Chemical Engineering Undergraduate Advising

Author: Katie Torrey

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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What is my catalog year?

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In most cases your catalog year is the year in which you started at Michigan Tech.  You may be on a newer catalog year for any of the following reasons:

  • changed majors,
  • left the university for two semesters or longer,
  • or requested to move to a newer catalog year.

You can find your catalog year in the upper right-hand corner of your online degree audit on Banweb.  It is labeled catalog term and is a six digit number. The first four digits are the year and the last two digits represent the semester.

  • Fall semester = 08 (semester starts in August)
  • Spring semester = 01 (semester starts in January)
  • Summer semester = 05 (semester starts in May)

For example, if your catalog term is 202108 then you are following the 2021-22 degree requirements. The academic year starts in the fall and runs through summer.

If you are pursuing a minor, the catalog year for the minor may be different than the catalog year for your major.

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What changed on the new 2021-22 ChE flowchart?

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If you are comparing the 2021-22 flowchart with an older version, then here’s what look for:

CM 2110 Material and Energy Balances. The title was change from Fundamentals of ChE I to Material and Energy Balances. The class itself hasn’t changed.

CM 3230 Thermodynamics for ChE. This course was moved from spring of third year to spring of second year and CH 3510 pchem lecture is no longer a prerequisite.

CM 3240 Separations. This is a new course that is replacing the old CM 2120 Fundamentals of ChE II course. CM 3240 is considered an equivalent to CM 2120, and so if you’ve already taken CM 2120 then you do not need to take this new course. The new CM 3240 course requires CM 3230 thermo as a prereq.

CM 3980 Sustainable ChE and CM 4320 Process Safety. These are new courses that are replacing CM 4310 Chemical Process Safety/Environment. You may take the new CM 3980 sustainability course anytime after completing CM 2110 and differential equations and we will be offering it both fall and spring semesters even though the flowchart only has it listed for fall semesters.

Technical Electives. The technical elective rules were simplified. The CH 2420 Organic Chemistry II or CM 4740 Hydro/Pyro or BL 2100 Principles of Biochemistry option was changed to a technical elective. CH 3511 Pchem Lab was changed to a technical elective. The core engineering elective was changed to a technical elective. On the new curriculum you need 18 credits of technical electives. The flowchart shows this as CM 1000 Intro to ChE plus an additional 17 credits of technical electives.

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If I am on probation, how does taking summer classes affect my academic standing?

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If you are taking summer classes at Michigan Tech then it is treated just like any other semester, regardless of whether or not you are taking a full load of classes. Doing well in your summer classes can bring you off of academic probation. Doing poorly in your summer classes can put you on academic probation or count towards an additional semester of probation if you are already on probation. Go to the Dean of Students webpage for more information on the academic probation policy.

If you are taking summer classes at a different school then it will not affect your academic standing at Michigan Tech.

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If I get a CD or D in my math class, do I have to retake it?

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No, you don’t have to retake it. However we recommend that you do because these topics are important for your junior and senior engineering classes.

You will be using math, chemistry, and physics in your ChE classes to solve various engineering problems.  In particular, using math to solve engineering problems intensifies in the junior year. Students usually struggle with this, even if they have previously done well in their math classes because the problems look different, the terminology is sometimes different, and you’re being asked to recall concepts that you learned a year ago (or longer!).  

To prepare for junior year ChE classes, review topics from calculus, linear algebra, and differential equations. Review your notes from math classes, retake classes you did poorly in, and/or utilize online resources, like Khan Academy.

See also: What happens if I retake a class? and How can I succeed in ChE at Michigan Tech?

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