Prerequisites for Chemical and Biochemical Engineering
Academic requirements for this programme
National Applicants (holding a Bachelor from Denmark)
Bachelor of Science in Engineering from DTU:
Students from the following BSc Eng Programme at DTU have a legal right of admission to the MSc Eng programme in Chemical and Biochemical Engineering:
To get the optimal benefit of the Master’s programme, it is recommended that the elective parts of the bachelor program are used to build up the right prerequisites for the desired study plan. Particular the following courses are relevent towards master level studies in chemical engineering.
| 28020 | Introduction to Chemical and Biochemical Engineering | 10 | point | Autumn E4A (Tues 13-17) and Spring F3A (Tues 8-12) |
| 28125 | Chemical Unit Operations Laboratory | 5 | point | January |
| or | ||||
| 28121 | Chemical Unit Operations Laboratory | 5 | point | Autumn and Spring |
| 28140 | Introduction to Chemical Reaction Engineering | 5 | point | Autumn E5A (Wed 8-12) |
| 28150 | Introduction to Process Control | 5 | point | Autumn E2A (Mon 13-17) |
| 28160 | Mathematical models in chemical engineering | 5 | point | Spring F2B (Thurs 8-12) |
| 28221 | Chemical Engineering Thermodynamics | 5 | point | Spring F4A (Tues 13-17) |
Applicants interested in the study line Fermentation Based Manufacturing (FBM) should preferably as additional prerequisites have knowledge or courses corresponding to 02402 Introduction to Statistics (or another introductory statistics course at the same level), 27026 Molecular Biology, and 27034 Fermentation Technology from their bachelor degree
Students from the following BSc Eng Programmes at DTU:
- Biotechnology
- Life Science/Human Life Science Engineering
- Environmental Engineering
- General Engineering, Living Systems
have access to be admitted provided their BSc education includes the following courses in groups 1, 2, and 3:
Group 1: All three of
| 01025 | Advanced Mathematics 2 for Mathematics and Technology | 5 | point | Autumn E1A (Mon 8-12) |
| or | ||||
| 01037 | Advanced Engineering Mathematics 2 (Summer University) | 5 | point | August |
| or | ||||
| 01035 | Advanced Engineering Mathematics 2 | 5 | point | Autumn E2B (Thurs 8-12), Spring F2B (Thurs 8-12) |
| or | ||||
| 01034 | Advanced Engineering Mathematics 2 | 5 | point | Autumn E1A (Mon 8-12) |
| 26222 | Physical Chemistry 2 | 5 | point | E7 (Tues 18-22) |
| or | ||||
| 26211 | Biophysics and biophysical chemistry | 5 | point | Spring F4B (Fri 8-12) |
| 26400 | Organic Chemistry 1 | 5 | point | Spring F5A (Wed 8-12) |
26211 replaces former course 26202 which still qualifies for admission.
Group 2: At least one of
| 12102 | Environmental Processes | 10 | point | Autumn E5 (Wed 8-17) |
| 28020 | Introduction to Chemical and Biochemical Engineering | 10 | point | Autumn E4A (Tues 13-17) and Spring F3A (Tues 8-12) |
| 28025 | Bio Process Technology | 5 | point | Spring F3A (Tues 8-12) |
where 12102 preferably should be supplemented by 41102 Hydrodynamics 1 (5 point).
Group 3: Three or more, at least one of which must be 28140 or 28160, of
| 27022 | Biochemistry | 5 | point | Spring F4B (Fri 8-12) |
| 27034 | Fermentation technology | 5 | point | Spring F5A (Wed 8-12) |
| 28125 | Chemical Unit Operations Laboratory | 5 | point | January |
| or | ||||
| 28121 | Chemical Unit Operations Laboratory | 5 | point | Autumn and Spring |
| 28140 | Introduction to Chemical Reaction Engineering | 5 | point | Autumn E5A (Wed 8-12) |
| 28160 | Mathematical models in chemical engineering | 5 | point | Spring F2B (Thurs 8-12) |
Note 1: Applicants holding a BSc in Environmental Engineering can use 12134 Environmental Microbiology (substitutes for 27022) and/or 12104 Modelling of Environmental Processes and Technologies (substitutes for 28160) to fulfill requirements in group 3. .
Bachelor of Engineering from DTU
The following Bachelors of Engineering:
have access to admission to the MSc programme in Chemical and Biochemical Engineering provided 01034/01035/01037 Advanced Engineering Mathematics 2 has been passed. Bachelors in Engineering who have passed the BSc course 28160 Mathematical Models in Chemical Engineering are exempted from the 01034/01035/01037 requirement.
Bachelor of Science in Engineering and bachelors of Engineering from other Danish universities
The following Bachelors of Science in Engineering may be admitted to the MSc in Chemical and Biochemical Engineering programme if the course content of their BSc satisfies requirements equivalent to those specified in Groups 1, 2, and 3 above:
- Chemical, Environmental and Biochemical Engineering (AAU, AAU Esbjerg)
- Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology (AAU, AAU Esbjerg)
- Chemical Engineering or Biotechnology (AU)
- Chemical Engineering (SDU)
The following Bachelors of Engineering
- Chemical Engineering (SDU or AU)
- Chemical, Environmental and Biochemical Engineering (AAU and AAU Esbjerg)
- Bioprocess Engineering (AU/IHA)
- Eng Biotechnology (UC Absalon)
have access to be admitted if 1) the course content of their B. Eng. is equivalent to the content of either of the two DTU B. Eng, programmes mentioned above, and if 2) their B. Eng. programme has math content equivalent to 01034/01035/01037 or 28160.
Bachelors from other Programmes
Bachelors in Engineering from non-chemistry-related fields of specialization (e.g. mechanical engineering) may be admitted after an individual evaluation of their qualifications. Applicants are expected to have a basic knowledge of chemistry and either thermodynamics or physical chemistry. Supplementary chemistry and physical chemistry courses may be required. Courses with equivalent content may be allowed as substitutes after an individual assessment by the Head of Studies.
International Applicants (holding a Bachelor from outside Denmark)
Prerequisites, non-Danish bachelor's degrees:
A strong, working knowledge of mathematics and natural sciences is a prerequisite. A year's full time study at DTU amounts to 60 ECTS points. The MSc Eng programme builds on a bachelor curriculum with the following content of mathematics and natural sciences:
| Mathematics* | 20-25 ECTS points | |
| Organic and inorganic chemistry | 20-25 ECTS points | |
| Thermodynamics and physical chemistry | 10-15 ECTS points | |
| Physics | 10-15 ECTS points | |
| Total, mathematics and natural sciences | 60-80 ECTS points |
Mathematics* - It is expected that a candidate reaches a level corresponding to DTU course 01035.
Specific basics of chemical and biochemical engineering should also be covered by the curriculum of the applicant's bachelor degree. A working knowledge at bachelor level of mathematics used to describe process technology and reacting systems and basic knowledge of biological systems are prerequisites for the general competence and technological specialization courses of the MSc programme. The required level corresponds to one or more courses in heat and mass transfer and other unit operations amounting to at least 10 ECTS points, plus courses covering the content in at least two of the other four subjects below:
| Mass and Heat Transfer, Unit Operations | 10 ECTS points | |
| Mathematical Modeling | 5 ECTS points | |
| Chemical Kinetics and Reaction Engineering | 5 ECTS points | |
| Biochemistry | 5 ECTS points | |
| Fermentation Technology | 5 ECTS points |
The required level may be gauged by comparison with the contents of the corresponding DTU-courses.
Applicants interested in the study line Fermentation Based Manufacturing (FBM) should as additional prerequisites have sufficient bio-related content in their curriculum corresponding to DTU courses in Life Science, Biochemistry, Molecular biology, and Fermentation Technology (20 ECTS).
Additionally, some of the technological specialization courses in the MSc Eng programme have one or more of the following subjects at bachelor level as prerequisites:
| Applied Thermodynamics | 5 ECTS points | |
| Chemical Unit Operations Laboratory | 5 ECTS points | |
| Process Control | 5 ECTS points |
The description of the corresponding DTU-courses may be used to assess the expected level of knowledge when any of these subjects are prerequisites.
Prospective applicants with other backgrounds than chemical or biochemical engineering or technology should contact the programme Head of Studies before applying.
Admission will be decided on the basis of the relevance and quality of the applicant's educational background.
International students normally have a background that differs from the typical student in the MSc programme and should be willing to acquire any prerequisites they may be missing by themselves.
General admission requirements
Only applicants holding a relevant Bachelor of Science in Engineering, a Bachelor in Engineering (diplomingeniøruddannelse) or a Bachelor of Natural Science degree can be admitted to a Master of Science in Engineering programme. The bachelor's degree must be less than ten years old.
The individual MSc Eng programme states in detail which bachelor programmes qualify and whether applicants must complete supplementary educational activities.
Requirements for supplementary educational activities can equate to up to 30 ECTS credits and are specified as a list of courses under the individual MSc Eng programmes.
The specific requirements must be met before graduating from the bachelor's programme or in connection with conditional admission to a particular MSc Eng programme. The courses must be passed prior to the commencement of studies within one year from the conditional admission.
Supplementary educational activities in connection with conditional admission to an MSc Eng programme do not form part of the MSc Eng programme, and tuition fees are charged. If the supplementary courses have not been passed within the specified deadlines, the conditional admission to the programme is withdrawn.
The Master of Science in Engineering programmes are offered in English. Therefore applicants must demonstrate proficiency in English (B-level, IELTS, TOEFL, CAE) https://www.dtu.dk/english/education/graduate/admission-and-deadlines/language_test_requirements
DTU offers an Honours Programme as part of all MSc Eng. programmes. The admission requirements are described at https://www.dtu.dk/english/education/graduate/honours-programmes
Specific prerequisites for the Industry MSc Eng Programmes
The prerequisites are similar to the specific ones that apply to the 2-year-programmes, but in addition, the applicant must have a job relevant to the studies with a workload of at least 25 hours a week, or the applicant may be self-employed in a start-up company. Read more about the rules on https://www.dtu.dk/english/education/graduate/industry-master-of-science-in-engineering
