Facts & Rankings

In the McKetta Department of Chemical Engineering at The University of Texas at Austin, we lead pioneering research in vital areas such as energy and the environment, human health, materials and manufacturing. We educate students who go on to transform industries, benefit society and improve quality of life.

Academic Areas

• Advanced Materials, Polymers and Nanotechnology
• Biotechnology
• Energy
• Environmental Engineering
• Modeling and Simulation
• Process Engineering
• Separations, Surface and Interface Science

Recent Department Highlights

• Directed by Professor Brian Korgel, UT-Austin’s Energy Institute has partnered with the globe’s largest energy companies to launch a new membership program to advance science and create opportunities for energy community members. It serves to strengthen the department’s ability to solve urgent problems and creates high-impact career and research opportunities for students. 

• Professors Jennifer Maynard and George Georgiou lead a cross-disciplinary effort, Texas Biologics, that focuses on biologic (non-synthetic) research and development for infectious diseases, neurological disorders, autoimmunity, and inborn errors of metabolism. 

• Professors Hal Alpert and Nate Lynd created an enzyme variant that can break down environment-throttling plastics, specifically polyethylene terephthalate (PET), within a matter of hours to days. 

Undergraduate Students

• 690 Enrolled
• 42% Women
• 22.4% Underrepresented minorities
• $1.3M Awarded in scholarships

Graduate Students

• 153 Enrolled
• 41% Women
• 32% International 
• 41 NSF Fellows

Faculty

• 29 Tenure/tenure-track faculty
• 11 Members of the National Academy of Engineering
• 2 National Medal of Technology and Innovation Recipients
• Over 95 issued US patents
• 100% of our faculty have been recognized with prestigious or coveted national or international awards in research, teaching, career accomplishments, or all three
• 84% of faculty work in two or more research areas
• 1/3 of faculty hold dual appointments in UT departments including chemistry, physics, pharmacy, mechanical engineering and biomedical engineering
• Over 30% of faculty have founded or co-founded startups in the last decade in fields that include biotechnology, medical therapy, diagnostics and water treatment

Degrees Awarded 2022 - 2023

• 154 Bachelor’s degrees
• 47 Doctoral degrees

After Graduation

• Average starting salary, B.S. graduates - $89,616
• 90% of undergraduate students have jobs or admission to graduate school upon graduation
• The department has a vast network of more than 8,000 alumni located around the world

Preparing Students for Success

• The department has partnered with Shell to deliver an updated process safety course, taught by Dr. Thomas Edison with guest lectures from seasoned industry safety specialist Natalie Salter. The course prepares students with safety skills typically learned on the job.

• The department’s safety mentor program brings industry representatives to campus to perform research lab walkthroughs and educate students about recognizing hazards and planning safe experiments.

• Entrepreneurship in Chemical Engineering is a unique course that is very practical for preparing students to succeed in taking an idea to market as entrepreneurs.

• Courses throughout the chemical engineering curriculum include leadership development modules that teach students about integrity, collaboration, scholarship and service.