Master of Engineering Leadership in Sustainable Process Engineering

The Master of Engineering Leadership (MEL) in Sustainable Process Engineering is a professional degree for engineers who want to develop and commercialize products and processes that are sustainable by design, safeguard the environment and make the best use of existing resources. This hybrid master’s program combines graduate-level engineering courses taught by the world’s leading researchers on sustainability with UBC Sauder’s Robert H. Lee Graduate School courses – giving you the skills and confidence to take your career in new directions.

Quick Facts

• Degree: Master of Engineering Leadership
• Subject: Engineering
• Mode of delivery: On-campus
• Specialization: Sustainable Process Engineering
• Program Components: Coursework only
• Faculty: Faculty of Applied Science

Addressing the twin challenges of maintaining economic progress and environmental stewardship necessitates a paradigm change in our industrial economy. The MEL in Sustainable Process Engineering will facilitate this shift by training the next generation of engineering leaders and entrepreneurs to develop cleaner products and processes using renewable feedstocks and clean energy and to re-engineer existing industrial processes to reduce their carbon and energy footprint.

Choose Engineering and Business

The MEL in Sustainable Process Engineering offers a unique combination of technical and business courses – giving you a blueprint for technopreneurs' success and translating innovations in green chemistry and sustainable manufacturing into new ventures. Engineering courses explore chemical processes and biotechnologies, covering reaction and reactor engineering, process systems engineering, and sustainable operations. Business courses offered by the top-ranked UBC Sauder School of Business give you a solid foundation in business strategy and innovation, operations and logistics, project management, and organizational leadership.

Gain a competitive edge

In this 12-month program you will:

• Learn to design new chemicals, materials, and fuels with improved properties and performance by applying advanced concepts in molecular sciences and engineering.
• Sharpen your technical and analytical skills through a project-based curriculum that covers all stages of the industry value chain and incorporates hands-on learning opportunities.
• Study under renowned faculty and industry experts at one of the world’s top 40 universities and the leading institution in the world for research on sustainability.
• Expand your professional network while collaborating with other MEL students.
• Gain the fundamental business, project management, and interpersonal skills to advance your career and confidently take on positions of increased responsibility or entrepreneurship.

General Requirements

• Undergraduate degree with an overall average of 76%
• Document proving your current citizenship (usually a passport or other citizenship document from your country) or your Canadian permanent residency

Program Specific Requirements

• Undergraduate degree in Chemical and Biological Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Materials Engineering, Biomedical Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, Engineering Physics, Environmental Engineering.
• Three or more years of relevant work experience

English language requirements

If you completed your degree at a university outside Canada in which English is not the primary language of instruction, you must provide the results of an English language proficiency examination as part of your application:

• If your undergraduate or master’s degree was completed outside Canada at an English speaking university, we will accept an official proof of English proficiency letter from the university stating that the primary language of instruction for your degree was English.
• If your undergraduate or master’s degree was not taught in English you must provide a valid English language proficiency score:
  • TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language):
    • A minimum score of 90 (internet-based exam), with minimum component scores of 22 [in reading, listening] and a minimum component score of 21 [in writing, speaking]
    • Minimum score 55 each for reading, listening, and writing (in the paper-based test), with 4.0 on the Test of Written English (TWE).
  • IELTS (International English Language Testing Service): minimum overall band score of 6.5 with no other component score less than 6.0 of the academic (NOT general) IELTS test
• The English language proficiency tests must have been taken within the last 24 months at the time of submission of your application. If your English language proficiency results are due to expire soon, you need to submit the official results (in addition to the unofficial results submitted with your online application) to The University of British Columbia, Graduate School Admissions department (IELTS) or using code 0965 (TOEFL). Official test results must be received directly from the issuing organization before the 24-month expiry deadline. The department is not responsible for students unable to submit their results after they have expired.
• Students must submit their official test results directly to UBC via the instructions on Submitting your Documents in order for your application to be complete.

Degree Benefits

A Master of Engineering Leadership (MEL) degree from UBC gives you the credentials and knowledge to confidently take on positions of greater responsibility, make the shift into a new industry sector or launch your own entrepreneurial venture.

Upgrade Your Technical Skills

You’ll deepen your understanding of chemical engineering and associated biotechnologies to develop innovative processes with reduced carbon and energy footprints, as well as products that improve the quality of life and the environment.

Learn The Language Of Business

Technical knowledge is not enough. Through courses offered by UBC Sauder’s Robert H. Lee Graduate School, you’ll gain foundational business and entrepreneurial skills, improving your understanding of broad-based management concepts.

Become A Confident Leader

Leadership development is embedded throughout the program, giving you ongoing opportunities to lead teams and projects and strengthen your interpersonal skills.

Gain A Professional Master's Degree From A World-class University

UBC is one of the world’s top 40 universities and its programs and professors have a global reputation for excellence. UBC’s Faculty of Applied Science is home to one of North America’s premier engineering schools. The Times Higher Education recently ranked UBC as the world’s leading institution for research on sustainability and UBC is consistently counted among the world’s top universities for research and education in environmental sciences, water, bioenergy, forestry, and climate science – all of which are key ingredients in the MEL in Sustainable Process Engineering.

UBC Sauder School of Business is ranked first in Canada and 38th in the world for business and management studies, and the school is known for its commitment to rigorous, relevant, and experiential teaching.

Expand Your Network

As a student in the MEL in Sustainable Process Engineering program, you will grow your personal and professional network by:

• Learning from leading researchers and thought leaders in chemistry, chemical engineering, and environmental science.
• Studying alongside motivated peers who bring a diverse range of work experience and perspectives to the program.
• Taking business courses with students from other professional graduate programs in the Faculty of Applied Science – engaged and ambitious professionals from the multidisciplinary MEL and Master of Health Leadership and Policy programs.
• Have the opportunity to interact with top researchers at UBC and collaborate with them to launch new businesses through UBC programs such as entrepreneurship@UBC, Creative Destruction Laboratories – West, and the BioProducts Institute that offer wide-ranging support to new ventures.

“We expect that many of our graduates will be entrepreneurs – that they will decide that the best way to introduce paradigm-changing technologies is through commercialization and launching corporate ventures.” – Dr. Vikramaditya Yadav

Go Further

Professionals who have mastered a technical specialization and the fundamentals of the business have a distinct competitive advantage. In demand by both government and industry employers, our graduates are successfully moving into sought-after positions and new industry sectors.

“Our students will graduate with a deeper insight into both how to design the next generation of processes and come up with better ways of doing business.” – Dr. Vikramaditya Yadav

The University of British Columbia is a global centre for teaching, learning and research, consistently ranked among the top 20 public universities in the world. UBC embraces innovation and transforms ideas into action. Since 1915, UBC has been opening doors of opportunity for people with the curiosity, drive and vision to shape a better world.

One hundred years after opening its doors for the first time, UBC is proud to be ranked among the best universities around the globe. Working together, our faculty, staff, and students have demonstrated that our pursuit of excellence in learning, teaching, and research is making a lasting and positive difference.