Prospective Students

General Information

Chemical Engineering Graduate Student Organization (CEGSO) is located in the Sweeney Hall Building. Find out more information about our Chemical and Biological Engineering department – CBE department.

 

About IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY

Iowa State University (ISU) is located in the Ames city, about ~1-hour drive from Iowa’s capital ‘Des Moines’. For more information about ISU or campus activities, click here

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Graduate Project/Advisor Selection Information

After your admission to the CBE department at Iowa State University (ISU), you are required to go through the project/advisor selection process. In the first semester, professors who have rolled out the projects generally give a brief presentation about their research to the new graduate students called ‘Orientation’.

During this time (typically project selection deadline is 1 month), new graduate students can schedule one on one meetings with professors to talk about the research expectations or more that they’re interested in. CEGSO is dedicated to helping new students through assigning one on one mentor (senior grads), covering all the research groups in the department. Feel free to contact us at cegso.isu@gmail.com for more info.

Finally, on and before the deadline, students will be required to submit their top three choices for a project/advisor. Advisors will be assigned after the departmental consideration, usually in the mid-semester.

 

What to expect in your first year? 

  1. You are required to take all the CBE core classes within the first year. Apart from core courses, you might also take some elective courses (not mandatory though).
  2. Once your project is finalized, depending on your advisor, you will be introduced to your research topic details. Priority should be given to core courses to get good grades in your first year.
  3. Qualifying Exam: First-year students are expected to give their qualifying exam at the end of the first year (around September).
  4. Read the graduate student handbook for complete information about the Ph.D. program.

Ph.D. is a slow-winning race. Hold yourself, socialize, have fun and feel free to reach out to any senior graduate students, and of course, CEGSO is here for you.

 

International Student Services

If you’re an international student, Visit here for relevant information.