Chemical Engineering Undergraduate Advising

Day: May 7, 2014

Where can I find info on industrial safety?

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From C&EN, May 20, 2013:

Dow Chemical has launched a laboratory safety website that includes a comprehensive set of training videos and additional resources, the company announced on May 19.

Publicly accessible at http://safety.dow.com, the website incorporates 30 professionally produced videos. Several more are still in production. Pankaj Gupta, a research and development leader in Dow’s oil, gas, and mining business, unveiled the site at the Council for Chemical Research annual meeting being held this week in Arlington, Va.

“It appears to have a lot of very good resources, and we will look at them very carefully,” says Peter Ashbrook, director of the division of research safety at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. “I think Dow should be commended for putting this material out for public consumption.”

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How can I succeed in ChE at Michigan Tech?

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Thanks for asking!  We have a whole handout on that.  The main idea is this:

Build a good foundation in math, physics, and chemistry (C or better).

It takes a long time to get to junior classes in chemical engineering, and yet it is only really in those junior classes that you will use much of the preparation that you are building.  In the fall junior classes we use:  calc 1, calc 2, calc 3****, differential equations, physics 1, and freshman chemistry.  Thus, it is important to build a good foundation.

Another good tool to look at as you plan your college experience is the prerequisite map.  The interdependence of the chemical engineering courses with the foundation courses is clear from the course prerequisites for the chemical engineering classes.

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What are the rules for repeating classes?

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  • You may only retake a class in which you receive a CD, D, or F.
  • The second grade always replaces the first grade, even if the second grade is lower. If you retake a class and receive a better grade, the new grade replaces the old grade.  This will improve both your semester and overall GPAs. However you can retake a class and get a worse grade. For example if you have a D (a passing grade) and retake a course and receive an F (a failing grade), you now have a failing grade in the course and would have to retake the class a third time.
  • You may only take a class three times. You must receive permission from the Office of Student Affairs and your academic advisor to register for a class the third time. If the class that you are retaking is a required class for your program, and you do not pass the class during the third attempt, then you may no longer continue in the program.
  • You may retake a class at another institution and transfer in the credit.  If you earn a C or better (note that CD and C- do not transfer) in a course that transfers in as one you wish to replace, the credit will transfer and the original grade will be removed from the calculation of your GPA.  The grade you earn at the other institution does not transfer; only the credit transfers, and only if you earn a C or higher.

The University’s policy on retaking classes is posted on the Registrar’s website.

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What are the implications of being on probation?

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Students who are not making satisfactory progress toward a degree are placed on academic probation. Academic probation is a strong warning to students that their scholastic performance is less than that expected by the University.  A student seeking an undergraduate degree is placed on academic probation when any of the following is true:

  1. The University cumulative GPA is below 2.00.
  2. The GPA for the most recent semester is below 2.00.
  3. The cumulative departmental GPA is below 2.00, based on at least 16 credits.

Students on probation are limited in the number of credits they may take.  For more on probation, go to the Registrar’s website (search for probation Michigan Tech).

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What is the Order of the Engineer?

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From Tech Today, May 1, 2014:

The Department of Chemical Engineering conducted its first Order of the Engineer Ring Ceremony on Thursday, April 17, 2014. Fifty-four students and faculty were inducted and took a solemn obligation to themselves to “uphold devotion to the standards and dignity of the engineering profession.” The inductees were presented with a stainless steel ring worn on the fifth finger of the working hand to remind themselves of this obligation. KRC Director Jay Meldrum was the keynote speaker and talked about examples of unethical decisions or acts he observed during different stages of his career and the decisions he made.

For more on the Order of the Engineer, see their website.

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By what date must I register for my courses?

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The last day to register for a course is the last day of week 1 of the term (Friday, 5pm).  Courses do fill, however, so it is advisable to register well before that.  In Chemical Engineering, the main technical courses do not fill, meaning, we will keep adding seats to accommodate all students who wish to take the courses.  Lab sections do fill, however, and you may not get your first choice of lab section if you wait until the last minute to register.

Outside of the Chemical Engineering program, courses do sometimes fill up, and again, lab sections fill.  If you find that you need a section that is full, please contact the Departmental coordinator for the department offering the course.  This person  may be able to get you into the course or may put you on a waiting list.  The coordinators have a good idea of whether a new section will be added or whether one more person can be squeezed into the course.

For first and second year General Education courses, there are hard limits on the numbers of seats offered, but there are often good substitute courses you can take to keep making progress in your degree.  If UN1015 Composition is full, for example, take UN1025 Global Issues.

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A class that I planned to take has a time conflict with another class; can I take them both?

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It is not a good idea to take classes that you know you cannot attend portions of.  There are circumstances, however, when this is a reasonable thing to do, such as when two classes conflict but do not meet for all of their scheduled time periods.

To allow for this, you may register for two classes with overlapping times under the following conditions:

  1. You obtain the Time Conflict Permission Form
  2. Fill out the form with the course names and CRN numbers (from BanWeb)
  3. You obtain the signatures of the instructors of both courses.  It is not sufficient to obtain the signature of the instructor who says you may skip his/her lectures–Both signatures are required.
  4. Turn in the completed form to the Registrar’s office.  If you wish to register for the course during your registration time slot, you must submit this form well before your expected registration time.
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