When students are looking for something more practical/applied than a theoretical chemistry major, but aren’t sure they love ChemE which, as others have correctly pointed out, is very different, there’s another possibility that is often overlooked - the applied fields such as Food Science that are offered at land-grant universities with ag schools. These majors are academically more chem than engineering (although there are engineering aspects too), but they get into practical applications much more quickly than a traditional chem degree program - and a lot of the research areas in these departments, and the career paths the degrees can lead to, are very interesting!
Some examples at colleges already under discussion here:
- Purdue’s Food Science department offers undergrad majors in both Food Science and Fermentation Science.
- Virginia Tech’s Food Science major offers multiple tracks, including a science emphasis (this student’s most likely interest), a fermentation emphasis, and also tracks with business and health/nutrition emphases.
- UDel has a strong Food Science program (As a fun aside, the page mentions students inventing new ice cream flavors at the UDairy Creamery
) - UGA has a Food Science major as well, and the page details the many areas of study.
- UMD’s department seems a bit more nutrition/dietetics oriented, but it does have a Food Science track that is more science-y, as well as a brand new fermentation science major.
- Other schools that have been mentioned also have strong food science programs, including UMN, UIUC, and NC State… and NC State also has a Bioprocessing Science major in the same department.
Many of these programs have their own study abroad programs too. And when looking at reachier schools that admit by major, anything in the ag school will usually tend to be an easier admit, simply because these majors are more overlooked (especially by suburban/urban students who don’t get much exposure to the possibilities). Cornell’s food science major might even be possible (albeit a reach), whereas Cornell engineering would be a pretty big long shot. These programs have great employment stats (the food industry isn’t going anywhere!); it’s a way to have a very chemmy career without having grad school be the only realistic path to employment, and without going the full-on engineering route. Even if applying to a major like this feels like too big a commitment right now, having it as a possibility to switch into, at one of the schools that offer it, could be a point in the “pro” column.