Degree Requirements

To complete the Ph.D. degree in the biomedical engineering program, the student must satisfy the following requirements:

  1. Satisfactory completion of 48 credits of approved graduate coursework, with a minimum 3.3 grade point average in five core BME courses.
  2. Satisfactory completion of the First (Qualifying) Examination, which is a presentation of the dissertation research area that highlights key problems in the field.
  3. Satisfactory completion of the Second Examination, which is a defense of the research proposal.
  4. Satisfactory completion of the Final Examination, which is a defense of the Ph.D. dissertation.

The detailed expectations for each of these requirements are described here. Detailed BME graduate course descriptions can be found here.

Ph.D. Coursework

Once any necessary undergraduate courses are completed, students are expected to complete 48 credits of graduate coursework in four areas, as outlined below. Students who have transferred credits from a master's degree must make every effort to complete these requirements by including the equivalent courses taken as part of their master's degree.

Biomedical Engineering Courses (at least 12 credits)

While students are encouraged to take as many BME courses as possible, a minimum of four of the following 3-credit courses must be taken. See the BME core course requirements for the GPA requirement.

  • BME 57500 Medical Imaging and Image Processing
  • BME 57510 Biomedical Signal Processing
  • BME 57710 Cell and Tissue Mechanics
  • BME 57220 Cell and Tissue Transport
  • BME 57730 Cell and Tissue Biomaterial Interactions
  • BME 57200 Cell and Tissue Engineering
  • BME 57300 Neural Engineering and Applied Biotechnology
  • BME 57420 Organ Transport and Pharmacokinetics
  • BME 57770 Microfluidic Devices in Biotechnology
  • ChE 55530 Bioprocess Engineering

Any new or once-offered graduate course with the "BME" course code

Every semester students are also required to attend BME 57000 Biomedical Engineering Seminar, which consists of weekly speakers from the BME field.

Biomedical Sciences (at least 6 credits)

  • BME 57430 Physiology for Engineers, a 6-credit course, is required. Additional courses in this area include courses in cell and molecular biology, as well as biophysics (e.g., PHYS 73800 Biophysics), molecular genetics, neuroscience, microbial biology, biochemistry, protein structure & crystallography, and medical physics.

Mathematics Courses (at least 6 credits)

At least two math-related courses must be taken, to be chosen from the following partial listing (see the BME core course requirements for the GPA requirement):

  • ENGR 57110 Introduction to Engineering Analysis
  • ENGR 57140 Applied Partial Differential Equations
  • BIOL 78201 Biostatistics I (6 credits)
  • ENGR 57150 Introduction to Numerical Methods
  • ENGR 57170 Finite Element Methods in Engineering
  • ENGR 57420 Continuum Mechanics

Engineering Courses Other than Biomedical (at least 3 credits)

At least one engineering course in a field other than BME must be completed.

BME Core Course Requirements

In order to take the First Examination (the Qualifying Exam), students must obtain a minimum grade point average of 3.3 in five core graduate courses. This GPA requirement is designed to insure that all Ph.D. students have sufficient understanding of the core biomedical engineering fundamentals to pursue advanced study and professional career opportunities.

At least one course must be taken from each of the five groups below:

BME 57430 Physiology for Engineers (required)

ENGR 57110 Introduction to Engineering Analysis
ENGR 57140 Applied Partial Differential Equations

BME 57500 Medical Imaging and Image Processing
BME 57510 Biomedical Signal Processing

BME 57710 Cell and Tissue Mechanics
BME 57220 Cell and Tissue Transport

BME 57730 Cell and Tissue Biomaterial Interactions
BME 57200 Cell and Tissue Engineering

Further details of all the BME Ph.D. program requirements can be found here.