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Postgraduate Study

About the Department of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology

The Department of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology is a very dynamic organization that brings together top-notch research in the areas of engineering, chemistry, biology, and physics. We are a diverse group, bringing in the best staff, students, and researchers world-wide, and we encourage applications from exceptional, highly motivated graduates.

We have strong ties with industry and other departments that allows us to conduct world-leading research and are considered ‘Among the Best in the World’ in the QS World University Rankings by Subject.  We offer two PhDs, one in Biotechnology and one in Chemical Engineering, as well as four Master’s courses:  the Master’s in Bioscience Enterprise (MBE); an MPhil in Advanced Chemical Engineering (ACE); the MPhil in Biotechnology; and the MPhil in Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology, which is a research-based MPhil. We would encourage you to review our courses offered, and if you choose to apply, we would look forward to considering your application.

7 courses offered in the Department of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology

This is a unique programme for chemical engineers seeking the advanced skills required by companies in which rapid change and working with developments in other disciplines is the norm. The course combines taught work and conventional research.

Students receive an education both in advanced aspects of chemical engineering and in essential areas of engineering administration, such as technology policy, finance and management. There are aspects designed to develop professional problem-solving skills. Students will also undertake a research project within the University, where they will be required to plan and execute their own work. The projects may include industrial collaboration.

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The MPhil in Bioscience Enterprise (MBE) programme is an intensive taught science and business course intended for those who have an interest in enterprise and the ambition to found technology companies or take up leadership, executive or consultancy roles in the life sciences sector.

The syllabus comprises a series of interdisciplinary modules covering the commercial exploitation of the latest advances in biotechnology together with the business expertise and management skills associated with bringing scientific opportunities to market. Further to the extensive lecture programme, students gain practical business and management experience through professional practice assignments, and will participate in a consulting project and a research placement, both of which they normally undertake with host companies.

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The Department of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology is a world-leading centre for research in the process industries and covers a broad range of topics including healthcare, sustainability, energy, and materials.  Individual academics offer a broad range of topics.

The Department welcomes applications to undertake research towards a PhD but is unable to accept candidates for whom no supervisor is available.  The Department does not offer a taught PhD programme. Instead, it admits those applicants who meet the academic admissions criteria and whose research interests match those of an available member of the academic staff who is willing to act as the student's supervisor.

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The 11-month full-time MPhil in Biotechnology combines taught and research elements to provide students with state-of-the-art education at the interface of biology with physical sciences and technology. The programme is offered by the Department of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology in collaboration with several other University departments and with support from a range of industry champions. In this very interdisciplinary programme, students acquire the foundations and learn about the latest advances in biotechnology, gain practical skills for wet-lab and computer-based work, and develop competencies to become business-savvy scientists in the fast-growing biotech sector.

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The Department of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology is a world-leading centre for research in the process industries and covers a broad range of topics including healthcare, sustainability, energy, and materials.  Individual academics offer a broad range of topics.

The Department welcomes applications to undertake research towards a PhD but is unable to accept candidates for whom no supervisor is available.  The Department does not offer a taught PhD programme. Instead, it admits those applicants who meet the academic admissions criteria and whose research interests match those of an available member of the academic staff who is willing to act as the student's supervisor.

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The Department of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology is a world-leading centre for research in the process industries and covers a broad range of topics, including healthcare, sustainability, energy, and materials. Individual academics offer a broad range of topics. Please consult the Research Groups page on the Department of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology website for more details.

The Department offers a one-year MPhil by research degree that is formally known as the MPhil in Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology (MPhil CEB).  The Department welcomes applications to undertake research for the MPhil, but is unable to accept candidates for whom no supervisor is available. Please note that this is a research-based MPhil with no taught component.  We welcome applicants who meet the academic admissions criteria and whose research interests match those of an available member of the academic staff who is willing to act as the student's supervisor.

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Awaiting Approval

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6 courses also advertised in the Department of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology

From the Department of Chemistry

Awaiting Approval

From the School of the Biological Sciences

The Cambridge Biosciences DTP is a four year fully-funded PhD programme that aims to create highly skilled and employable people. The programme offers training across 23 University Departments/Institutes and 3 Partner Institutes providing access to a wide range of research areas related to the strategic themes of the BBSRC. We offer three types of DTP studentships:

  • DTP Standard
  • Targeted
  • iCase

During the programme, DTP Standard and Targeted students will undertake two ten-week rotations in different labs before commencing their PhD. They will receive training in a variety of areas including but not limited to statistics, programming, ethics, data analysis, scientific writing and public engagement. Students will also undertake a 12-week internship (PIPS).

iCase students are not required to undertake rotations but may do so if they feel that this training would be useful. They must undertake a placement with their Industrial Partner for a minimum of three months and a maximum of 18 months.

Students will be expected to submit their thesis at the end of the fourth year.

Part-time study, whilst not the norm, may be viable, depending on the project, and will be considered on a case by case basis so please discuss this option with your proposed supervisor before making an application for this mode of study.

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From the Department of Physics

The development of new materials lies at the heart of many of the technological challenges we currently face, for example creating advanced materials for energy generation. Computational modelling plays an increasingly important role in the understanding, development and optimisation of new materials.

This four-year doctoral training programme on computational methods for material modelling aims to train scientists not only in the use of existing modelling methods but also in the underlying computational and mathematical techniques. This will allow students to develop and enhance existing methods, for instance by introducing new capabilities and functionalities, and also to create innovative new software tools for materials modelling in industrial and academic research.

The first year of the doctoral training programme is provided by the existing MPhil course in Scientific Computing, which has research and taught elements, as well as additional training elements. The final three years consist of a PhD research project, with a student-led choice of projects offered by researchers closely associated with the CDT. (https://ljc.group.cam.ac.uk

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From the Department of Physics

The vision of this PhD programme is to deliver bespoke cohort-based interdisciplinary training which promotes holistic problem-focused thinking for nanoscientists, and drives new scientific directions as well as impactful, and responsible translation of research to technologies. A particular emphasis will be exposure to a broad range of world-class research environments, to allow students to discover their individual research and technology interests and develop strong ownership of their PhD topic.

The first six months of the programme will provide advanced-level training, specifically designed for students, through an integrated lectures + practicals module on Applied Nanoscience, a module on System Integration for Experimentalists and one short and one longer experimental project, prior to final selection of an interdisciplinary PhD research project between two research groups in the Departments of Physics, Chemistry, Engineering, Materials Science or another relevant department within the University. An additional module on Innovation for Scientists will help students develop a wider perspective, including training on innovation, sustainability and responsible research.

Throughout the programme there will be an environment supporting creativity, resilience, peer-to-peer learning, networking and connectivity. The programme will offer professional skills training to support students for different career paths in industry, academia and beyond, and will help students discover and nurture their leadership approach in varied contexts. Cross-cohort events will include student-led conferences, research seminars, onsite and offsite research and career development workshops led by internal and external experts and other activities.

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From the Department of Physics

The MPhil programme in Scientific Computing provides world-class education on high performance computing and advanced algorithms for numerical simulation at continuum and atomic-scale levels. The course trains early-career scientists in the use of existing computational software and in the underlying components of the simulation pipeline, from mathematical models of physical systems and advanced numerical algorithms for their discretisation, to object-oriented programming and methods for high-performance computing for deployment in contemporary massively parallel computers.  As a result, course graduates have rigorous research skills and are formidably well-equipped to proceed to doctoral research or directly into employment. The highly transferable skills in algorithm development and high-performance computing make our graduates extremely employable in all sectors of industry, commerce and finance.

The MPhil in Scientific Computing is suitable for graduates from any discipline of natural sciences, technology or engineering, who have good mathematical and computational skills.  

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