Departments

Biomedical Engineering (BME)

Professors: E. Berbari (Chair), G. Kassab
Associate Professors: J. Schild, D. Xie, K. Yoshida
Assistant Professors: J. Ji, S. Na, C.C. Lin, J. Wallace
Clinical Associate Professor: W. Combs
Lecturer: K. Alfrey (Director of the Undergraduate Program)


Biomedical engineering is a discipline that advances knowledge in engineering, biology, and medicine, and improves human health through cross-disciplinary activities that integrate the engineering sciences with the biomedical sciences and clinical practice. Biomedical engineering is a vibrant and rapidly expanding field both in content and opportunities. As our technological infrastructure expands and our fundamental knowledge in the life sciences is now at the basic molecular level, biomedical engineers are poised to continue to make major advances.

The mission of the Biomedical Engineering Department is to strive to attain world-class research and to provide the highest quality educational experience for our students. We expect and value excellence in conduction research, and training students to participate in research activities and professional practice. We accomplish our Mission as follows:

  • By exploiting the most modern and innovative approaches, we are leaders in interdisciplinary biomedical engineering research and discovery.
  • By providing students with an education in engineering principles, design, and modern biomedical science, we develop in them the knowledge and skills for productive careers in biomedical engineering.
  • By committing to service to advance biomedical engineering, we contribute to the field.

Bachelor of Science in Biomedical Engineering

The bachelor's degree in Biomedical Engineering (B.S.B.M.E.) integrates the engineering analysis and design skills of the Purdue School of Engineering and Technology with the life sciences offered through the Purdue School of Science and with significant medical/clinical elements available through collaboration with the Indiana University School of Medicine.

The B.S.B.M.E. degree program combines a strong set of mathematics, science, and biomedical engineering courses into a demanding and rewarding four-year degree program aimed at solving contemporary problems in the life and health sciences. Outstanding features include instructional objectives that integrate the study of the fundamental principles of life and health sciences with rigorous engineering disciplines through a core of interdisciplinary courses that include biomechanics, biomeasurements, biomaterials, computational biology, and biosignals and systems analysis, among others. Many of the courses involve laboratory and problem solving recitation sections that lead the student through a practical encounter with methods of engineering analysis aimed at understanding and solving problems related to human health care and delivery. The Senior Design Experience is a two-semester sequence where a team approach is used to solve problems originating from the laboratories of faculty across the Schools of Engineering, Science, Dentistry, and Medicine, as well as from clinical and industrial partners. This approach will develop strong team-working skills among the students and enhance their communication skills with professionals outside of their discipline.

The senior year electives enable the student to pursue course content that develops a depth of understanding in a number of biomedical engineering expertise areas such as tissue engineering, biomolecular engineering, imaging, bioelectric phenomena, biomechanics, and regenerative biology. Students interested pursuing careers in medicine or dentistry may also use their electives to fulfill these respective preprofessional requirements. Highly motivated students with strong academic credentials will find biomedical engineering an excellent premedical or predental degree program.

This exciting and innovative curriculum forms the basis of our program vision, whereby our students will be well educated in modern biomedical engineering, and with this knowledge they will be prepared to develop new devices, technologies, and methodologies that lead to significant improvements in human health care and delivery. The Biomedical Engineering Web site (www.engr.iupui.edu/bme/) has the most up-to-date information concerning the plan of study for the B.S.B.M.E. degree program.

Biomedical Engineering Program Objectives

The program educational objectives of our biomedical engineering undergraduate program are to integrate engineering and life science principles into a comprehensive curriculum that produces graduates who can achieve the following career and professional accomplishments, if desired:

  • Meet employer expectations in medical device companies or other health or life science related industries.
  • Pursue and complete advanced graduate degrees in biomedical engineering, or related engineering or life science areas.
  • Pursue and complete advanced professional degree programs in medicine, law, business, or other professional areas.

The above program objectives are based on achieving a set of assesssable program outcomes at the time the students have completed the undergraduate curriculum and are outlined below:

Program Outcomes

Upon completing the undergraduate BME degree, our students will possess:

a. an ability to apply knowledge of mathematics, science, and engineering

b. an ability to design and conduct experiments, as well as to analyze and interpret data

c. an ability to design a system, component, or process to meet desired needs within realistic constraints such as economic, environmental, social, political, ethical, health and safety, manufacturability, and sustainablity

d. an ability to function on multi-disciplinary teams

e. an ability to identify, formulate, and solve engineering problems.

f. an understanding of professional and ethical responsibility

g. an ability to communicate effectively

h. the broad education necessary to understand the impact of engineering solutions in a global, economic, environmental, and societal context

i. a recognition of the need for, and an ability to engage in life-long learning

j. a knowledge of contemporary issues

k. an ability to use the techniques, skills, and modern engineering tools necessary for engineering practice

l. an understanding of biology and physiology

m. the capacity to apply advanced mathematics (including differential equations and statistics), science and engineering to solve problems at the interface of engineering and biology

n. the ability to make measurements on and interpret data from living systems, addressing the problems associated with the interaction between living and non-living materials and systems 

 

Transfer Students

Transfer students are initially admitted to the Freshman Engineering Program. Subsequent transfer into the Department of Biomedical Engineering is permitted only after consultation with a Biomedical Engineering Advisor to ensure course equivalencies and to evaluate the student's overall academic achievement. Students requesting transfer into Biomedical Engineering must submit a brief application.

Admission into Biomedical Engineering

Freshman engineering students who declare a biomedical engineering major must apply to the Department of Biomedical Engineering for formal admission by April 1 of their first year. Acceptance into the department is competitive and is based on academic qualifications, advisor's recommendation, and available space.

Graduate Programs in Biomedical Engineering

Biomedical engineering is an interdisciplinary program and a joint effort of the Purdue School of Engineering and Technology, the Purdue School of Science, and the Indiana University Schools of Medicine and Dentistry at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI). In addition to these participating academic units, the program operates in close collaboration with several centers and facilities on campus, and with the Department of Biomedical Engineering at Purdue University, West Lafayette.

Students interested in the M.S.Bm.E. degree should apply directly to the Graduate Programs Office of the Purdue School of Engineering and Technology in Indianapolis. Students with a master's degree, or who are solely interested in the Ph.D. degree, should apply to the Department of Biomedical Engineering at West Lafayette, even though they may be resident and study on the Indianapolis campus.

For more information about the M.S.Bm.E. visit http://engr.iupui.edu/bme/ms_bme_pos.shtml?menu=ms.

For more information about the the P.hD. program visit https://engineering.purdue.edu/BME/Academics/BMEGraduateProgram/Admissions/.

Plan of Study - BS

 

Guidelines for selecting General Education Electives, as well as a list of approved courses, can be found on the BME website (http://www.engr.iupui.edu/bme/). BME, science, and technical electives must be selected in consultation with an academic advisor. These courses may include upper-level science, BME, or other engineering courses not already included on the BME plan of study. The goal of these electives is to provide depth of education in a specific sub-discipline of Biomedical Engineering.

Freshman Year Credit Hours

First Semester

ENGR 19600 Engineering Problem Solving

3

CHEM-C10500 Principles of Chemistry I

3

CHEM 12500 Experimental Chem. I

2

MATH 16300 Integrated Calculus and Analytic Geometry

5

ENG W 131 Elementary Composition I

3

ENGR 19500 Engineering Seminar

1

TOTAL

17

Second Semester

ENGR 19700 Intro. To Computing (C)

2

BIOL-K 10100 Concepts of Biology

5

MATH 16400 Integrated Calculus and Analytic Geometry II

5

Phys 15200 Mechanics

4

TOTAL

16

Sophomore Year

First Semester

MATH 26100 Multivariate Calculus

4

PHYS 25100 Electricity, Heat, Optics

5

BME 22200 Biomeasurements

4

Chem C10600 Principles of Chemistry II

3

ENGR 29700 Intro. to Computing II (MATLAB)

1

TOTAL

16

Second Semester

MATH 26200 Linear Algebra Differential Eqns.

4

BIOL K32400 Cell Biology

3

BIOL K32500 Cell Biology Lab

2

BME 24100 Intro. Biomechanics

4

Comm. R110 Fund of Speech Communication

3

General Education Elective

3

TOTAL

18

Junior Year

First Semester

BME 33400 Biomedical Computing

3

BME 38100 Implantable Materials & Biological Response

3

BME 38300 Problems in Implantable Materials & Biological Response

1

BME 33100 Biosignals and Systems

3

CHEM C34100 Organic Chemistry I

3

CHEM C34300 Organic Chemistry Lab I

2

General Education Elective

3

TOTAL

18

Second Semester

BME 32200 Probability & Statistics for BME

3

BME 35200 Tissue Behavior and Properties

3

BME 35400 Problems in Tissue Behavior and Properties

1

BME/Sci/Tech Elective

3

General Education Elective 3

General Education Elective

3

TCM 36000 Communications in Engineering Practice

2

TOTAL

18

Senior Year

First Semester

BME 49100 Biomedical Engineering Design I

3

BME 41100 Quantitative Physiology

3

BME 46100 Biofluid and Biosolid Mechanics

3

BME Elective

3

BME/Sci/Tech Elective

3

TOTAL

15

Second Semester

BME 49200 Biomedical Engineering Design II

3

BME 49500 Advanced Biomechanics

3

BME/Tech Elective

3

BME 40200 Senior Seminar 1

BME 40400 Ethics for Biomedical Engineers

1

General Education Elective

3

TOTAL

14