About Us

The William G. Lowrie Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, situated in the heart of campus, is one of the oldest chemical engineering programs in the United States and is marked by a tradition of excellence.  With The Ohio State University being one of the largest universities in the world, vast opportunities abound -- yet within the program itself, many students experience a small, home-town or even family feel, and faculty report an environment of exceptional collegiality. In fact, this aspect of the department is well-known amongst peer academic circles.

We invite you to learn more about what makes the William G. Lowrie Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering a top-rated program by exploring these pages, and getting in touch should you need further information.

OUR FACULTY

• 24 tenure-track faculty, five emeritus faculty, five clinical professors, and one research professor.
• Faculty are known internationally, with some being the leading experts in their fields worldwide.
• Many of our faculty have won both internal and external teaching awards, such as the AIChE Warren K. Lewis Award for Excellence in Engineering Education and Keck Foundation Engineering Teaching Excellence Award. Six faculty have received Ohio State's highest teaching award. The CBE Department also received one of the only department-wide teaching awards given in Ohio State's history.
• 5 National Academy of Engineering members
• 9 National Science Foundation CAREER Awards
• 8 AIChE Fellows
• 6 AIMBE Fellows
• 6 ACS Fellows
• 5 AAAS Fellows
• Dozens of American Chemical Society and American Institute of Chemical Engineers awards.
• Many faculty have backgrounds in industry, and several hold patents and participate in entrepreneurial activities.

OUR STUDENTS 

The average freshman ACT Composite score for incoming freshmen is 30.1 and the overall percentage of students participating in the honors program is 42%. Student retention in the freshman engineering honors program is high – 92.6%. These are exceptional numbers, and the number of awards our students have received reflects this. 

Students have abundant opportunities to participate in research under the tutelage of some of the finest faculty in the profession, and have won numerous local and national awards.  

CBE students learn how to think, problem-solve and apply these skills to raise the quality of life in many ways. With a focus on increasing efficiencies while reducing costs to
improve products and systems, their work addresses global
challenges, such as clean water, sustainable energy systems,
health care innovations and more.

Fellowships

• 15 National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowships
• NASA Space Technology Research Fellowship
• National Cancer Institute Fellowship
• Two NIH Fellowships
• Prevent Blindness Fellowship
• Three alumni have won national Post Doctoral Transition fellowships to assist their entry into academia.

National Scholarships

• 6 Barry M. Goldwater Scholarships
• 3 Fulbright Scholarships
• Astronaut Scholar Award
• Department of Nuclear Energy Scholarship
• Department of Defense SMART Scholarship

OUR ALUMNI

Times Higher Education — which compiles data to rank higher education institutions internationally — recognized Ohio State graduates among the 20 "most employable" in the United States and in the top 60 in the world.

Wall Street Journal has listed The Ohio State University as No. 12 in the nation for sought-after graduates.

Graduates are recruited by industry giants such as Intel, Shell, Dow, DuPont, General Mills, Proctor & Gamble, and many others, while other students continue on into academia at such institutions as Georgia Tech, University of Wisconsin, Carnegie Mellon, and Northwestern University. Three of our alumni are now chemical engineering department chairs.

With a global network of more than 550,000 living alumni, there are countless opportunities to connect with fellow Ohio State Buckeyes after graduation. The department itself has approximately 6,000 living alumni worldwide, many of them in Ohio.

ABOUT COLUMBUS, OHIO

The Ohio State University is located in Columbus, the capitol of Ohio and the 14th largest city in the nation. Columbus is home to the highest metropolitan concentration of Fortune 1000 companies in America.

As a thriving, multicultural Smart City, Columbus offers:

• a vibrant quality of life
• a low cost of living (8% below the national average, and housing costs are the ninth-lowest in the country)
• vast opportunities for professional growth, from internships and co-ops to professional collaborations and full-time careers 
• economic prosperity within a healthy, stable economy
• diverse neighborhoods
• outstanding medical facilities
• and a multitude of recreational, cultural, and intellectual opportunities. 

In 2018, Columbus was named one of the best cities in the U.S. for new college grads by Business Insider.

Columbus was named the “Most Intelligent City in the World” by the Intelligent Community Forum in 2015, as well as Forbes Magazines’ “World’s Top 7 Smart Cities. In naming Columbus the “Most Intelligent City in the World,” the think tank Intelligent Community Forum cited the city’s “rebirth of hope” and “revolutionary community” approach and relentless pursuit of new ideas. Columbus was selected after a year-long evaluation that included a quantitative analysis of extensive data, site inspections, and votes from an international jury made up of experts from around the world.

In 2016, Columbus, Ohio won the U.S. Department of Transportation's "Smart City" designation. The city received $40 million dollars from the U.S. Department of Transportation to develop smart technology, with another $10 million from Vulcan Inc., a company founded by Microsoft billionaire Paul Allen.

On the Ohio State campus and in the Columbus area, you will find many green spaces such as parks, botanical gardens and trails. Recreational activities include water and boating activities, rock climbing, museums, music, art, cultural events, and, of course, some of the best football competitions in the world. Columbus and Ohio have a great deal to offer.

Ohio State plays a unique role in both the City of Columbus and the State of Ohio. It is the largest employer in Columbus and a top producer of skilled alumni, intellectual property, and technical expertise which has been tapped to form companies in Ohio and beyond. Discover why David Williams, previously dean of the College of Engineering, believes that Ohio State Engineering is a driver of economic development and what attracts companies to partner with or invest in Ohio.