Engineering, Science

Biological and food engineering

  • Training structure

    Polytech Montpellier

Presentation

Training of general engineers in the agri-food and biological engineering sectors (biotechnology, cosmetics, nutrition and health). Graduates of the GBA specialization are capable of carrying out tasks involving the production of food and biological products, developing innovative products or processes, and optimizing and improving the reliability of the processes used in these sectors in compliance with regulations and environmental standards. They are aware of sustainable development issuesand capable of adapting to different corporate cultures.

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The advantages of the training program

A strong partnership with businesses

Professionals in the agri-food and biological engineering sectors play an important role in GBA training:

  • they contribute to updating programs,
  • they give courses and lectures,
  • they participate in seminars and round tables organized by the school,
  • They are also involved in supervising engineering students on internships, professional training contracts, and industrial projects.

The school is an associate member of theInnov'Alliancecompetitiveness cluster andthe ACIA(Association of Chemical Engineers and Executives in the Agricultural and Food Industries). It has also signed an agreement withAREA-Occitanie(Regional Association of Food Companies) andEcotrophélia France.

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Know-how and skills

Upon graduating from school, GBA engineering students:

  • acquired a solid foundation in biology, biochemistry, physical chemistry, nutrition, biological engineering, and process engineering;
  •  has a good knowledge of bioprocesses and food technologies related to the design and sanitary, organoleptic, and nutritional quality of food and biological matrices;
  • is capable of managing the technical, human, and economic aspects of a project in the field of biological and food products and processes, and of proposing optimizations and innovations in compliance with regulations and in a sustainable development approach. 
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Organization

Internships, supervised projects

Internship

Mandatory

Internship abroad

Mandatory

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Program

The GBA program is organized into six semesters spread over three years (3A, 4A, and 5A), as shown in the diagram below. Each semester consists of four teaching units (UE), and each UE is then divided into sub-units (ECUE), the details of which are presented in thecomplete course program.

  • GBA3: Semester S5 is dedicated to harmonizing the knowledge levels of engineering students, taking into account the diversity of their backgrounds prior to their integration into the GBA program; Semester S6 is dedicated to deepening their knowledge of scientific fields specific to biological engineering and agri-food.
  • GBA4: Both semesters (S7 and S8) are devoted to core courses in biological engineering and agri-food science.
  • GBA5: Three courses geared towards the professions targeted by the program are offered at the school: Technological Innovation and Industrial Optimization (ITOI), Quality, Safety, and Environment (QSE), and Production Management (PROD). Thisfifth yearcan be completed on a work-study basis (professional training contract). Depending on the student's career plans, thefifth yearcan be completed at a university abroad, in a specialization in the field of biological and food engineering within the POLYTECH network, in a Master 2 in bioproductions (Master 2 IBIS) at the University of Montpellier (two places per year), or in the TropiFONS program at the ESIROI engineering school (Reunion Island) (2 places/year).
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Select a program

Biological and Agri-Food Engineering, 3rd year - Copy

The Biological and Agri-Food Engineering specialization trains general engineers (bac+5) for careers in agri-food and biotechnology, with an awareness of sustainable development and the ability to adapt to different corporate cultures.

See the full page for this route

  • Optional

    • REPEAT STUDENTS INTERNSHIP PROJECT

  • Basic Sciences Biochemistry/Physical Chemistry

    10 credits

    • Chemistry solutions and electrochemistry

      2.5 credits

    • Proteins and enzymes

      2 credits

    • Biochemistry: Fundamentals and Experimentation

      2.5 credits

    • Spectrometry and chromatography

      2 credits

    • Carbohydrates and lipids

      1 credit

  • SHS. Project LV.1

    5 credits

    • Consumer study project

      1 credit

    • Business economic environment

      2 credits

    • English

      2 credits

    • TOEIC 3A Preparation

  • Engineering Sciences 1

    10 credits

    • Statistics/Metrology

      1.5 credits

    • Computer Passport

      1 credit

    • Computer Passport Reference Guide

    • Fluid mechanics and rheology

      3.5 credits

    • Fundamentals of Mathematics and Physics and Transfer Phenomena

      4 credits

  • Basic sciences biology

    5 credits

    • Microbiology

      3.5 credits

    • Biology: fundamentals/molecular biology/biotechnology

      1.5 credits

  • Optional

    • REPEAT STUDENTS INTERNSHIP PROJECT

  • Internship

    • Internship

  • Engineering Sciences 2

    8 credits

    • Applied thermodynamics

      3.5 credits

    • Algorithm - programming

      1.5 credits

    • Modeling - Database

      1.5 credits

    • Numerical analysis

      1.5 credits

  • Biological Engineering

    7 credits

    • Reactor calculation

      3 credits

    • Biological kinetics

      4 credits

  • Nutrition and Applied Physical Chemistry

    6 credits

    • Physicochemical testing in the laboratory

      2 credits

    • Physiology and metabolism in human nutrition

      4 credits

  • SHS. LV.2 Projects

    9 credits

    • Choose 1 out of 6

      • German

      • French

      • Spanish

      • Italian

      • Arabic

      • Chinese

    • TOEIC 3A Preparation

    • Organization and operation of companies

      2 credits

    • Project management exp/com

      2.25 credits

    • Library project

      0.75 credits

    • Business and the law

      1 credit

    • Discovering the engineering profession

    • English

      1 credit

Biological and Agri-Food Engineering, 4th year - Copy

The Biological and Agri-Food Engineering specialization trains generalist engineers (five years of higher education) for careers in agri-food and biotechnology, with an awareness of sustainable development and the ability to adapt to different corporate cultures.

See the full page for this route

  • Optional

    • REPEAT STUDENTS INTERNSHIP PROJECT

  • Bio & Food Matrices

    7 credits

    • Company visits

      1 credit

    • Design

      4.5 credits

    • Characterization

      1.5 credits

  • Microbiological quality

    5 credits

    • Microbiological quality control

      5 credits

  • Humanities, Social Sciences, and Languages

    7 credits

    • TOEIC 4A Preparation

    • Project management

      2 credits

    • Professional integration

      2 credits

    • English

      1 credit

    • Choose 1 out of 6

      • Chinese

        2 credits

      • Arabic

        2 credits

      • Spanish

        2 credits

      • Italian

        2 credits

      • German

        2 credits

      • French

        2 credits

  • Organic and Food Processes.

    11 credits

    • Food technologies

      5.5 credits

    • Bioprocess engineering1

      2 credits

    • Stab. Transformation processes

      3.5 credits

  • Optional

    • REPEAT STUDENTS INTERNSHIP PROJECT

  • Nutrition and Health

    5 credits

    • Nutrition Project

      1 credit

    • Physiology and metabolism in health nutrition

      4 credits

  • Humanities and Social Sciences & Languages

    3 credits

    • Business Management

      1 credit

    • English

      2 credits

    • TOEIC 4A Preparation

  • A4 internship

    5 credits

    • Supervised internship

      5 credits

    • Valorization internship

  • Separation/Formulation

    12 credits

    • Separation

      4 credits

    • Formulation

      5 credits

    • Integrated projects monitoring

    • Integrated projects, experimental part

      3 credits

  • Industrial Biotechnology

    5 credits

    • Experimental project

      2 credits

    • Applied biotechnology

      1 credit

    • Process Engineering 2

      2 credits

Biological and Agri-Food Engineering 5th year - Copy

The Biological and Agri-Food Engineering specialization trains generalist engineers (five years of higher education) for careers in agri-food and biotechnology, with an awareness of sustainable development and the ability to adapt to different corporate cultures.

See the full page for this route

  • Optional

    • PROJECT/INTERNSHIP FAC. EII Semester 9

  • Humanities, Social Sciences, and Languages

    8 credits

    • Business Information Systems

      1 credit

    • Sustainable Innovation & Responsible Entrepreneurship

      1.5 credits

    • Communication

      1.75 credits

    • Labor Law

      1 credit

    • TOEIC 5A Preparation

    • Digital Documents: Management Tools and Legislation

      1 credit

    • Occupational Health and Safety Quality Management

      1.75 credits

  • Packaging and Eco Design.

    4 credits

    • Packaging & Eco-Packaging

      2 credits

    • Packaging and Eco-design

      2 credits

  • Choose 2 out of 3

    • PFE - PFE CP

      10 credits

      • Choose one of two options:

        • Professional Module CP2

          10 credits

        • PFE end-of-studies project

          10 credits

      • Optional

        • Conferences, company visits, trade shows

    • Quality, Safety, Environment

      8 credits

      • QSE Quality Management

        4 credits

      • Prevention and management of operational risks QHSE

        4 credits

      • Circular Economy

    • Technological Innovation & Industrial Optimization

      8 credits

      • Opti of Industrial Performance1

        3 credits

      • Technological innovations

        4 credits

      • Industrial Performance Optimization 2

        1 credit

  • Optional

    • STUDENT ENGAGEMENT

      2 credits

    • PROJECT/INTERNSHIP FAC. STIA Semester 10

  • Choose one of two options:

    • PRO CONTRACTS INTERNSHIP

      30 credits

      • MP3 - End-of-Studies Internship

        30 credits

    • INTERNSHIP

      30 credits

      • End-of-Studies Internship

        30 credits

And after

Professional integration

Targeted occupations

  • Research and Development (R&D) Engineer
  • Production Engineer
  • Quality, Safety, and Environment Engineer (QSE)
  • Sales and Technical Engineer
  • Supply chain engineer
  • Marketing Engineer

GBA engineers have access to a variety of roles, the main ones of which are in line with the options offered in the final year:

  • R&D - Marketing (30%),
  • Quality/safety/environment (30%),
  • Production - Methods - Maintenance (31%),
  • Purchasing, logistics (9%).

 

Business sectors

  • food industry,
  • pharmaceutical and cosmetics sector,
  • as well as all sectors that assess risks (Health, Safety, Environment) closely linked to sustainable development.
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