills.
The MITI program provides an invaluable experience that’ll equip you for life’s challenges by offering insights into the business world, practical learning, leadership and teamwork opportunities. Students are competitively selected from a range of fields to form multidisciplinary teams. Working as part of a team, you’ll be placed alongside industry experts and given a challenging, well-defined real-world project to deliver, pushing you to use all of your problem-solving, innovation and design skills. This may even be in a company based overseas.
Creativity and entrepreneurialism are at the centre of engineering design education at Monash. You can access dedicated, collaborative design and build spaces to take an idea to reality. The university’s entrepreneurial initiative, The Generator, provides experiential education, mentors and seed funding to support you and your startup or social enterprise on your entrepreneurial journey.
I chose chemical engineering because of my interest in improving sustainable processing, such as reducing carbon emissions by creating circular economies and providing cleaner energy.
At Monash, there is so much scope for exploring your career, hobbies and interests. I helped establish a student team, Monash Carbon Capture and Conversion (MC3). The team recently won a competition sponsored by Elon Musk and the XPRIZE Foundation, for creating a new environmental solution to pull carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and oceans.”
Garv Bhardwaj
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Bachelor of Chemical Engineering (Honours)
Technology Advisor, Monash Carbon Capture and Conversion (MC3)
What you’ll study in your undergraduate degree
You’ll begin with the basics of chemical engineering, mass and energy balances, fluid flow and other core fundamentals. Once you reach third year, you’ll look into the design of chemical engineering plants and equipment, and how we incorporate the environmental impact and safety aspects into the design process. You can choose to specialise in two of four engineering chemical engineering technical elective topics:
Biotechnology
The use of biological processes for commercial and industrial applications. These include the use of recombinant DNA, the development of micro-organisms, and new bioprocessing techniques.
Sustainable processing
Sustainability and life-cycle assessment for environmental benefit. Develop processes to the manufacturing of existing processes and new products from renewable raw materials.
Nanotechnology
Is engineering at the molecular level to a new generation of products that are cleaner, smaller, stronger, lighter and more precise.
Green chemistry
Sustainable green approaches to chemical reactions for efficient, cleaner processes and products with less waste.
Expand your skills with an engineering minor
As a chemical engineer the career opportunities are diverse and you may find yourself working in one of many adjacent fields of engineering. Selecting your electives from one of our minor programs will ensure that you have the background knowledge required to make strong contributions in your role from day one.
A minor offers you a depth and breadth of study in the adjacent field which widens your knowledge and enhances your career opportunities – all within your four-year Engineering degree. The engineering minors available in chemical engineering specialisation of the Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) are:
Artificial intelligence in engineering
Computational engineering
Engineering entrepreneurship
Micro and nano technologies
Mining engineering
Renewable energy engineering
Smart manufacturing
Sustainable engineering
Course details
Bachelor of Chemical engineering (Honours)
4 years full-time / 8 years part-time
Starts: February and July
At Monash you can become a fully qualified and accredited engineer in just four years. Your degree kicks off with a ‘common first year’ that allows you to explore the ten engineering disciplines before specialising from second year.
Learn more about undergraduate study at Monash Engineering
Complement your engineering specialisation with a minor and tailor your studies to explore your interests and expand your career opportunities. Choose from:
- Artificial intelligence in engineering
- Computational engineering
- Micro and nano technologies
- Mining engineering
- Renewable energy engineering
- Smart manufacturing
- Sustainable engineering
Earn two degrees with only one* extra year of study and broaden your career opportunities. Combining engineering with another degree gives you a distinct set of skills and helps you stand out in today’s competitive job market.
Combine chemical engineering with:
- Arts
- Biomedical Science
- Commerce
- Laws (Honours)
- Pharmaceutical Science
- Science
Discover more about this course, including study areas, entry requirements, fees and scholarships
Your pathway to success
From your first day to your final lecture, you’ll have everything you need to be prepared for a successful career.
There's a range of extracurricular activities and programs to support you to pursue your passions and get the most from your uni experience. Develop hands-on skills, build friendships and networks, undertake opportunities to think and work globally, plus get a head start on your career through work-based learning.
Join a student team
You can join one of the many student teams like Monash BrewLab, Precious Plastics, Monash Motorsport or Engineers Without Borders and form lasting friendships, get hands on experience and put your classroom learning into practice.
Learn in world-leading facilities
Some of the facilities and research centres that will enhance your learning experience include the Woodside building for Technology and Design, Monash Makerspace, the TITAN Microscope and Monash Centre for Membrane Innovation (MCMI). We work with industry to carry out pioneering research and deliver sustainable solutions to global challenges.
Professional development opportunities
You’ll have access to extracurricular programs that will unlock your potential and prepare you for work and a successful career.
Apply for a scholarship
Scholarships available to help unlock your engineering talents and contribute to a better future.
Chemical engineering stories and research
Graduate study options
Whether you want to gain a professional edge, or are looking to explore your specialisation at an advanced level or pursue research interests, graduate study will take your qualification to the next level.
Master of Engineering
This course will extend your technical knowledge in your chosen specialisation area and advance your leadership and complex problem-solving skills. There are five engineering specialisations to choose from: biological, civil, electrical, materials and mechanical. Giving you the opportunity to explore your specialisation at an advanced level and pursue your career goals.
Designed to foster innovative thinking, entrepreneurship and professional development, you will be well-positioned to lead and deliver sustainable engineering solutions.
Master of Professional Engineering
This course is for students who have completed undergraduate studies in engineering or in another field such as science, mathematics or pharmacy and are seeking an internationally recognised engineering qualification to practice as a professional engineer. In this masters program, you'll specialise in engineering technical, research and professional units and undertake a design and a research project, blending theory and practice.
This is pathway program for high-achieving students to be on track to earn, in just five years, both a Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) and an expert master’s degree in engineering. The Masters Accelerated Pathway program allows you to gain practical and theoretical skills for a career in engineering. There’s a rich selection of specialist electives to choose from, and the course offers strong links to industry and a focus on leadership skills to strengthen your critical reasoning and strategic thinking skills.
Make an impact and solve real world issues with a PhD or masters by research degree. Be involved in pioneering research that can impact the world, collaborate and be mentored by leading researchers and expand your career options. A graduate research degree opens doors not just in industry and academia but also in roles outside your research area.
Find out more about the course
Learn more about the course
Ask a question, find out how to apply, or discover more about this course, including study areas, entry requirements, fees and scholarships.
Events and info sessions
There's a range of events held throughout the year for you to talk to current students, meet our lecturers, see our innovative facilities and experience Monash Engineering first-hand.