Graduation Requirements


The Department requires 128 credits for graduation, 43 of which must be in courses numbered 300 or higher. Specific course requirements are listed in the MSU-Bozeman Catalog, and are shown with indicated prerequisites on the Curriculum Flowchart.

Elective courses must be selected to meet the following requirements:

Additionally, CHE Students are required to take one industrial inspection trip.

CORE and Humanities and Social Sciences Requirements for Engineering Students

Montana State University requires all MSU students to meet certain general education requirements, called the CORE requirements. For decades before the CORE was implemented, College of Engineering students were required to meet the Humanities and Social Science (H&SS) requirements of our accrediting agency, the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET). When MSU developed the CORE, these requirements did not substitute for, but were added to the ABET H&SS requirements.

By exercising care when selecting humanities courses, it is possible to satisfy both CORE and H&SS requirements with the same set of courses.

 

CORE Requirements [MSU Catalog CORE Information]

Many of the CORE categories are met by courses required by the chemical engineering curriculum. The categories that chemical engineering students typically need not be concerned with include:

You must make sure you choose elective courses to meet the following CORE requirements:

A course with both CORE subject category (e.g., "F") and multicultural/global designations, such as MUS 212F#, may be used towards meeting both CORE requirements. For example, MUS 212F# may be used towards meeting both the "F" and "#" requirements. There are a few courses that have multiple CORE subject categories (e.g., UH 404 which qualifies for either "S" or "N" CORE credit) - the student may choose which CORE designation to apply, but only one CORE subject classification may be used (for UH 404, either "S" or "N", but not both).

 

ABET H&SS Requirements

The College of Engineering has approved a new set of H&SS Requirements that will go into effect with the 2002-2004 Catalog. Students graduating under prior catalogs may elect to fulfill either the new requirements or the old requirements.

OLD H&SS REQUIREMENTS
Catalogs through 2000-2002
NEW H&SS REQUIREMENTS
2002-2004 Catalog
Students graduating under the 2000-02 catalog (or earlier catalogs) may choose to meet either set of H&SS requirements. Students graduating under the 2002-04 catalog must meet the new H&SS requirements.
 

ABET requirements fall into three categories:

  1. Total Required Credits
  2. Breadth Requirement
  3. Depth Requirement

The requirements in each of these categories are described below.

1 - Credit Total: 16 credits

This includes all "H" and "S" courses, and approved "F" courses. (1 credit from CHE 251V may be used to meet the ABET total credit requirement, as described below.)

Approved "F" courses (as listed in the MSU Catalog)

  • ARCH 121F, 322F, 323F
  • ART 114F, 202FG, 203F, 418F, 442F
  • HHD 205FG, 207F
  • MTA 101F, 102F, 103F, 104F, 218FG, 303F
  • MUS 102F, 210F, 212FG, 312FG

Other "F" courses may be acceptable, but you should get them approved by the Dean's office prior to enrolling. The courses should not be "how to" courses. For example, a course on "Appreciating Sculpture" would be an acceptable "F" course for ABET's H&SS requirements. A course on "Using a Stone Chisel" would not be acceptable.

Many students take the minimum, 15 credits, of CORE "H", "F", and "S" classes - ABET requires 16 credits. For chemical engineering students, the missing credit can be obtained from CHE 251V.

Students graduating after 1999: In the year 2000 new ABET requirements go into effect regarding instruction in ethics, professionalism, and the impacts of engineering on society. Because of this, students graduating in the year 2000 and after must take CHE 251V: Societal Impacts of Chemical Engineering, even if the course is not needed to meet the University's verbal communications requirement.

2 - Breadth Requirement

Courses in the "H", "F", and "S" categories must be selected from at least three different subject areas (rubrics).

3 - Depth Requirement

The ABET depth requirement can be satisfied by taking two courses (six credits) of "H", "F", and "S" courses in the same rubric (e.g., two HIST or two POLS courses). Additionally, six "H", "F", and "S" credits must be at the 200 level - or - three "H", "F", and "S" credits at the 300 level or above.

 

 

Engineering students must take:

  • 9 credits from categories A and B, including:
    • 3 credits from category A
    • 3 credits from category B

The courses in each category are listed below.

Category A courses have been selected to support communications, team work, and ethics.

  • ENGL 123H - Introduction to Literary Study

  • ENGL 212H - Biblical and Classical Backgrounds to Literature

  • ENGL 214H - Regional Literature

  • ENGL 309HG - Mythologies

  • ENGL 311HG - World Literature

  • ENGL 314H - Literature of Place

  • MLF 219HG - Intermediate French

  • MLG 219HG - Intermediate German

  • MLJ 315H - Introduction to Japanese Literature

  • MLS 219HG - Intermediate Spanish

  • NAS 320HG - American Indian Religions

  • NAS 340HG - American Indian Literature

  • PHIL 105HG - Problems of Good & Evil

  • PHIL 120H - Reason & Reality

  • PHIL 220HG - Philosophies of Asia

  • PHIL 305H - History of Philosophy: Ancient & Medieval

  • PHIL 306H - History of Philosophy: Modern

  • PHIL 332H - Ethics

  • PSY 100S - Introductory Psychology

  • PSY 252S - Developmental Psychology

  • PSY 305S - Applied Critical Thinking

  • PSY 305S - Applied Critical Thinking

  • PSY 452S - Social Psychology

  • RELS 105H - Introduction to the Study of Religion

  • RELS 202HG - Asian Religions

  • RELS 216H - Christian Thought

  • SOC 101S - Introduction to Sociology

  • SOC 308S - Population Problems

  • SOC 328S - Environmental Sociology

Category B courses have been selected to support global and societal issues, contemporary issues, and the influences of industrialization on society.

  • ANTH 101SG - Intro to Anthropology

  • ANTH 204SG - Culture & Society

  • ANTH 326SG - Language & Culture

  • ANTH 433SG - Contemp Pacific Societies

  • ECON 101S - Economic Way of Thinking

  • ECON 102SG - Principles of Macroecon and International Econ

  • ECON 250SG - Honors Economics

  • ECON 314SG - International Economics

  • ECON 317SG - Economic Development

  • ECON 332S - Econ of Natural Resources

  • ECON 372S - Economic History of the US

  • ECON 393SG - Comparative Economic Syst.

  • GEOG 105SG - World Regional Geography

  • GEOG 201SG - Human Geography

  • HIST 104HG - World History in the 20th Century

  • HIST 107H – West. Civ.French Rev -Present

  • HIST 109HG - Modern Asia

  • HIST 110HG - Latin American History

  • HIST 115HG - A History of Japan

  • HIST 156H – Amer. & the World After 1865

  • HIST 426H - The Renaissance

  • HIST 456H - American Thought and Culture

  • HUM 205H - Nature and Culture

  • MGMT 245SG - Cultural Dimensions of International Business

  • MKTG 242SG - Intro to Global Markets

  • MLG 303H – Mod. German Culture/ Society

  • NAS 100SG - Introduction to NAS

  • NAS 201SG - American Indians in Montana

  • NAS 242SG - American Indians in Contemporary Society

  • POLS 206S - The Government of the US

  • POLS 241SG – Intro to Internat’l Relations

  • POLS 324S – Amer. Political Thought and Pop Culture

  • POLS 402SG - International Law

  • POLS 441SG - International Human Rights

  • PSY 100S - Introductory Psychology

  • PSY 252S - Developmental Psychology

  • PSY 305S - Applied Critical Thinking

  • PSY 452S - Social Psychology

  • SOC 101S - Introduction to Sociology

  • SOC 225S - Sociology Through Film

  • SOC 308S - Population Problems

  • SOC 328S – Environmental Sociology

This change applies only to engineering H&SS requirements. MSU CORE requirements are still in place: students must take 6 credits of H, 6 credits of S, 3 credits of F, and 6 (double-counted) credits of G.

updated 3/27/02 rwl

 

Technical Electives (also called Professional Electives)

Technical electives are used to meet specific credit requirements in the areas of:

The "typical" student graduating under the 1996-98 Catalog will require (beyond those credits built into the curriculum):

A single course's credits may be applied to more than one category. For example, CHE 437: Introduction to Polymer Engineering, counts for one credit of AdChem, 3 credits of EngSD, and 3 credits of technical elective. This can get a bit confusing, so work with your advisor to develop a set of technical electives that satisfy two criteria: (1) they are of interest to you, and (2) meet your graduation requirements.

Note: Technical electives are used to give the student a chance to focus on material of interest to them, and are often used by the faculty to present state-of-the-art information to their students. Because of this, the slate of available technical elective courses changes frequently. Most technical electives are upper-level courses.

Listing of Technical Elective Courses

 

Industrial Inspection Trip

As of Spring 2002, all CHE students (regardless of the catalog under which they will graduate) are required to participate in one industrial inspection trip, and the inspection trip will be a course requirement for CHE 402.

During the transition period, there are some special cases that may come up:

updated: 3/27/02 rwl