As a biosystems and agricultural engineering major, you will follow a course of study common to all engineering disciplines: mathematics, physics, chemistry, and engineering. In addition, you will receive training in biological sciences.

During your third and fourth years, you will specialize by concentrating your course work in one of the following areas:

Machine Systems Automation Engineering - prepares engineers to conceive and design; power units; tillage, planting, and harvesting systems; materials handling equipment; and processing equipment. Production and processing of biological products relies heavily on the use of automated machinery. Engineers in this area work with fundamental concepts including: system dynamics, kinetics, automated controls, machine design, kinematics, fluid power, soil dynamics, plant-machine interactions, and digital electronics.

Food and Bioprocess Engineering - involves the development of equipment and methods for efficient and ecologically sound manufacturing of food products (from the farm to the grocery) and biological commodities (such as proteins, enzymes, biofuels). Engineers in this area receive extensive training in: microbiology, biochemical engineering, heat and mass transfer, enzyme kinetics and fermentation, storage of biological products, and materials handing.

Controlled Environment Systems - involves the development and design of heating, cooling and ventilation systems for the control of indoor environments. Environmental control is an essential component of total confinement animal housing, greenhouse production, aquaculture, and human housing. Engineers in this option study: heat and mass transfer; physics of plant and animal environments; biometeorology; structural design; air quality; and heating, ventilation and air-conditioning design.

Bioenvironmental Engineering - prepares engineers to work in natural resource conservation and environmental quality enhancement. Engineers in this area study: surface water hydrology, groundwater hydrology, sediment transport, water quality, chemical rate and transport, waste management, reclamation of disturbed lands, site remediation, irrigation, and drainage.

Pre-Veterinary Medicine - an approved pre-vet curriculum in which the student may obtain a Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering degree and simultaneously fulfill the requirements for admission to veterinary school.

Pre-Biomedical Engineering - allows students to complete an undergraduate degree in Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering that has been approved by the Center for Biomedical Engineering (CBME) at the University of Kentucky, which only offers graduate-level degrees. Undergraduates who have completed this option and are in good academic standing are encouraged by the CBME to apply for the Biomedical Engineering graduate program at UK.

Students who receive a Bachelor of Science in Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering are prepared for the job market in biological, environmental, food and agricultural engineering; you will also be prepared for further graduate and professional studies.