Biological Engineering (College of Agriculture)

Purdue University in West Lafayette

The world has tremendous need for solutions to problems related to the environment, energy, health, food and sustainability. Biological systems are related to or at the heart of all of these issues.

A biological engineer learns to design and analyze biological systems to develop innovative and practical solutions. Our graduates are well prepared for careers in the food industry, pharmaceutical industry, biotechnology, and bioprocessing as well as entrance into graduate or medical school. Students may select a major and plan of study within biological engineering that is tailored to their specific career goals. Students in this program earn a Bachelor of Science in Biological Engineering, (BSBE).

Some areas of focus include: 

• Bio Environmental Engineering: Bioprocessing manufacturers, including food and pharmaceutical industries, are looking for innovative environmental controls, waste processing and water treatment to meet corporate sustainability goals and to comply with increasingly strict governmental regulations. In addition, there exists a high potential for identifying value added products from these water streams. 
• Cellular and Biomolecular Engineering: This emerging field is expected to rapidly advance and open opportunities in biomanufacturing, drug design, human therapeutics, tissue and organ regeneration, bioenergy and biofuel production, bioremediation, and biodefense.
• Food & Biological Process Engineering: This is an interdisciplinary field that applies basic sciences, mathematics, and engineering to convert agricultural commodities into edible foods and biological materials through various processing steps. Advances in genetic engineering lead to new types of crops and new processing methods to create value added products.
• Pharmaceutical Process Engineering: This program of study is targeted to provide graduates with unique skills and job opportunities to take on roles within all phases of the pharmaceutical industry including research, product and process development, processing engineering, manufacturing, and marketing.

Applying

Biological Engineering is a major within the Agricultural and Biological Engineering (ABE) Department. Biological Engineering is a degree granted in the College of Engineering, and there are multiple entry paths for students who are interested in ABE majors. 

First-time college students may apply to Biological Engineering in the College of Agriculture (where they would begin in the pre-ABE program) or they may select First-Year Engineering in the College of Engineering (where they would begin in the First-Year Engineering program). The first-year curriculum is the same for each path.

Transfer students who have fulfilled the first-year requirements of this engineering program may apply directly to Biological Engineering in the College of Agriculture. 

Note: This major is the same major listed with the College of Engineering. Students must complete the First-Year Engineering requirements before entering the engineering school of their choice. Students interested in any engineering discipline may apply for entry via the College of Engineering First-Year Engineering (FYE) program, however, students planning to pursue an engineering major in Agricultural Engineering, Biological Engineering, or Environmental and Natural Resources Engineering are encouraged to apply through the College of Agriculture Pre-Agricultural and Biological Engineering (PABE) program. Students pursuing engineering degrees offered by the Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering (ABE) have the unique opportunity to benefit from the Department’s joint affiliation with the Colleges of Agriculture and Engineering. The mission of these student-oriented service programs is to advise, teach and retain outstanding students for Purdue's Engineering programs. This core curriculum includes courses in math, chemistry, physics, computer programming, and communication skills, as well as introductory engineering coursework taught in the new Ideas to Innovation (i2i) Learning Laboratory. First-Year Engineering programs provide students with a firm foundation and initial understanding of engineering and career options to assist them in identifying which of Purdue's engineering disciplines is the right fit. Our professional academic advisors, faculty and student advisors are dedicated to assisting beginning engineers with the first-year experience.