M.Eng Chemical and Biological Engineering

2 Years On Campus Masters Program

Princeton University

Program Overview

Princeton University’s M.Eng. in Chemical and Biological Engineering is a one-year, coursework-based master’s designed for practicing engineers who want to deepen their expertise across chemical engineering, chemistry, biochemistry, biology, mathematics, physics, and related engineering disciplines. Students complete advanced technical coursework while building specialized knowledge in areas such as thermodynamics, reaction engineering, transport phenomena, materials, energy, biotechnology, and computational engineering, with the flexibility to shape their course selection around an area of interest.

Curriculum Structure:

One-Year Program: Full-time M.Eng. students normally complete at least eight letter-graded courses over one 10-month academic year, with at least six courses being technical and at least four selected from Princeton’s graduate Chemical and Biological Engineering offerings. Students can choose from core graduate subjects such as CBE 503: Advanced Thermodynamics, which explores chemical equilibria, multicomponent mixtures, and reactive systems, and CBE 504: Chemical Kinetics and Reaction Engineering, which covers chemical rate processes, reactor operations, stability, optimization, and the interaction of transport and reaction rates.

The curriculum can be further developed through MAE 501/CBE 509: Mathematical Methods of Engineering Analysis I and CBE 510: Transport Phenomena, giving students advanced quantitative tools and a deeper understanding of transport processes relevant to chemical and biological engineering. Students may also select graduate-level CBE electives or approved technical courses in other natural science and engineering departments, allowing them to develop significant expertise in a particular area without completing a research thesis.

Focus Areas:

Advanced thermodynamics, chemical kinetics and reaction engineering, transport phenomena, mathematical and computational engineering, bioengineering and biotechnology, materials science, energy and environmental technologies, process engineering, surface science and catalysis, complex materials and processing, theory and simulation, sustainable engineering.

Learning Outcomes:

Students develop advanced knowledge of chemical and biological engineering principles, quantitative engineering analysis, thermodynamics, reaction engineering, transport phenomena, mathematical modeling, process engineering, and related scientific disciplines, while gaining the flexibility to build deeper expertise through graduate-level technical electives. The coursework-based structure is designed to strengthen professional engineering knowledge for applications in industry, research and development, entrepreneurship, and management.

Professional Alignment (Accreditation):

Princeton’s undergraduate Chemical Engineering program is accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET; Princeton’s official accreditation page identifies the accredited Chemical Engineering program as an undergraduate program. The M.Eng. itself is a graduate coursework degree and is not separately identified as an ABET-accredited program.

Reputation (Employability / Rankings):

Princeton’s Chemical and Biological Engineering department highlights its small student-to-faculty ratio, strong research collaborations, interdisciplinary academic environment, and location within a major concentration of chemical and pharmaceutical research laboratories. Princeton Engineering reported $90.1 million in sponsored research expenditures in FY2025, with 80.1% of publications appearing in the top 25% of journals according to its cited U.S. News measure, providing a strong research environment for graduate engineering study.

The QS World University Rankings 2026 placed Princeton University at #25 globally, while the QS 2026 Chemical Engineering subject ranking evaluates nearly 450 institutions worldwide; the ranking source should be treated as university/subject-level rather than an M.Eng.-specific employability measure.

Experiential Learning (Research, Projects, Internships etc.)

Princeton’s M.Eng. in Chemical and Biological Engineering is strongly connected to the department’s research and computational ecosystem, giving students access to advanced engineering resources while allowing them to build expertise through graduate technical coursework. The program is coursework-based rather than thesis-based, so the strongest practical opportunities come through advanced technical courses, computational work, interdisciplinary facilities, and Princeton’s broader engineering and research infrastructure.

Experiential learning opportunities include:

Advanced computational work: Princeton CBE has a dedicated Theory and Computation research area using molecular dynamics, Monte Carlo simulations, quantum-mechanical calculations, density functional theory, machine learning, and big-data methods. Princeton Research Computing also provides hardware, software, programming, visualization, and research-software support.
Graduate technical coursework: M.Eng. students complete at least eight letter-graded courses, including at least four graduate-level CBE courses. The department's graduate offerings include CBE 503, CBE 504, MAE 501/CBE 509, and CBE 510, providing advanced training in chemical engineering analysis and technical problem-solving.
Research and laboratory ecosystem: Although the M.Eng. itself does not require a thesis or research project, students are part of a department with research spanning Biomolecular Engineering, Cellular and Tissue Engineering, Complex Materials and Processing, Energy and Environment, Surface Science and Catalysis, and Theory and Computation.
Biomolecular and bioengineering resources: The Omenn-Darling Bioengineering Institute provides an interdisciplinary environment focused on cellular, device, and computational bioengineering, creating opportunities for interaction across engineering and life-science fields.
Materials characterization and imaging: Princeton's Imaging and Analysis Center (IAC) provides advanced instrumentation for materials preparation, computer simulation, and image processing, supporting research and education across disciplines.
Micro/nanofabrication: Princeton's Micro/Nanofabrication Center includes cleanroom facilities supporting microfluidics, photonics, MEMS, biological applications, and other advanced device fabrication.
Molecular analysis: The university's Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Facility includes seven liquid-state NMR spectrometers and a solid-state NMR instrument for studying molecular structure and dynamics.
Interdisciplinary institutes and research centers: CBE graduate resources connect students with the Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment, Princeton Center for Complex Materials, Lewis-Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics, High Meadows Environmental Institute, Princeton Institute for Computational Science and Engineering, and Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory.
Library and research resources: Princeton's wider research infrastructure provides access to specialized scientific and engineering resources alongside its laboratory and computational facilities.
Industry environment: Princeton CBE highlights its location within a major concentration of chemical and pharmaceutical industrial research laboratories, as well as a broad portfolio of research collaborations with external organizations.

Progression & Future Opportunities

The M.Eng. in Chemical and Biological Engineering at Princeton University prepares practicing engineers to expand their technical expertise for careers across industry, research and development, entrepreneurship, and management. Princeton’s CBE department highlights opportunities spanning academia, government, and industry, supported by its strong interdisciplinary environment and location near a major concentration of chemical and pharmaceutical research laboratories.

Typical career roles: Chemical Process Engineer, Process Development Engineer, Bioprocess Engineer, R&D Engineer.

Career support: Princeton Engineering provides graduate career resources, including faculty mentorship, professional development through the Graduate School, and the annual Science and Technology Job Fair. The job fair brings graduate students together with employers for networking, recruiting, internships, and full-time opportunities.
Employment outcomes: Princeton Engineering reports that its graduate engineering students typically progress into academia, industry, or government-funded national laboratories. Examples of graduate engineering employers include Apple, Lockheed Martin, Samsung Electronics, Microsoft, Intel, Amazon, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and the Air Force Research Laboratory; these figures and examples are for Princeton Engineering graduate students overall rather than specifically for the CBE M.Eng.
Salary information: Princeton’s official CBE and Engineering career pages do not publish a current M.Eng.-specific employment rate or salary figure, so an M.Eng.-specific salary should not be inferred from broader Princeton Engineering outcomes.
University–industry connections: Princeton CBE describes a broad portfolio of research collaborations and emphasizes its location amid one of the largest concentrations of chemical and pharmaceutical industrial research laboratories in the United States. The Graduate School also provides GradFUTURES opportunities connecting graduate students with business organizations and other external partners.
Professional value: The M.Eng. is a Princeton graduate engineering degree designed specifically for practicing engineers, allowing professionals to strengthen advanced technical expertise without the research thesis required by the M.S.E.
Graduation outcomes: Princeton Engineering states that graduate students move into careers in industry, academia, and government-funded national laboratories, with additional pathways into entrepreneurship and other professional fields.

Further Academic Progression: After completing the M.Eng., students who want to pursue advanced research can consider doctoral study in Chemical and Biological Engineering or a related engineering/scientific field. Princeton itself offers a Ph.D. in Chemical and Biological Engineering, centered on original research and preparation for independent research careers in academia or industry; the M.Eng. can therefore provide advanced coursework and technical preparation before pursuing a research-oriented doctoral pathway.