Chemical Engineering and the Melbourne Model

ABSTRACT

Undergraduate chemical engineering programs at nearly every institution in the English speaking world are typically four years in duration. At the end of the four year programs the engineering graduates are accepted as engineers by industry. In Europe however, following the adoption of the Bologna Declaration by the education ministers of twenty-nine European countries in 1999, there has been a move to professional recognition being granted after two degrees, a Bachelors degree of typically three years, and a Masters degree of typically two years. The Bologna model is often referred to as a 3+2 model. In 2006 the University of Melbourne adopted a modified version of the 3+2 Bologna model known as the Melbourne Model. In this model students will undertake one of several ‘New Generation’ degrees of three years each before embarking on a professional Masters degree of at least two years. In 2008 the University of Melbourne began taking its first students into the new programs. Students will be able to study towards a professional chemical engineering qualification by following several pathways including a more traditional four year Bachelor of Engineering degree, a Bachelor of Science majoring in Chemical Systems followed by a Masters of Engineering (Chemical or Biomolecular) or a Bachelor of Commerce with a minor in Chemical Systems followed by a Masters of Engineering (Chemical). This paper will describe how chemical engineering education has been implemented at the University of Melbourne within the Melbourne Model framework.