University of Southampton celebrates first chemeng graduation

Nuno Bimbo/University of Southampton

Combined course gives students access to two chemistry labs and a chemical engineering lab

CONGRATULATIONS are in order for seven chemical engineering students from the University of Southampton, the first cohort to graduate since the launch of the course in 2021.

Six master’s and one bachelor’s student received their degree certificates at a ceremony in July, along with chemistry graduates from Southampton’s combined chemistry and chemical engineering school.

The students expressed relief and pride as they recounted how “fast” the last four years have passed by and what they have planned for the future.

Richard Vinny, a graduate who completed a four-year integrated master’s course, said: “Southampton is part of the Russell Group and a highly reputable university, so I was confident that they would do a good job with this new course.”

Unique teaching

It was a “conscious choice” to put chemistry and chemical engineering in one school, according to Nuno Bimbo, an associate professor of chemical engineering who designed the bachelor’s course along with Mohamed Galal Hassan Sayed, an associate professor of chemical and sustainable engineering.

Bimbo said: “The idea was always to build a course that had more chemistry –students do a lot of practical tests which I do not think they would do in other chemical engineering courses.