Biomedical Engineering

College Majors Engineering Majors
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<p>I'm a senior in high school wondering if there is any reason to do undergraduate biomedical engineering. I'm interested in a couple of possibilities after going to undergraduate school and I'd like to leave my options as open as possible. Some of them include:</p>

<p>-MD/PhD program
-Regular medical school (not really heavily considering this option anymore but I'd still like to leave it open)
-M.S. in Biomedical Engineering
-Masters in some other biology related field, most likely biotechnology
-Working in finance</p>

<p>My dream job would to eventually be able to do either some kind of research in biotechnology or develop medical equipment for an aerospace engineering company. I'm not that interested in medical devices like pacemakers and imaging equipment, but I do have some relevant internship experience in the field. I'm volunteering a nationally/internationally renowned heart hospital and I've been doing work in their BME department and have seen all sorts of medical equipment, from cardio monitors and pacemakers to bone saws.</p>

<p>Another question I'd have is what kind of degrees can eventually lead to a graduate program in biomedical engineering? If a school that I go to doesn't offer BME but something similar like biophysics or biotechnology, what classes should I try to take to make myself eligible to do a masters degree program in the field? I've heard a lot of people say that it's best to do a classic engineering program like mechanical or chemical engineering (or even materials science) than it is to study biomedical engineering in undergraduate programs because biomedical engineering is too generalized to be of real use.</p>

<p>It would be great if anyone who is knowledgeable/experienced in the field could help me. I really don't know anyone who's done this and there's not a ton of great information about what it's like as someone who only has an B.S. in BME. Thanks in advance.</p>

<p>As a last aside, does it vary heavily from school to school what their programs are like? I've looked into some of the different curricula and seen that many schools have different focuses (some on circuitry and electricity, some on biology/chemistry, some on materials sciences, some on imaging, etc.).</p>

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<p>I would first like to inform you to search the thread “avoid bioengineering if you can”, right here on college. BME has been thoroughly talked about and a lot of my post will probably be seen again in that thread. </p>

<p>BME is not a very good pre-med route. Difficult courses, and many more units are required and the typical BME major gpa is much lower than the typical bio major, which isn’t good for med school. If you want to go to med school you need a high gpa, internships and high mcat score. And since there are no major requirements, BME serves no advantage in that arena.</p>

<p>BME is not a good engineering degree either. It’s engineering-lite, so to speak. Students learn in a variety of areas, from mechanics, to Electromagnetic phenomena to Chemical processes. Many students feel this is an advantage, and in theory it is - if you develop advanced understanding of it. BME undergrads don’t and become jack of all trades. Generalists, if you will. Companies prefer specialists, so for a similar job, a company is likely to hire a chemical, Electrical or mechanical engineer over BME. </p>

<p>Given you anticipate a master’s regardless, BME won’t serve a disadvantage perse, but that’s assuming you do it which you can’t right now. Given your goals, though, Electrical or Mechanical may be a better fit. The same skills that are used for pace makers are used for your own goals. Contrary to popular belief. Medical equipment is more attune to physics, than to biology. Good news, many Electrical and Mechanical Engineers do get their masters in BME. It’s very applicable to your goals. </p>

<p>Aside from engineering, the next best program in my opinion would be physics, since engineering and physics are very similar. </p>

<p>BME has less uniformity compared to other engineering majors. Some BME programs are essentially bio majors with a few engineering courses thrown in. You would have to look at the school of interest to get a better idea. I would suggest you go to an ABET accredited school. They have higher standards, so you’ll be closer to engineering than a non abet school. </p>

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I did in fact read that thread, but I didn’t know if the information was still current and if it was still a good source to reference.</p>

<p>I have no desire to major in biology. Tons and tons of people major in biology and medical school is more of a last resort. I would much prefer to get a masters degree in BME than to get an MD. With a bio degree, the best that I can manage to do is either get a PhD and do research or work in some lab cleaning test tubes. Not fun. As an aside, one of the most popular medical school majors is BME. Medical schools (from my understanding) prefer to see people with interests outside of biology or that combine multiple disciplines of study. If I was going to go with a non-engineering degree, I’d probably do neuroscience with a physics minor.</p>

<p>I do agree that mech engineering and chemical engineering seem to have more utility outside of the medical industry (and possibly inside it as well), but I have no desire to major in physics. I find it really fascinating and I enjoy the subject, but unless I really wanted to go into academia I don’t think physics offers much of an alternative plan if I don’t end up getting into the graduate program I want, or decide later on in life that it’s just not what I want to do anymore.</p>

<p>Do graduate programs really care about what you major in for your bachelors degree? If so, is there any advantage to having a BME B.S. if you want to get an M.S. in the same field, or is it basically indistinguishable from a B.S. in mechanical, chemical, electrical, or some other kind of engineering? Thanks for the help.</p>

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<p>Yes, it is. The situation hasn’t changed significantly.</p>

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<p>This is true because many students hedge their bets due to misconceptions… Many choose BME because they feel that the engineering portion will make them more competitive, if med school doesn’t pan out. After all, it has so much growth.</p>

<p>Others choose BME because they feel they can’t do “more difficult” engineering courses, and try to find a cheat in the system, being able to get an engineering degree without doing the work.</p>

<p>Sadly, many of these students are misinformed. Like I said before BME isn’t a good pre-med route, whilst its not a good engineering path because it’s too general, and not many jobs are actually meant for BME. The industry is still in infacy, and while the jobs growth are generally in the triple digits, its statistical trickery. If you have 10 spots and then add another 10 spots, that’s 100% growth. Comparatively, if you have 100 spots and add another 10, that’s only a 10% increase. Ultimately, there’s more jobs in the second alternative, however, the first situation is the current condition of BME. </p>

<p>You underestimate a physics degree. A physics degree has limited options in the field if you don’t have a PhD, but physics teaches skills one normally doesn’t train, so they have a lot of options, in finance, business, engineering and other fields. </p>

<p>Not really. You could theoretically get in a BME grad program with a history degree. In fact, some people with liberal arts and humanities majors do engineering later. But you can’t simply walk in. You have to take graduate remedial classes in which you will have to learn calc, differential equations, sometimes linear algebra, physics, and a few undergrad classes get to be able to understand the post grad material, essentially, doing half of the undergrad route again. </p>

<p>From an engineering standpoint, I’m not sure. Between, ME EE and ChemE, I don’t think so. But it would be a more difficult transition if one was a Civil E for example, since there is less overlap.
However, it might provide an interest advantage. Because you go through different classes, you will have a better idea, what you like and don’t like so you could find yourself better adjusted to pick a post grad program you like. </p>

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<p>I did read the rest of your post, however I just don’t feel that there’s much for me to respond to. You basically answered all of my questions which I appreciate. It seems like there’s a tiny bit of bias in there (maybe it’s truth and I’m the biased one :wink: ), but you basically explained everything fully and clearly.</p>

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<p>Would it be worthwhile to get a biochemistry B.A. and then get a minor in physics? Or major in physics and get a minor in chemistry or biology? I feel like there are dozens of combinations of “good” science majors/minors, but I don’t really know which would give me a good background in what I would need to do something in the BME field. Also, what would be the use of getting a physics degree over something like an applied mathematics minor and taking physics based math courses? It’s pretty confusing to try and figure out the best path for doing engineering. I’ve heard that even though most engineers learn calculus in school, they never end up using beyond basic algebra in real life. Would this mean that the theoretical portions of physics and understanding it would be more useful, or would the actual mathematics behind what I’m doing be more important and in graduate school I would be able to learn the actual explanations of how everything works?</p>

<p>Much appreciated as before. </p>

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<p>The big plus in taking a physics degree is that you cover a lot of the fundamentals that pertain to just about every engineering field plus quantum mechanics. This is very different than applied mathematics. Physics majors get jobs in engineering, finance and so on. The big difference from engineering is that your degree title does not describe what your competencies might be in the way that an engineering degree does.</p>

<p>That being said, look for biophysics degrees as well.</p>

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<p>I could work, but I feel physics would be a better prep. Because BMEs use principles of physics to apply to biological systems. There is a lot more overlap between physics and BME than Bio and BME imo.
With that in mind, biochem may not be the best prep for you since most programs stop after a year of physics and a year of calculus. </p>

<p>Its true, you may not use the advanced math you learned in class in your job, but you can. Advanced classes are usually used to train your critical thinking abilities, which is a good skill for engineering. </p>

<p>Applied mathematics will also train this skill, but it is different from physics. That is not to say, you couldn’t transition well to BME. your initial skills sets would be different though. </p>