Master of Science in Chemical and Materials Engineering

The Master of Science in Chemical and Materials Engineering (BRUFACE) (120 ECTS), offers two profiles: a profile 'Materials' and a profile 'Process Technology'. The program is built up modularly:

• the Common Core Chemical and Materials Engineering (56 ECTS)
• the Specific Profile Courses (30 ECTS)
• the master thesis (24 ECTS)
• electives (10 ECTS) from 1 out of 3 options.

Each of the modules should be successfully completed to obtain the master's degree. The student must respect the specified registration requirements. The educational board strongly suggests the student follow the standard learning track. Only this model track can guarantee a time schedule without overlaps of the compulsory course units.

The VUB curriculum of the first semester of the second master year can be replaced by an alternative program of 30 ECTS at a university abroad. This Mobility Window offers the students extra freedom and flexibility to tune the content of their curriculum with additional courses and research projects without delaying their study progress. This also gives them the opportunity to collaborate with experts from other universities for their thesis research.

Entrepreneurship

You can take up entrepreneurship-related courses, which are complementary to your education. During these courses, you’ll be introduced to business and economics, frameworks and tools for general management, human resource management, communication and team building, marketing, and accounting. In short, everything a student with a nose for business initiative needs.

Internship

The internship is a 40- or 60-day period of training that offers students the chance to be actively involved in the professional world and gain engineering competencies in real-life situations. You can take on an internship in a company in or outside Belgium, or in a laboratory or research institute outside Belgium. And what’s more, your thesis research can be carried out with the company, labor research institute you’re working at.

In the course of the two master years, the student is given the opportunity to combine a broad, multidisciplinary engineering education with a specialization in the field of chemistry and materials, building on the foundations of the broad, scientific en technological basic knowledge acquired during their bachelor education. The Master of Science in Chemical and Materials Engineering offers a unique, integrated insight into chemical and material technology. An important fraction of the courses are taught in English.

The general aim of the Master of Science in Chemical and Materials Engineering is to form qualified engineers who will contribute to all domains and sectors across society. They will play a unique role in sustainable development. They must manage resources, energy, and the environment in a responsible and careful fashion, in accordance with the responsible care charter’ of the chemical industry. They are prepared to face the demands of an international career with English as their professional language.

A more specific goal of the Master of Science in Chemical and Materials Engineering is to form engineers that answer the modern technological needs of the labor market, especially regarding the process, chemical, and environmental technology and in materials science. The graduate Master of Science in Chemical and Materials Engineering will initiate, perform, and manage projects in this context, with special attention to the interactions between chemical and material technology.

After graduation students can continue their academic careers as a PhD researchers.

The Profile Process Technology aims at training students to become engineers who are employable in-process and biotechnology, covering fields like inorganic bulk chemistry, petrochemical and polymer industry, pharmaceutical and food industry, extractive metallurgy, and the recycling industry. They can operate both in production units, for the operation and optimization of production facilities, and in consultant engineering firms, for designing new production units. In addition, they are employable in the environmental sector, where they will trace, remedy, and especially prevent environmental problems, enveloping fields like waste management, and water and soil pollution. Their knowledge regarding material technology offers a unique added value for functioning optimally.

The Profile Materials aims at forming engineers that are employable in a wide field of materials and material technology. This covers both production and development facilities for different types of materials, such as metals, polymers, ceramics, and composite materials, and aims at:

• the determination and modification of material properties based on the application;
• the shaping and processing of materials into intermediate or finished products;
• the development of environmentally friendly and safe production processes for materials;
• the optimal integration of materials in other disciplines. The attention paid to the chemical structure of the materials results in a unique insight into the links between the composition, processing, and functionality of materials.