Undergraduate Degree Requirements
Jump to: Prerequisite Policy | Core Courses | Grade Exclusion Policy | General Education Requirement | Proficiency Requirements | Electives | Transfer Students
To obtain a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering (BS in ChE) you must take every course listed in the ChE curriculum in the department section of the LSU General Catalog. To graduate, you must have at least a "C" average in all college work attempted at any US institution, in all work attempted at LSU, and in all ChE courses.
The flowchart is especially useful for planning the sequence of courses you intend to take while at LSU. This is particularly true if you are working part-time or are planning a co-op position. It is recommended that you maintain your own working copy of the flowchart and use it to plan your sequence of courses.
The following provides additional information about specific course requirements in the approximate order that courses are taken, as well as current information about several of the more important procedural rules.
Prerequisite Policy
All students must earn a “C”* or better in CHE 2171, CHE 2172, CHE 2176, CHE 3101, CHE 3102, CHE 3104, CHE 3171, CHE 3173, and CHE 3190 before registering for any subsequent course that requires one or more of these as a prerequisite.
This is in addition to the basic math and sciences requirements of:
Chemical Engineering majors must earn a grade of “C”* or better in each of the basic math and sciences preparatory courses—BIOL 1201, CHEM 1201, CHEM 1202, MATH 1550, MATH 1552, MATH 2090, PHYS 2110, and PHYS 2113—before registering for any chemical engineering course other than CHE 1100 and CHE 2171.
All students are required to maintain an overall 2.0 GPA at LSU and a 2.0 GPA in chemical engineering courses to qualify for graduation with a BS in Chemical Engineering (same as current College of Engineering policy).
* For all prerequisite requirements, a grade of “C-“ satisfies the required grade of “C” or better.
Prerequisites may occasionally be updated and the ChE office will have a current list. Completion of 60 credits serves as a minimum university prerequisite to all 4000 level courses. Alternately you may take a 4000 level course if you have 30 hours, a 3.5 GPA, approval by the instructor, and approval by the Dean of the College of Engineering. An approval form is available in the dean's office.
The university and the department rigorously enforce prerequisites for all core ChE classes during and after registration. Students who do not satisfy the requirements will be prevented from registering and/or dropped prior to the beginning of the class. If you feel an oversight has occurred, you may explain your situation to the ChE office at that time.
Core Courses
There are 14 required core ChE courses in the curriculum. These include 12 lecture courses and two laboratories. This is the most recent list of core courses and their prerequisites. Beginning fall 2019, all 2000- and 3000-level courses will be offered each semester. Beginning spring 2020, all 2000-, 3000-, and 4000-level courses will be offered each semester. Prerequisites are not catalogue specific and are strictly enforced.
| Course | Prerequisites |
|---|---|
| CHE 1100 | None |
| CHE 2171 | MATH 1550, CHEM 1202, and CHE 1100 |
| CHE 2172 | A grade of "C" or better in CHE 2171 and a grade of "C" or better in BIOL 1201, CHEM 1201, CHEM 1202, MATH 1550, MATH 1552, MATH 2090, PHYS 2110, and PHYS 2113 |
| CHE 2176 | A grade of "C" or better in CHE 2171 and a grade of "C" or better in BIOL 1201, CHEM 1201, CHEM 1202, MATH 1550, MATH 1552, MATH 2090, PHYS 2110, and PHYS 2113 |
| CHE 3101 | A grade of "C" or better in CHE 2171 and a grade of "C" or better in BIOL 1201, CHEM 1201, CHEM 1202, MATH 1550, MATH 1552, MATH 2057, MATH 2090, PHYS 2110, and PHYS 2113 |
| CHE 3102 | A grade of "C" or better in CHE 2176 and CHE 3101 |
| CHE 3104 | A grade of "C" or better in CHE 2176 and credit with a grade of "C" or better or registration in CHE 3102 and CHE 3173 |
| CHE 3171 | A grade of "C" or better in CHE 2176 and credit with a grade of "C" or better or registration in CHE 3101 and CHE 3173 |
| CHE 3173 | A grade of "C" or better in CHE 2172 and CHE 2176 |
| CHE 3190 | A grade of "C" or better in CHE 3173 and CHEM 3492 and credit with a grade of "C" or better or registration in CHE 3102 |
| CHE 4151 | A grade of "C" or better in CHE 3102 and CHE 3171 |
| CHE 4162 | A grade of "C" or better in CHE 3104 and credit with a grade of "C" or better or registration in CHE 4151 |
| CHE 4172 | CHE 4151 and credit or registration in CHE 4198 |
| CHE 4198 | Credit with a grade of "C" or better in CHE 3190 |
Grade Exclusion Policy
The following courses are exempted from the grade exclusion/repeat-delete process.
| Course Number | Course Title |
|---|---|
| CHE 3171 | Introduction to Design and Process Safety |
| CHE 3900 | Independent Research I |
| CHE 3901 | Independent Research II |
| CHE 3910 | Honors Independent Research I |
| CHE 3911 | Honors Independent Research II |
| CHE 4151 | Unit Operations Design |
| CHE 4172 | Process Design |
| CHE 4221 | Chemical Engineering Project I |
| CHE 4222 | Chemical Engineering Project II |
General Education Requirements
All LSU students are required to complete a general education component of 39 semester hours in six major areas:
-
- English Composition (six hours)
- Analytical Reasoning (six hours)
- Arts (three hours)
- Humanities (nine hours)
- Natural Sciences (nine hours)
- Social Sciences (six hours)
The English composition, analytical reasoning, and natural sciences components are satisfied by required courses in the ChE curriculum. The arts, humanities, and social science requirements (AHS) are satisfied by three hours of economics (see below) and appropriate choices of arts, humanities, and social sciences electives.
Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences
Engineering students must satisfy the university general education requirements for non-technical electives by taking the following number of courses in specified areas:
-
- Arts (one course)
- Humanities (three courses)
- Social Sciences (two courses)
These courses must be selected from the approved list of general education courses given in the catalog. These courses are generally marked with an asterisk next to their course description.
Economics
Students in the College of Engineering must satisfy an economics course requirement. This can be done in either of two ways:
-
- ECON 2030: This will satisfy the economics requirement, and will also satisfy one of the social science course requirements.
- ECON 2000 and ECON 2010: Together these will satisfy the economics requirement, and will also satisfy both social science course requirements.
Proficiency Requirements
English Proficiency
English proficiency is a requirement for graduation. All students are advised to work continuously until the requirement is met. Proficiency is established by earning a "C" or better, or receiving advanced standing credit, in all required English courses in the ChE curriculum (ENGL 1001 and ENGL 2000).
Basic Science & Mathematical Proficiency
Proficiency in college-level mathematics and physics is essential to successful completion of upper-division engineering courses. Engineering students must earn a minimum grade of “C” in MATH 1550, MATH 1552, and PHYS 2110 before they enroll in any engineering course numbered above 2999. However, CE 3700, IE 3201, IE 4462, and PETE 3025 may be taken.
The Cain Department of Chemical Engineering requires a grade of "C" or better in each of the basic sciences preparatory courses—BIOL 1201, CHEM 1201, CHEM 1202, MATH 1550, MATH 1552, MATH 2090, PHYS 2110, and PHYS 2113—before students may register for any chemical engineering course other than CHE 1100 and CHE 2171.
Required Courses Outside the ChE Department (with Prerequisites)
English
| Course | Prerequisites |
|---|---|
| ENGL 1001 | Placement by department |
| ENGL 2000 | ENGL 1001 or equivalent |
Chemistry
| Course | Prerequisites |
|---|---|
| CHEM 1201 | Credit or registration in MATH 1022, MATH 1023, MATH 1431, MATH 1550, or MATH 1551 |
| CHEM 1202 | CHEM 1201 or CHEM 1421 |
| CHEM 1212 | Credit or registration in CHEM 1002, CHEM 1202, or CHEM 1422 |
| CHEM 2261 | CHEM 1202 or CHEM 1422 |
| CHEM 2262 | CHEM 2261 |
| CHEM 2364 | CHEM 1212 and CHEM 2060 or credit or registration in CHEM 2262 or CHEM 2462 |
| CHEM 3492 | MATH 2057 or MATH 2090, PHYS 1202 or PHYS 2113, and CHEM 1202 or CHEM 1422 (all three courses with a grade of "C" or better) |
NOTE: CHEM 3492
- Students who have a catalog year of 2018-19 or later must complete CHEM 3492 rather than CHEM 3491 and it is a prerequisite for CHE 3190 (formerly CHE 4190).
- Students who have a catalog year of 2017-18 or earlier can take CHEM 3491 or CHEM 3492 (the ChE Undergraduate Coordinator can complete a substitution form if a student decides to take only CHEM 3492).
-
- If a student is required to take CHEM 3492, then CHEM 3491 is a group B elective.
- If a student is required to take CHEM 3491, then CHEM 3492 is a group B elective.
Math
| Course | Prerequisites |
|---|---|
| MATH 1550 | Appropriate ALEKS placement score |
| MATH 1552 | MATH 1550 or MATH 1551 |
| MATH 2090 | MATH 1552 or MATH 1553 |
Physics
| Course | Prerequisites |
|---|---|
| PHYS 2110 | "C" or better in MATH 1550 and credit or registration in MATH 1552 or MATH 1553 |
| PHYS 2113 | "C" or better in PHYS 2110 and MATH 1552 or MATH 1553 |
Other
| Course | Prerequisites |
|---|---|
| BIOL 1201 | Minimum ACT composite of 23 or "C" or better in CHEM 1201 |
| ECON 2030 | None |
| ME 2733 | CHEM 1201 and credit or regulation in PHYS 2112 or PHYS 2113 |
Electives
The ChE curriculum requires students to take 12-15 credit-hours of technical electives, depending upon a student's catalog year (12 credit-hours for students whose catalog year is 2020-2021 or later, 15 credit-hours for students whose catalog year is 2019-20 or earlier). Six credit-hours must be ChE electives (Group A). The remaining credit hours can be made up of ChE electives (Group A), approved technical electives from other departments (Group B), or a combination of ChE electives and approved technical electives from other departments (Group A or Group B).
*The department is no longer offering technical concentrations. If you have already chosen to pursue a concentration, you will be allowed to complete it. When you are advised each semester, the academic advisor you see will have a list of applicable courses that will apply to your concentration of choice. Please use the link below to learn more about the technical electives we offer.
Transfer Students
Transfer students should be aware of the requirements for admission to LSU and to the College of Engineering. You must have earned a 2.5 GPA for all coursework attempted at US Institutions. The calculation will be made using LSU's system of counting all attempts at all courses, even if your former institution used another system such as replacing grades in repeated courses. The catalog allows the dean to grant admission in exceptional cases if the GPA is below a 2.5, but above a 2.0. Upon written request, the dean will evaluate an applicant's entire academic record and may grant admission to the college.