Chemical Engineering Undergraduate Advising

Author: Katie Torrey

How do I register for ENT 4950?

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ENT 4950 and ENT 4960 are for students using Enterprise for their senior capstone design experience.  

You need permission to enroll in ENT 4950 and your project will need to be approved. We will allow you to enroll in ENT 4950 prior to having your project approved so that you can get your schedule and financial aid settled before the semester starts.

You must be senior design ready and currently enrolled in Enterprise in order to take ENT 4950.  You are senior design ready when you are able to enroll in CM 4855 Process Analysis and Design I. You’ll need to be enrolled in both CM 4855 and ENT 4950 next semester.

For permission to enroll in ENT 4950 go to the Enterprise Student Resources page, go to the Forms section, and complete the ENT 4950 Registration Form (ALL Majors).

This approval/registration process is paperless and uses a series of Google forms and system-generated emails sent from enterprisereg@mtu.edu. Watch for these emails and save them because they contain the link you need to submit your project for approval.

See related:  How do I get a project approved for senior design?

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How do I get a project approved for senior design?

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You will submit an abstract describing your project. To be approved the project must:

  • require the use of knowledge and skills acquired in your earlier engineering course work;
  • utilize appropriate engineering standards;
  • incorporate multiple realistic constraints;
  • and include economic considerations, which is typically an economic analysis discriminating between design options.

If your project is through Enterprise then you will submit your abstract using a link you received via email when enrolling in ENT 4950. The email was from enterprisereg@mtu.edu, titled “Part A Approved”.

Your project will be reviewed by the ABET committee chair, Dr. Caneba. You should review your abstract with Dr. Caneba before submitting it because revisions are often necessary. Abstracts are due by week 5 of the semester.

See related:  What needs to be in my senior design abstract for Enterprise? and How do I register for ENT 4950?

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How do I sign up for the undergraduate research course?

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Follow these step to enroll in the course.

Find a faculty supervisor.

Approach a faculty member who is doing research that interests you and request to work with them.  Together you will settle on the research project details.  You’ll need to provide these details when you request to enroll in the class.

Submit the enrollment request form.

The link to the form is on the department’s undergraduate research page.

Complete lab safety training.

You’ll receive an email with a link to the lab safety training system. This needs to be completed the same week that the training was assigned.

Register for the class.

You will be given permission to enroll in the class once the safety training is complete. You can then enroll yourself in the research class on Banweb.

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Do I have to register for the co-op class or can I just skip it?

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It depends.  Enrolling in the co-op class allows you to retain your student status while you are gone.  This can help you keep your financial aid, scholarships, and health insurance.  You can also use the credits towards your degree requirements as technical electives or free electives.  

Your next step is to check with Financial Aid to see how the co-op will impact your situation. They can help you determine if you should be taking the co-op class and if you should take it for one or two credits for financial aid purposes.  In most situations one credit will give you part time status and two credits will give you full time status.

If you are here on an F-1 visa then Career Services recommends you register for co-op credits during the summer as well.  By registering as a co-op student you are considered a full-time student and will not be utilizing your practical training time.

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What happens if I retake a class?

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Important Information on Retaking Classes

You may retake any class.  However I only recommend repeating courses in which you receive a CD, D, or F because a C is good enough.  Before choosing to retake a class, be aware of the following:

The second grade always replaces the first grade.  If you retake a class and receive a better 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 will have to take the class for a third time.  

You may only take a class three times.  You must receive permission from the Dean of Students Office 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.  Below is the link to Michigan Tech’s policy on retaking classes. www.mtu.edu/registrar/students/registration/policies/repeat-course/

Retaking classes you have previously passed may impact your financial aid.  Contact the Student Financial Services Center (www.mtu.edu/finaid/) for an evaluation of your situation.

You may retake a class at another school and transfer in the credit. Only a grade of C or better will transfer. A C- or below does not transfer. It is the credit that transfers, not the grade, and so when you transfer in the course it will remove the previous grade from your Michigan Tech GPA calculation.

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How do I find which gen ed/HASS classes are being offered next semester?

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This will save you time when looking for general education elective classes: 

  1. In Banweb go to “Look-Up Classes to Add” and select “Advanced Search” at the bottom of the page.  
  2. In the Subject box use the shift key to select all the subject areas.  
  3. In the Attribute Type box select what you are looking for.

Attributes are defined as follows: 

  • Critical/Creative Think’g CORE:  These are courses on the Critical & Creative Thinking core list.
  • Soc Resp/Ethical Reason CORE:  These are courses on the Social Responsibility & Ethical Reasoning core list.
  • Composition or Communication:  These are courses on the HASS Communication and Composition list.
  • Humanities & Fine Arts:  These are courses on the HASS Humanities and Fine Arts list.
  • Social & Behavioral Science:  These are courses on the HASS Social and Behavioral Sciences list.
  • HASS Restricted:  These are courses on the HASS Restricted list.
  • Co-Curricular Phys Activity: These are courses on the co-curricular activities list.

IMPORTANT!  Run your online degree audit on Banweb after enrolling to make sure classes are counting where you expect them to.  Contact your advisor if you have questions.

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What do I need to know to plan out a polymer science and engineering minor?

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Here is some additional scheduling information to help you plan. Go to the Registrar’s Office minor page for the most current list of requirements.

Introduction to Polymers Course

Select one course below:

  • BE 4300 Polymeric Biomaterials is usually offered spring of odd years, such as Spring ’23, Spring ’25, etc.
  • CM/CH 4610 Introduction to Polymer Science is usually offered every fall.
  • MSE 4110 Introduction to Polymer Engineering is usually offered every fall.

Chemistry or Engineering Courses

Check with the department offering the course for the expected planned schedule.

Elective Courses

Select remaining credits below:

  • BE 3300 Biomechanics I or MEEM 2150 Mechanics of Materials is usually offered every year.
  • BE 4335 Smart Polymers is usually offered fall of odd years, such as Fall ’21, Fall ’23, etc.
  • CH/CM 4620 Polymer Chemistry is usually offered every spring.
  • CH 4710 Biomolecular Chemistry is usually offered every fall but has a time conflict with CM 4855, which is required for senior chemical engineering students.
  • CM 4060 Undergraduate Research in Polymer Engineering is offered on demand. If you are interested in doing undergraduate research in the chemical engineering department then you will need to talk to the faculty who are doing research in the polymer engineering area to see if they have a project that you can work on with them. The faculty currently doing research in this area are Dr. Liu and Dr. Ong.
  • CM 4650 Polymer Rheology is no longer offered because the faculty retired.
  • ENG 4515 Introduction to Sustainability and Resilience is usually offered every fall. To use this class towards the minor you will need to complete a polymer-related term project. Email your topic to the chemical engineering advisor for approval.
  • ENT Enterprise Project Work. Up to 3 credits of Enterprise project work in the polymer science or engineering area may be approved. Email a brief description of your project to the chemical engineering for approval.
  • MEEM 4170 Failure of Materials in Mechanics is usually offered every spring.
  • MEEM 4635 Design with Plastics has not been offered recently. You will need to check with the Mechanical Engineering Department to see when it will be available next.
  • MSE 4430 Composite Materials is usually offered every spring.
  • Undergraduate Research in the polymer science and engineering area from other departments may be approved. Email a brief description of your research to the chemical engineering advisor for approval. Several students have done polymer chemistry research with Dr. Heiden in the Chemistry Department, as one example.

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How do I get to my online degree audit?

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Go to Banweb to get to your online degree audit. Be sure to run the default audit titled “Latest” because this will run the audit with your correct catalog year. Degree Services has more detailed information on how to run the audit on their webpage. New students will be able to run audits 30 days before the semester starts.

Run your online degree audit every time you change your schedule to check your progress towards graduation.  Unfortunately, the online audit is not perfect. This is why it’s important for you to know where your classes should be counting and which requirements should be complete.  If you have questions then contact your academic advisor to investigate.  

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How do I figure out what classes to take next semester?

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Plan your future semesters based on your interests.  Things to consider:  co-ops, undergraduate research, Enterprise program, minors, study abroad, graduate school.  The more credit you came in with the more flexibility you’ll have and the sooner you can start doing some of these things.  Remember that your plan is a draft and subject to change as you explore your interests. 

The general process for planning out future semesters is as follows: 

  1. Find your degree requirements on the department’s advising webpage or Registrar’s Office webpage.  This is based on your catalog year, which is usually the year that you started at Michigan Tech.  Print out either the flowchart, 4- or 5-year sample schedule, or degree audit to use as a checklist.  
  2. Cross off completed or in-progress requirements.  Write elective courses next to the corresponding requirement to keep track of them.
  3. Run your online degree audit on Banweb to make sure classes are counting where they are expected to.  If they are not then contact your academic advisor to find out why.  Online degree audits for new students will be available 30 days before the semester starts.
  4. Print out a blank academic plan sheet from the department’s advising webpage or set up a spreadsheet and start writing down the classes you plan to take for each future semester.  It usually makes the most sense to start with the major required classes, then minor classes if you are doing a minor, and finally remaining elective classes.

Be aware that the last step takes work. We’ve put a lot of information on the department’s FAQs to help you find your way through the process.  Once you have a rough plan, review it with your academic advisor to make sure you’ve got all the details right. 

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