Resources
Instruction During the COVID 19 Pandemic
The USF Chemical Engineering family is continuing to deliver outstanding education and conduct world-leading research as we navigate together through these unprecedented times. The plan developed by the University of South Florida provides considerable flexibility for individual departments, courses, and individual students to continue to succeed in a manner suitable to their unique situation. Consistent with this vision, the USF Chemical Engineering faculty have adapted our department’s courses for this Fall to enable students to continue advancing your education and professional development while maintaining a safe environment for all of our students, faculty, and staff. We recognize that some of you may be facing unique challenges associated with this unprecedented situation. Please reach out as needed to your academic advisor, your course instructor, our department, or the many support services offered by USF. The goal of USF and all our faculty is to help you excel and thrive in your education in these challenging times.
Below, see an FAQ on Fall instructional issues specific to ChBME, followed by information on instruction in certain specific courses.
Information on the mode of instruction of specific courses can be found in your updated schedule in OASIS. A USF update on the fall schedule and modes of instruction can be found here.
For updates from USF on the COVID-19 Pandemic and USF’s response please look here.
For a USF FAQ on instruction at USF during the COVID-19 pandemic, please see this page.
USF resources supporting students’ physical and mental health, including through the pandemic, can be found here and here.
Frequently Asked Questions
The department will offer courses in one of two modes:
- 100% online (AD)
- Hybrid (HB) - (50-80% online)
All of our courses, whether AD or HB, will be offered synchronously.
Synchronous means that you must participate in the course on the days and at the times listed in the course schedule.
100% online courses will meet virtually on the days and times provided in the course schedule. You should expect to attend all class sessions online and should expect to take your quizzes and exams ONLINE using Canvas and possibly other online tools. Additional details will be provided by course instructors through their syllabi and Canvas websites.
If you are taking a hybrid course, you will attend online sections on the days and times provided in the course schedule. Face-to-face meetings will be held in the building/room indicated in the course schedule at the listed days/time.
You will need a computer, a webcam and microphone (if not part of your computer), and a reliable internet connection and service. You should have Google Chrome installed as a browser and you may wish to have earbuds or headphones.
The courses below will be offered in hybrid mode. If a departmental course is not listed below, it has only the 100% online (synchronous) option.
- ECH 3002 Intro to ChBME (Henderson)
- ECH 3702 Instrument Systems (Gilbert)
- EMA 4003 Intro to Materials Science (Gilbert)
- ECH 4931 Theory and Design of Bioprocesses (Lee)
- ECH 4680 Product Design and Manufacturing (Lee)
If a class is only offered in the 100% online mode, and you have already registered for that class, you are now registered in a 100% online course.
If a class is offered in the hybrid mode, and you have already registered for it, you are now registered for the hybrid section. If you want the hybrid section, no action is needed. If you want the online section, you will have to drop the hybrid section and add the online section. From now until July 31, the only students who can register for the online sections are those who want to switch from hybrid sections – so you should make this change soon if you plan to. After July 31, all online sections that haven’t reached their cap will open up to anyone who wants to register for them.
You should have received an email from the university on the morning of July 24 that explains how you can switch from a hybrid section to an online one.
If a class is only offered in 100% online mode and it hasn’t filled, you can register for it now. If a class is offered in hybrid mode and hasn’t filled, you can register for the hybrid section now. If you want to take the online version of a hybrid class, you will have to wait until July 31.
Additional descriptions specific to individual courses will be added below over the coming weeks. You may also hear directly from the instructor or find information posted on the Canvas site for the course.
Information on specific undergraduate courses
ECH 3002 will be taught in a hybrid mode for the Fall 2020 semester. Lecture content is already pre-recorded and will be available for asynchronous viewing by students in advance of Problem and Discussion Sessions held during class time each Friday. The Friday sessions held during class time will be streamed live and students are expected to participate in those sessions so that they can ask questions while example problems are worked and discussions take place. If conditions allow, we will also periodically hold some of those problem and discussion sessions in our assigned classroom and also stream them live through the web. Those optional in-person classroom sessions will be announced one week in advance to allow students sufficient time to plan if they want to participate in-person. When those classroom sessions happen, students will have the option to come into class in-person or participate in those sessions virtually through the web. Video recordings of those Friday sessions will also be made available for review later by students to help with homework and in preparing for tests. All tests will be administered on-line through Canvas. All homework will be submitted on-line through Canvas. Students are required to have a functioning computer with good internet access, a webcam, and microphone to be able to participate in the class.