The academic program within Chemical Engineering is both stimulating and demanding, but we offer a lot more than just a challenging course load.
As a student at the University of Waterloo, you’ll have access to fun and interesting people and places within the department and faculty, the university as a whole and broader Waterloo area.
As a student in the Department of Chemical Engineering, you'll be:
- Right at home – Run by the Office of Student Success, they offer new students everything they need to get acquainted with academic and social life here. There’s even a separate program to help parents with the transition!
- Engaged and entertained - There are endless ways for you to get involved in campus life. Check out the Waterloo Undergraduate Student Association and UW Campus Rec for more than 200 academic, social and sports clubs. Whether you’re looking to play Ultimate Frisbee or want to sing in one of our A Cappella clubs, the University of Waterloo offers something for everyone.
- Fit - As a student at UWaterloo, you have free unlimited access to our gyms along with a huge selection of intramural activities. For those of you who love nature, you're probably well aware of how beautiful our campus is but you may not know that in less than a 10-minute walk you can find yourself strolling through Waterloo Park.
- Well prepared – In addition to the challenging, innovative coursework and people you’ll find within our department, it’s our mission to set you up for success well beyond your time at Waterloo. The Centre for Career Development offers career counselling services, job fairs and more, while our co-op program gives you unparalleled real-life work experiences.
"Every day is an adventure. This is the motto that I live my life by. Every single course was different and that allowed me to be surprised by the content that I was learning every day. I love to work with people and this field is one of the most social fields of engineering. It allowed me to interact with people and combine the technical aspects of engineering."
Our undergraduate students engage in hands-on experiential learning in our labs located in the Douglas Wright Engineering Building. Our undergraduate students also have classes in our state-of-the-art building Engineering 6. This building is dedicated for use by the Department of Chemical Engineering.
Our students also have access to Specialized Resources such as computer labs, machine shops and prototyping center.
Student Associations and Clubs
Undergraduate students in the Department of Chemical Engineering are free to join many of the fun clubs , activities and teams at the University of Waterloo.
Learn more about the Chemical Engineering Student Society(CESS).
First-year students are immersed in two engaging Studio Design Courses
Studio Design Courses
The Department of Chemical Engineering at the University of Waterloo offers two engaging, hands-on Design Studio courses in the first year of study.
CHE 180 is offered in the fall term. This course has many aspects to it and lays the foundation for many of the skills students need as chemical engineers. The course includes professional development, resume and interview skills to ensure students are successful in securing co-op employment in their first year.
Our first-year students design a product in this course – they do everything from formulating their product to its marketing and sales. The product they design is soap! They have a blast collaborating with their friends in the IDEAs Clinic creating their own original soap.
In the winter and Spring CHE 181 is offered to first-year students. In this course, the students are immersed in hands-on experiential learning in their Design Studio Symposium.
This course is designed so first-year students can act like practicing engineers. Students learn to write professional-quality documents, design electric circuits, produce and interpret technical drawings and figures, calculate sensor responses for systems, and learn AutoCAD and Python.
The students are tasked with designing their own electric circuits. The course introduces students to concepts such as voltage, current, resistance and signal transmission.
We love to engage with and have fun with our students!
Eng Ambassadors at orientation
Students enjoying snacks and fun at a game day
Students celebrating at Grad Toast
Having fun making soap in our first-year studio design course
Students chatting with their professor in a Studio Design course
Students having a blast getting "purpled" on Eng Day
A winning student design team at a competition in Paris, France
Students having fun at a three-legged race as part of an amazing race
Our fourth-year students at their Capstone Design Symposium
Students enjoying hot dogs with their profs at Eng Day
Student team collaborating to design soap
Water balloon fight with students and faculty on the lawn of E6
