Im a senior in High school and Im interested in Engineering. I want to major in Mechanical Engineering and have a focus on Design or have a Biomedical option. I want to work in prosthetic and medical equipment. I was just wondering if a few things.
Are the following schools good for engineering?
-Penn State (my first choice)
-Rutgers (second choice)
-Clemson
-Drexel
-Temple
- University of Pittsburgh
How long does an engineering degree take at those schools? do most engineers graduate late? (I heard most take 5 years)
Do most colleges have a mechanical engineering program with a bio medical engineering option? or should i take some bio medical engineering courses along with my mechanical engineering courses?
Obviously a PA resident…
PSU and Pitt are definitely “good”, and the rest are at least decent. I can’t claim personal familiarity with all of them, but I think I have known grads from them all and they all seemed competent.
There is no easy answer to that one, but I believe the median is something like 4.5 years at PSU. The degrees are designed to be completed in 4 years but 5 years is probably about as common and longer still certainly happens! Bear in mind that most of the time going more than 4 years is a result of either conscious choice (to do a co-op or minor or such) or because of repeated courses or because of bad scheduling decisions - if you feel you need to graduate in 4 years, there is nothing stopping you but yourself.
Different schools do things different ways, but biomed is still a relatively uncommon major or specialization that mostly crops up at bigger engineering colleges. You need to investigate your schools of interest and see how they handle it. For example, at PSU biomed is its own department, as an ME major you would have only limited access to that coursework unless you double majored.
would double majoring in mechanical engineering and bio medical engineering be difficult to do? and would it take longer than if I were to get a BS in MechE and then go on for masters in Biomedical Engineering?
The recommended academic plans at PSU are for four years, but sometimes they make that difficult – like recommending you take Calc 3, DiffEq, physics, and Orgo all at the same time.
Yes, double majoring would be difficult to do, and I would not actually recommend it - I mentioned it only because it would be the simplest option that an ME major could really use to gain easy access to biomed courses.
Getting a BSME and then a masters in biomed would probably take about the same length of time, might be cheaper (possible assistantships), and would definitely yield better professional opportunities. Just realize that your masters degree generally closes the door on your undergrad discipline - no one is going to hire you as an ME with a masters in biomed. Also realize that you will need to make sure that you spend some undergraduate coursework preparing for the transition to the new field.
Is there a reason you are not pursuing a bachelors in biomed from the beginning? If you want to do biomed, why are you starting in ME?
I did some research and found that a BS Mechanical Engineering would be better in terms of finding a job and being specialized. The research i did also said that its better preparation for BME. Also I was recommended to do a BS in Mechanical Engineering with a focus on design since I want to work with prosthetics. Would a Masters in Mechanical Engineering still allow me to work with Prosthetics?
Yes, a masters in ME would allow you to work with prosthetics. It is worthwhile to understand that in the design of any given type of product, there are generally a variety of academic disciplines contributing in a variety of roles. A company manufacturing prosthetics like has at least ME’s, EE’s, and biomedical engineers, all working on slightly different things. Even within those roles you might see variations, because the skills needed can be obtained in different disciplines - for example, it is possible that the electrical or mechanical work might be done by an aerospace engineer, or that biomedical issues might be split between an ME and someone with a strictly medical or biological background.
So consider what you would like to do in prosthetics and start in that discipline, taking those electives that seem to best fit that objective. When you finish, if you desire a masters (and I would recommend it!), find professors who are actually doing work that interests you in prosthetics and study under one of them. This may be in the same academic discipline as your undergrad or may be in something else entirely.
are prosthetic and medical devices the same category in BME? Im asking because I cant find what category Prosthetic falls under.
As long as you are in an ABET accredited program, it will have rigor and so any one of the schools you list are fine. You need to figure out which one will admit you, be a good fit, and make it financially affordable.
Most engineering curricula are laid out as 4 years but are quite packed. I have known a lot of students who have taken 5 years to finish (including my own son) so 4.5 on average seems reasonable.
If you look at BME departments, they have faculty who started in ME, CHE and EE as well as BME. Taking an ME major and then advanced work in BME is a very good option and it may even be available as a co-terminal or 4+1 program at some of the schools you list.