Job description of process engineering
The use of renewable resources, the opening up of alternative energy sources, the efficient, clean and environmentally friendly production of chemical products, food, building materials, glass and ceramic, fuel and other energy sources, the development of new processes for the recycling of household and manufacturing waste, the introduction of biotechnological processes for the production of pharmaceuticals - these are all challenges for modern industrial societies and important tasks for process engineers of the future. These challenges make process engineering one of the most eclectic, interesting and demanding of the engineering fields - even if process engineers work more in the background and less traditionally in the spotlight like computer scientists, civil engineers and mechanical engineers. process engineers are employed to about 40% in substrate conversion industries (recovery of raw materials, production of petroleum products, chemicals, food, pharmaceuticals, building materials, in power plants, in recycling plants), to about 30% in the building of plants (planning and building of apparatus' and plants for the industries mentioned above and environmental protection), to about 15% in the areas of research, development, sales engineering offices, licensing and inspection authorities (TÜV etc.), insurance, etc.
Career opportunities
In the age of computer technology, semiconductor electronics, biotechnology, amd e-commerce, many students do not give the production industry a second thought when they are considering in which direction they should further their educations. Consequently, there are a shortage of engineers in industry and the shortage is noticable in the job market. The need for process engineers can no longer be covered domestically (only ca. 600-800 process engineers graduate from universities each year) or abroad. Based on the low number of students starting studies in process engineering, future job opportunities in the German job market are very good.
Finances
A starting salary of up to 40.000 € is realistic (for Diplom/Master graduates), but the final amount will depend upon the specific industry and occupational field.
Equal opportunities
Process engineering, like many other engineering occupations, may have once been categorized as men's work, but that image has changed. More and more women are entering the field of process engineering. In Cottbus, the percentage of female students studying process engineering is around 30%.
Along with globalisation comes the opening of the worldwide job market. Due to their high-quality educations, German engineers have excellent chances in the international job market. The fact that German graduates are on average older than their fellow foreign applicants plays only a secondary role, contrary to popular opinion.
Process engineerinmg in Cottbus
With currently six process engineering chairs, Faculty 4 at BTU Cottbus offers a broad, fundamental study of process engineering, opening up a diversity of career opportunities without limitations. A special aspect of studying process engineering in Cottbus is the close collaboration with the environmental sciences and taking on questions related to the environment. Core areas of process engineering, renewable resources, energy process engineering, and process optimisation/process integration environmental protection.
Approximately 100 graduates of the process engineering programme (Diplom) are already working in industry and research. Somme well-known employers include BASF, Daimler Chrysler, BP, Siemens, Infineon, Henkel, Miele, Degussa, and the Max-Planck-Institut, to name just a few.
Master's programme "Process Engineering - Process and Plant Technology"
The master's programme "Process Engineering - Process and Plant Technology" expands and deepens the fundamental knowledge learned in the bachelor programme, thereby making it possible for graduates to enter higher qualified positions in industry, development, and research. The master's programme allows a higher amount of specialisation and conveys the skills for independent scientific work. The master study is completed with a master's thesis in which a complex topic is worked on independently for five months under the supervision of an experienced scientist.
You can find the 
recommended course schedule for the current semester here.
