What’s up y’all rn I’m a HS junior that is interested in biomedical engineering. However after some personal research I did on my free time I’ve read that people with BME degrees struggle to find jobs in what they want. Is it still difficult to get a good job with a BME degree? Would getting a bachelor’s in Chem Engineering and a masters in BME be a better option?
BME typically requires a graduate degree to get a high paying job.
Up until recently I was planning to major in BME when I got to college but I recently went to an engineering info session at my choice school and I realized that Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering was more suited towards what I want. Biomolecular engineering is more directed towards engineering stuff at the cell level, which is much more specific than BME but still is obviously biology based. What I want to do falls under the chemical engineering branch so it’s not that hard for me to choose ChBE but if you really want to do BME you should get a bachelors and a masters in it. Engineering is hard and you should only do it if you love it, so if BME is what you love go for it and just get the extra degree because it will help you find a job more easily.
Yes. The usual advice, if you’re interested in BME, is to major in a traditional engineering discipline (mechanical, electrical, or chemical), then get an MS (not necessarily an MS in BME, though it can be). You don’t need a BME degree to work in the field of BME.
@wanderlust9871 are you going to Hopkins by chance? If not where? I haven’t heard of many other schools with a ChemBE department.
OP:
For background I’m a BME & CS double major.
The thing about BME, which you seem to have been introduced to, is that there really aren’t jobs for people with just a BS in BME. This is because the traditional BME program teaches you to be a “jack of all trades engineer” whose taken some biology courses. Some programs are different, but the end result is that you come out of undergrad with a broad range of skills that don’t really help you in the job market.
Want to go into computational genomics - a CS major could do it better
Want to go into robotics - a MechE, CS, CE/EE/ECE could do it better
Want to go into pharma - a ChemE/ChemBE, Chemist, or Biologist could do it better
Want to go into cell/tissue engineering - a ChemE/ChemBE, Chemist, or Biologist could do it better
Want to go into imaging - a CS major could do it better
The end result is that lots of undergrad BMEs end up working in consulting where their knowledge of multiple engineering disciplines is more of an asset.
But if you graduate from a BME grad school program you learn more refined skills which could be useful in any of the areas I mentioned above.
So my advice is: if you’re interested in working in the BME industry you have a few options
- Get a BS and MS/PhD in BME
- Get a BS in some other engineering field and an MS/PhD in BME
- Get a BS in some other engineering field and apply for jobs at BME type companies.
I agree. Back when I was in college, I had to choose Electrical or Mechanical Engineering and then specialize in Biomedical Engineering. It wasn’t what I wanted - but I am SO glad that I did have an ‘electrical engineering’ degree because it was really tough to find a job when I graduated … and the EE degree saved me. Even with that route, I could have used more electrical engineering coursework (much of it was replaced by biomedical instrumentation classes) - but it got me in the door.
@saif235 Georgia Tech