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Each year a number of awards for academic excellence are earned by Chemical Engineering students. These are presented at the final Spring meeting of the Student Chapter of the AIChE. Among the awards are:

M. H. Chetrick Award

For academic excellence during a student's four years as an undergraduate in Chemical Engineering. Awarded to the top academic senior. M.H. Chetrick joined the MSU Chemical Engineering Department as Chairperson in 1962, moving from the Speed School of Engineering in Louisville, KY. Professor Chetrick was an avid swimmer, and he would swim daily at lunchtime. Professor Chetrick taught thermodynamics and kinetics. He took great interest in the standards for graduate research and participated in all of the graduate committees for the oral defenses for theses. He served as department chairperson until his untimely death in 1977.

AIChE Contest Awards

First and second place awards for the best MSU individual and group solutions to the National AIChE Student Contest Problem. Presented by the Mid-Michigan Section of the AIChE. Local winners are forwarded to the National AIChE Design competition. We are proud that MSU has the best record in the nation.

National Omega Chi Epsilon Award

The MSU Chapter of OXE annually chooses one outstanding chemical engineer to receive the National Omega Chi Epsilon Award. This award goes to a Michigan State student who, chosen by the officers, demonstrates sustained activity within the society, excellence in academics and leadership, success against personal challenges, or any other traits that follow the core principles of the society.

Junior Competitive Exam

Each year, Omega Chi Epsilon hosts the Junior Competitive Exam, a rigorous, three-hour test covering all of the Junior level chemical engineering courses taught at MSU (Fluids, Thermodynamics, Reactions, and Separations).

Outstanding Sophomore Award

The Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science will acknowledge the chemical engineering sophomore with the highest grade point average entering spring semester. Awards will be given during the annual picnic in the spring.

AIChE Donald F. Othmer Sophomore Academic Excellence Award

AIChE Outstanding Sophomore Award presented by the National AIChE for the student with the highest GPA at the end of the Sophomore year. A subscription to the AIChE Journal or a Perry's Chemical Engineering Handbook and a certificate is included.

Outstanding Freshman Award

The Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science will acknowledge the chemical engineering freshman with the highest grade point average entering spring semester. Awards will be given during the annual picnic in the spring.

Each year the College of Engineering makes scholarships available to students already enrolled with scholarship applications coordinated through the Undergraduate Studies Office. Approximately 65 scholarships and grants-in-aid are awarded to Undergraduate Chemical Engineering and Materials Science majors through the College of Engineering Scholarship Committee. The funds for these grants are donated by individuals, industry, or other organizations. The awards totaled over $150,000 in recent years to approximately 90 students.

A recent list of awards given through the department are summarized below:

• Truman Bishop Memorial Scholarship
• Earl and Maru Bolle Memorial Scholarship
• Brown Scholarship
• James Burnett Memorial Scholarship
• Carl M. Cooper Memorial Endowed Scholarship
• Clarence Dennis Scholarship
• Ray Giffels Scholarship
• David and Denise Lamp Scholarship
• M. G. and S. V. Larian Memorial Fund Scholarships
• Lifeline Club Scholarship
• Bernard A. and Joan L. Paulson Scholarship
• Raymond Scholarship
• Lester and Mary Smith Legacy Scholarship*
• Von Ehr Scholarship
• College of Engineering Endowed and Undesignated Scholarships
• Additionally, the Department of Education maintains information at https://studentaid.gov/.

It’s your time to find your passions and new areas of interest. Visit undergraduate research for more information on getting started.

Related student and professional organizations:

• American Ceramic Society – National Chapter
• American Chemical Society – National Chapter
• American Institute of Chemical Engineers – Student Chapter

The national professional society for the Chemical Engineering profession is the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE). Michigan State University has a very active student chapter of AIChE. Most undergraduate Chem. E's are members of the chapter whose objectives are to promote professionalism and to contribute to the development of Chemical Engineering at Michigan State University. The chapter has won outstanding chapter awards from the National AIChE, and MSU student members have been the most successful in the country in winning the AIChE student design contest.

AIChE offers a balance of social and professional activities. There are frequent meetings during the year with speakers from industry and academia. Other activities include special industrial and social functions (e.g. Tiger ball games, plant trips, an annual picnic, a banquet, and an awards night).

• American Institute of Chemical Engineers – National Chapter
• Biomedical Engineering Society – National Chapter
• ASM International – National Chapter
• Formula SAE Team – Student Chapter
• The Minerals, Metals and Materials Society – National Chapter

SAE Mini Baja® is a student design competition run by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) that simulates real-world engineering design projects and their related challenges. Engineering students are asked to design and build an off-road vehicle that will survive the severe punishment of rough terrain and/or water. The object of the competition is to provide SAE student members with a challenging project that involves the planning and manufacturing tasks found when introducing a new product to the consumer industrial market. Students must function as a team to not only design, build, test, promote, and race a vehicle within the limits of the rules, but also to generate financial support for their project and manage their educational priorities.

• NOBCChE – National Chapter

The National Organization for the Professional Development of Black Chemists and Chemical Engineers (NOBCChE) was established in 1975 to develop and carry out programs to assist minority groups in realizing their full potential in science and engineering fields. Minority scientists comprise a very small percentage of the professionals in their respective disciplines. The organization's purpose is to maintain and support regional programs which assist underrepresented groups in fully realizing their academic and/or professional potential, introduce science and technology as viable professional goals to students on the elementary and high school levels, and encourage college students to pursue higher education in professional departments.

Our Local Chapter meets every other week to specifically address the scholarly concerns of underrepresented students in science and engineering fields and to provide an intellectual support system by networking students in these specific disciplines to professionals internal and external to the MSU campus. The Chapter maintains tutorial, and visitor speakers programs and lends its support to MSU and community programs sensitive to the needs of minority scholars. Members from the Chapter this year will contribute to MSU programs targeted towards grade and high school students. The Chapter strongly encourages students to actively participate in research laboratories on the MSU campus, and to present their results at technical sessions in National scientific and engineering forums.

• Omega Chi Epsilon – Local Chapter

Omega Chi Epsilon, The Chemical Engineering Honor Society, recognizes and promotes high scholarship, original investigation and professional service in Chemical Engineering. The honorary was formed at the University of Illinois in 1931. The Alpha Zeta Chapter was formed at Michigan State in 1977. Today there are sixty-seven chapters at colleges and universities in the United States.

To be considered for membership, juniors must rank in the upper 25% of their class and have a GPA of 3.25 or more. Seniors in the upper 33% must have a GPA of 3.0 or more to be eligible. They must also have completed nine hours of chemical engineering courses. In addition to providing recognition for outstanding students the chapter encourages the exchange of information on summer job experiences and the advantages of graduate work in chemical engineering. Periodically a newsletter is published to acquaint students with activities in the department. 

Visit the College of Engineering student groups page and the MSU Registered Student Groups page to learn about opportunities to engage.