Career in Biochemical Engineering

What is Biochemical Engineering all about?

Biochemical Engineering is a branch of engineering that deals with the study, design and construction of unit processes that involve biological organisms or molecules. It is an inter-disciplinary study of chemical engineering, biochemistry and microbiology.

 The objective of this branch is to train students in biotechnology, biochemical engineering, microbial and enzyme systems. This will help them in understanding the biological or biochemical phenomena of these systems.

Apart from it, Biochemical Engineering also deals with the kinetics of growth, death and metabolism, agitation, fermentation, mass transfer and enzyme technology.

Career in Biochemical Engineering

Biochemical engineers conduct studies on cells, viruses, proteins, or other biological substances to determine optimal conditions for growth or inhibitors that can stop or kill.

They observe the interactions of raw materials with each other and in specific environments. After that, they develop processes for building new compounds from these materials. The new compounds are mass-produced for the general public’s use.

In addition to design work, the biochemical engineer needs to work with others in process and product development. They need to work with research personnel and manufacturing personnel to prepare information about products that are developed.

They work with in tandem with fellow chemists and biologists to develop new technologies and products so as to continue innovation.

Biochemical engineers must make sure that the results of any research and experiments and collaborations are properly captured and documented.

There are various opportunities in the field of Biochemical Engineering. They research on plants that produce dyes, bio-fuels, alcohol, steroids, enzymes, bio-fertilizers, or biocatalysts that are used for chemotherapy or in the food processing industry, and fermentation processes.

Apart from it, biomechanical engineers work in fields such as sports, medical, and rehabilitation. Those working in the medical field specialize in working with cells and tissues. They study the mechanics and mechanobiology of cells and tissues. These engineers spend much time in labs trying to fabricate human tissue, hoping to ultimately eliminate many diseases.

The field of Biochemical engineering is constantly changing, career advancement depends on further education and updating one’s credentials. In this area, becoming certified as a Registered Professional Engineer can help in advancing to management positions within firms.

Salary after Biochemical Engineering

In this sector, a fresher can easily start with the salary of 3.5 lakh to 5 Lakh per annum.

Job opportunities for Biochemical Engineers

A biochemical engineer can find jobs in following areas:

• Textile Manufacturing Companies
• Health Care Sector
• Paper Manufacturing Industry
• Water Treatment Plants
• Pharmaceuticals
• Pharmaceuticals
• Aerospace Companies
• Chemical Plants
• Food Industries
• Mining Engineering Companies
• Petrochemical Engineering Companies
• Oil and Natural Gas Industry
• Waste Treatment Plants
• Plastic and Polymer Manufacturing Units

Biochemical Engineering Recruiters

• Biocon
• Serum Institute of India,
• Panacea Biotec
• Piramal Healthcare
• Wockhardt Limited
• GlaxoSmithKline
• Bharat Serum
• Krebs Biochemicals and Industries Limited
• Zydus Cadila
• Indian Immunologicals
• Monsanto Biotech
• Rasi Seeds,
• Venkateshwara Hatcheries
• Novo Nordisk
• Indian Immunologicals
• TransAsia Biomedics

Eligibility Criteria for Biochemical Engineering

Candidates must have a certificate of 10+2 with minimum qualifying marks in aggregate with Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics and Biology as core subjects.

Most of the colleges demand minimum 50% marks as the prerequisite to appear for the test.

Courses in Biochemical Engineering

Exams for Post-graduation Course

For post-graduation course, Candidates must hold a degree in Bachelor of Engineering/B. Tech in Biochemical Engineering along with a good score in entrance tests held for PG programme. These tests are held by various state, central, and private universities. In all exams, a significant amount of questions are asked from the syllabus of B. Tech. course.

• All India Post Graduate Medical Entrance Examination
• Jawaharlal Nehru Technology University Engineering Common Entrance Test for Diploma Holders (ECET FDH)
• Sant Langowal Institute of Engineering and Technology Entrance Test (SLIET) (M.Tech)
• Karnataka PGCET Exam for Bio Medical Engineering & Medical Electronics
• Banaras Hindu University M.Tech Entrance Exam
• Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering
• Jawaharlal Nehru University Combined Entrance Examination
• SRM Engineering Entrance Examination (SRM EEE)
• Aligarh Muslim University M.Tech in Biomedical Engineering Entrance Exam
• Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology Entrance Exam (IIST)

Biochemical Engineering Subjects and Syllabus

There are various topics which are studied under Biochemical Engineering. Some important topics and concepts are given below:

• Biochemistry
• Bio-entrepreneurship
• Bioprocess
• Environmental Biotechnology
• Environmental Studies
• Fertilizer Technology
• Organic Chemistry
• Polymer Technology
• Immunology
• Biophysics
• Metabolic Regulation and Engineering
• Microbiology
• Molecular biology and genetics
• Microbiology
• Bioprocess Technology
• Enzyme Engineering and Technology
• Chemical Engineering Thermodynamics

Top Biochemical Engineering Colleges in India

• All India Institute of Medical Sciences
• Amravati University
• Anna University, Centre for Biotechnology
• Banaras Hindu University
• Banasthali Vidyapeeth
• Bharathiyar University
• Birla Institute of Technology & Science
• Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology
• Cochin University of Science and Technology
• Consortium India Limited
• Devi Ahilya Vishwavidyalaya
• Guru Ghasidas University
• Guwahati University
• Bio Engineering Research Centre (BERC) - Navi Mumbai
• IIT Delhi
• Guru Nanak Dev University
• Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore
• Jawaharlal Nehru University
• Pt. Ravishankar Shukla University
• Lalit Narayan Mithila University
• Jawaharlal Nehru Technical University
• Indian Institute of Information Technology - Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh
• Indian Institute of Technology, IIT Powai
• Govind Ballabh Pant University of Agriculture and Technology
• P S G College Of Technology - Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu
• The Maharaja Sayajirao University, Vadodara
• University College of Engineering - Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh
• National Institute of Immunology
• University of Mysore
• Tamil Nadu GD Naidu Agricultural University
• University of Delhi
• VIT University - Vellore, Tamil Nadu
• Mahatma Gandhi University
• Madurai - Kamraj University
• University of Calcutta
• University of Roorkee
• University of Calicut
• North Maharashtra University
• SRM University, Chennai
• University of Hyderabad
• Marathwada University
• Dr. Hari Singh Gaur Vishwavidyalaya
• Dr. Yashwant Singh Parmar University
• Goa University
• Himachal Pradesh University
• IIT Kharagpur
• Jadavpur University
• Jiwaji University
• Kurukshetra University
• Patna University
• Punjab University
• Punjabi University
• Tezpur University
• University of Chennai
• University of Kerala
• University of Pune
• Aligarh Muslim University

Courses in Biochemical Engineering

At Undergraduate level students can go for B. Tech in Biology and who wants to pursue Masters in Biotechnology can opt for M. Tech course.

Biochemical Engineering Entrance Exams

Exam for Under-graduation Course

There is a provision of negative marking for wrongly answered questions. The list of the exams is given below.

• All India Engineering Entrance Exams (AIEEE)
• Bharath University Engineering Entrance Exam
• Biotech Consortium India Limited (BCIL) Common Entrance Test
• Engineering, Agriculture and Medical Common Entrance Test (EAMCET)
• Indian Institute of Technology – Joint Entrance Examination (IIT-JEE)
• Jadavpur University Biomedical Engineering Entrance Examination
• Sant Langowal Institute of Engineering and Technology Entrance Test (SLIET) (B.E/B.Tech)
• VIT Engineering Entrance Examination