Chemical Engineering Undergraduate Advising

Category: Transfer Credit

Do I have to take the first-year engineering courses?

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It depends. The first-year engineering courses are:

  • CM 1000 Introduction to Chemical Engineering
  • ENG 1101 Engineering Analysis and Problem Solving, and
  • ENG 1102 Engineering Modeling and Design.

CM 1000 is optional for all students.  CM 1000 is a technical elective.  We recommend taking CM 1000 either before or at the same time as CM 2110 Material and Energy Balances.  If you have already completed CM 2110, then we recommend choosing a different technical elective instead.  

ENG 1101 and ENG 1102 are required for all students.  However, transfer students coming in with at least 50 credits and credit for MA 3160 Multivariable Calculus with Technology or one of the differential equations courses (MA 3520, MA 3521, MA 3530, or MA 3560) may choose to take substitute courses instead.  If you are planning to take a substitute course, then contact your academic advisor to have the adjustment made to your online degree audit.

See also:  What classes can substitute for ENG 1101 and ENG 1102?

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I want to change my major to Chem Eng; what are the requirements for this?

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We require a meeting with the ChE advisor prior to approving any change major requests.  If you’d like to change majors or are considering changing majors into ChE then make an appointment with the ChE academic advisor.  After your meeting you may submit your request to change majors through the Curriculum Change Portlet that is on your MyMichiganTech webpage.  There are directions on how to do this on the Registrar’s Office change major page.

Our general policy for major changes is as follows:  Students admitted to the College of Engineering may switch their major to chemical engineering.  Students admitted into a different College may also switch their major to chemical engineering provided they have earned a grade of C or better in key math and science classes (calculus, university chemistry, and university physics).  Students who do not meet these requirements will need to develop a course plan with the ChE academic advisor, which may include retaking key classes prior to switching majors.

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Can I transfer in the UN classes?

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Yes, you can transfer in the UN (University Wide) general education classes. However, it is extremely important to have the course evaluated prior to enrolling to ensure equivalency. The transfer guidelines for these courses are below.

UN 1015 Compositions – This course is a college writing course, and needs to incorporate the following elements: information literacy, citing secondary sources, and a research-based paper.

UN 1025 Global Issues – This course is a tougher course to transfer. It is similar to a world history, comparative religion, or Western civilization course, but it must meet the following criteria in order to be considered for transfer as UN 1025:

  • The course must focus on the study of globalization.
  • At a minimum, the course must cover at least three of following themes: culture, economics, politics, development, population dynamics, the environment, and sustainability.
  • The course must not be equivalent to another Michigan Tech course.

Classes that have already been evaluated for transfer can be found on the Transfer Services webpage. Go to the Registrar’s Office webpage and click on Transfer Services. Courses that have not yet been evaluated may be requested to be evaluated by contacting Transfer Services.

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I transfered to Tech, but the rules have changed! Can anything be done?

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The rules that apply to determine if any student has met graduation requirements are enshrined in what is called the “catalog year.”  If you are a traditional student who enrolls directly after high school in the fall, your catalog year is yyyy08, where yyyy is the year that you started at Michigan Tech.  Your catalog year is listed in Banweb when you look at your unofficial transcript.  You need to know your catalog year when you look up the general education rules and the rules for your major.

A transfer student who looks up Michigan Tech’s requirements but then transfers two years later may have some difficulty in matching up the courses taken to the rules in force when he/she arrives at Tech–the rules may have changed.

In April 2016, the Michigan Tech University Senate amended the catalog policy to allow for some leeway for such students and for students who leave Tech for a year or more before returning.  The complete policy is in the current catalog and also archived as Senate Proposal 26-16.

Please see the current catalog for the most up-to-date phrasing.  The basics of the policy are here:

  • The University catalog expires after seven years. Students may not graduate using a catalog that is more than seven years old.
  • Students maintaining continuous enrollment at Michigan Tech may expect to graduate under the degree requirements in effect at the time that they became a degree-seeking student at Michigan Tech.
  • Students changing majors will follow the degree requirements in effect at the time of the change of major.
  • Students adding a major or minor will follow the requirements for the additional curriculum in effect at the time it is added.
  • Students who have been absent from the University for three or more consecutive semesters (including summer) will follow the degree requirements in effect at the time of re-enrollment.
  • With approval from the academic department, students may follow the degree requirements from an earlier catalog. The catalog selected must be within seven years prior to the student’s graduation or the first term the student was enrolled as a degree-seeking student at a regionally accredited institution, whichever is shortest.

The final bullet provides flexibility for transfer students.  If you graduate from high school and enroll at a regionally accredited institution as a degree-seeking student, you may petition your academic department at Tech to request to be placed on the catalog year that corresponds to the semester you started at your transfer institution.  Note that you must obtain departmental permission for this change in catalog year (it is not automatic).  Note also that students who are dual enrolled or doing a “13th year” are not eligible for this flexibility, since they would not be enrolled as degree seeking during their dual/13th year status.

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I am a transfer student; do I have to take the first-year engineering courses?

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The first-year engineering courses are required for graduation with a B.S. in chemical engineering.  If you have not yet transferred to Michigan Tech, we recommend that you take courses at your home institution that transfer as ENG 1101 and ENG 1102.  The transfer equivalent for ENG 1101 is a computer programming class using an objected-oriented programming language, such as Java or C++.  The transfer equivalent for ENG 1102 is a 3-D solid modeling class using software, such as Solid Works, Unigraphics, or 3-D Autocad.

For transfer students who have not transferred in ENG 1101 and ENG 1102, you may take ENG 1101 and ENG 1102 at Michigan Tech or it is sometimes preferable to substitute courses more appropriate to your experience and educational level.  For more information on this see the policy for when substitutions are allowed for ENG 1101, and ENG 1102.

CM 1000 is not required for graduation (per Departmental vote 10Feb2016) but it is recommended for first-year students, and it counts as a core engineering technical elective.  If you do not take CM 1000 then you must take an additional credit of core engineering technical elective.

 

 

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How can I prepare for registration?

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Registration is always right around the corner, and before it arrives, it’s best to get prepared. Those of you who have tried to make an appointment with Katie near registration time know that her schedule fills up. She has “walk-in” office hours weeks 9-11, so you will not need an appointment, but you may face some lines. With this post I reach out to you with some advice to ensure that you have a good registration season.

Katie’s walk-in office hours schedule is posted here: blogs.mtu.edu/chem-eng-undergrad/

If you are uncertain what classes you need to take, please take a look at our video on Planning your Schedule.

Planning your schedule begins with the planning handout at this link (http://www.chem.mtu.edu/~fmorriso/advising/2015MoreAdvisingInfoHandout4SemPlanFAM.pdf), which shows a 4-year plan of how the Chemical Engineering curriculum maps out. I have indicated the classes that cause a bottleneck–these are the classes that are only offered one time per year. Up until the spring of junior year you have flexibility in when you can take classes. The three spring junior classes, however, (transport 2, kinetics, controls) are only offered in the spring. The senior chemical engineering classes (unit and plant operations, plant design, safety and the environment) are only offered once per year as well. This means that you need to be ready for those spring junior classes during the spring that you plan to take them.

The pre-requisites for our classes are summarized on this handout:  www.mtu.edu/chemical/undergraduate/advising/pdfs/prerequisite-map.pdf

To plan out your schedule you should map out which semester you intend to take the fixed classes (spring junior classes, senior classes) and then back-calculate when you will take the pre-requisites for those courses.

On the planning handout I have also indicated when classes are offered on-line, and I’ve highlighted some General Education (GenEd) rules that you should be mindful of as you plan out your GenEd choices.

Finally, once things get close to graduation, every requirement must be met and this can get confusing sometimes. For checking or auditing your compliance with your degree requirements Michigan Tech uses DARS: Degree Audit Reporting System. Go to your Banweb account, log in, and look for Degree audit. You can run your own degree audit. It takes a minute or two for the computer to slot all your courses into the various bins or “buckets” where they satisfy requirements. When it’s finished, you can take a look. Green is good; red is bad. You will see all kinds of lists and requirements that are checked. It is a computer program and online, so hopefully you can poke around a bit and figure out how it’s working. If you are a transfer student or if you transferred in courses, it is very helpful for sorting out what credits count for what.

Please take a look at your DARS and see how your credits earned are stacking up towards getting your CM degree. If you look over the attached sheet, consult the pre-req map, look at your degree audit, and make use of the handouts for minors and technical electives that are on the Advising web page, you will see that registration is a snap.

Thanks for your patience during registration season. We will endeavor to answer all your questions and hopefully we can find a solution that will lead to a smooth path towards your BS in chemical engineering.

More helpful links:

best wishes,

Dr. Morrison

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I am an incoming transfer student; how do I register?

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Per the Registrar’s office on 18March2015, students with more than 30 transfer credits can register themselves through Banweb. Visit the Chemical Engineering 24/7 Advising page (blog) and the ChemE Advising Handout page to see Chemical Engineering degree requirements and suggested schedules.  Once you have taken a crack at sorting out a schedule, email the ChemE advisor at  cmadvise@mtu.edu to receive additional advice.

Students with fewer than 30 transfer credits will be registered by the Registrar’s office in July as part of the incoming first-year registration process that puts first-year students into “cohorts”.   See the website for the website for the Waino Wahtera Center for Student Success (Scheduling Information for Engineering Majors) for more information about cohorts and first-year student scheduling.  Some first-year classes are added during orientation and cannot be added ahead of time.

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What do my college’s courses transfer as at Michigan Tech?

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The best bet to address this question is to go to the Transfer Services website and use their Transfer Equivalency link to check which classes transfer as what from your school to Michigan Tech.

The trifold that lays out the most common plan for transfer students is discussed in another link in this blog on the course plans for transfer students.

If your school or the courses  you are interested in are not covered in the transfer equivalency system, then you will need to have each proposed course evaluated by the department at Michigan Tech that covers that subject.  Please collect two things: 1) course description from the school catalog, and 2) course syllabus from the professor.  These two items should be sent to Transfer Services with a request to have them evaluated by the appropriate department.  This process takes several weeks usually, so please plan ahead.

Have a successful semester!

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I transferred in University Chemistry I, but have “TW credit” for University Chemistry I Recitation, CH1153. What does this mean?

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The TW means that the credit for this course has been “transfer waived”. You did not receive credit for the recitation class, so you will need to make up the missing credit with something else.  See your academic advisor for course approval and to have the adjustment made to your online degree audit.

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