Academics

The Agricultural and Biological Engineering (ABE) major is a dynamic collaboration between the Grainger College of Engineering and the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences (ACES). This partnership gives students unique access to world-class faculty and cutting-edge resources from both colleges.

As an ABET-accredited program, ABE equips students with core engineering skills crucial for tackling complex challenges. The curriculum focuses on designing and implementing sustainable solutions for agricultural, food, and biological systems.

Students can tailor their education by choosing from six specialized concentrations, allowing them to align their studies with specific career goals or areas of interest in this diverse field.

Choose a Concentration that Fits Your Career Goals

Bioprocess Engineering & Industrial Biotechnology

An IBRL researcher in a lab coat interacts with lab equipment.Graduates design and develop equipment and systems for the processing of food for human and animal use, biofuels, and other biological materials. Utilization of agricultural and biological materials presents unique engineering challenges to sustainably convert these natural resources into products needed by society. Examples include designing bioprocesses to convert cereal crops into food ingredients that optimize human and animal health and processing designs to convert biological materials into fuels and biochemicals while minimizing their environmental footprint. 

Degree Requirements 

Off-Highway Vehicle & Equipment Engineering

Two men crouching by a large tractor component.Graduates design, manufacture, and test equipment and control systems for off-highway vehicle industries, including agriculture, construction, and mining. These vehicle and equipment systems must be designed to operate in surroundings that present unique challenges for operating efficiency, safety and environmental impact. 

Degree Requirements


 

Renewable Energy Systems Engineering

Two women in hard hats looking at a blueprint in an agricultural field.Graduates design renewable energy systems, using solar, wind, biological, and geothermal resources. 

Degree Requirements





 

Soil & Water Resources Engineering

A female student touches some plants.Graduates design sustainable systems to manage and conserve soil and water, control erosion and sediment, improve water quality, and minimize pollution. 

Degree Requirements




 

Sustainable Ecological & Environmental Systems Engineering

A professor and two students look at some plants in a greenhouseGraduates design, manage, and restore sustainability and resilience in natural and urban environments, integrating automation and environmental control while applying principles of ecology and conservation.

Degree Requirements 



 

Synthetic Biological Engineering

Three researchers in lab coats.Graduates apply engineering principles to improve organisms by introducing new capabilities vital to food, energy, water, agricultural, and environmental sectors.

Degree Requirements 





 

Senior Capstones

As a student in ABE, you’ll complete an industry-sponsored senior design project allowing you to partner with a client to solve real-world problems. Student teams develop and prototype marketable solutions for their clients. Students won't just learn about engineering, they'll also put their knowledge and skills to use.  

The B.S. in Agricultural and Biological Engineering degree program is accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET under the commission’s General Criteria and Program Criteria for Agricultural Engineering and Biological Engineering.

Most recent data on our graduates:

95%
job placement rate
$82k
average starting salary
21%
higher salary than peers at other universities

Graduation and Beyond

As an ABE major, you’ll graduate with a degree from The Grainger College of Engineering. You'll be prepared for careers as project, test, reliability, civil, environmental, mechanical design, product, agricultural, design, and biological engineers. Our graduates work with Fortune 500 companies, consulting firms, academia, government agencies, non-profit groups, and research institutions. The average starting salary for our ABE graduates is $82,000.

Areas of Employment

  • Biological Systems Automation
  • Bioprocessing
  • Ecological Modeling
  • Environmental Consulting
  • Enzyme Development and Production
  • Food Engineering
  • Off-Road Equipment Design and Testing
  • Precision Agriculture
  • Renewable Energy
  • Sustainability