Bioengineering

The Bioengineering program is accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET.

Mission

The Department of Mechanical Engineering and Bioengineering provides a program of professional study grounded in engineering fundamentals and arts and sciences augmented by the development of interpersonal skills, experiential learning, and an appreciation of life-long learning. Graduates are prepared to apply their knowledge to society’s needs and help shape the future.

BE Program Educational Objectives

Student Outcomes describe what students pursuing a bioengineering bachelor’s degree are expected to know and be able to do by the time of graduation. These relate to the skills, knowledge, and behaviors that students acquire as they progress through the program. The Student Outcomes help to direct and measure the success of the Bioengineering Program in accomplishing its mission. Review of the Student Outcomes is an integral part of the annual assessment process.

Program Educational Objectives are broad statements that describe what graduates are expected to attain within a few years of graduation. They are based on the needs of the program’s constituencies. The Program Educational Objectives help to direct and measure the success of the Bioengineering Program in accomplishing its mission. Review of the Educational Objectives is an integral part of the annual assessment process.

Within a few years of graduation, bioengineering graduates will be expected to:

1. Have a vocation.
2. Demonstrate growth or advancement in their chosen vocation.
3. Serve society through their endeavors in their chosen vocation.
4. Lead society in through their endeavors in their chosen vocation.

Student Outcomes

Upon successful completion of the Bioengineering Program, graduates will have:

1. an ability to identify, formulate, and solve complex engineering problems by applying principles of engineering, science, and mathematics
2. an ability to apply engineering design to produce solutions that meet specified needs with consideration of public health, safety, and welfare, as well as global, cultural, social, environmental, and economic factors
3. an ability to communicate effectively with a range of audiences
4. an ability to recognize ethical and professional responsibilities in engineering situations and make informed judgments, which must consider the impact of engineering solutions in global, economic, environmental, and societal context
5. an ability to function effectively on a team whose members together provide leadership, create a collaborative and inclusive environment, establish goals, plan tasks, and meet objectives
6. an ability to develop and conduct appropriate experimentation, analyze and interpret data, and use engineering judgment to draw conclusions
7. An ability to acquire and apply new knowledge as needed, using appropriate learning strategies
8. Additionally, the structure of the curriculum must provide both breadth and depth across the range of engineering and science topics consistent with the program educational objectives and student outcomes. The curriculum must prepare graduates with experience in:
9. (a) Applying principles of engineering, biology, human physiology, chemistry, calculus-based physics, mathematics (through differential equations) and statistics
10. (b) Solving bio/biomedical engineering problems, including those associated with the interaction between living and non-living systems
11. (c) Analyzing, modeling, designing, and realizing bio/biomedical engineering devices, systems, components, or processes
12. (d) Making measurements on and interpreting data from living systems

Enrollment and Graduation Data

The College of Engineering tracks its enrollment and graduation data, click the link below to view our data over the past five years.

Electives

Writing Intensive Course (as indicated by a superscript “w”): At least one course taken to satisfy the World Languages/Diversity Elective, Humanities, Social Science, and Theology Electives, THEO 200:  The Christian Tradition, or ME 201 must be a Writing Intensive Course.  List of approved Writing Intensive Courses

Cooperative Education:  GE 481 through GE 483 may be used to satisfy the Professional Electives requirement.  All courses are graded S/U only.

Humanities, Social Science, Theology Electives: Students may take six credits from the approved list of Humanities courses, Social Science courses, or Theology courses.  Courses may be from the same area or from different areas.  List of approved Humanities, Social Science, Theology Electives

MCAT Preparation:  Students participating in the Biomedical Track that wish to take the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) should take SOC 110 Introduction to Sociology (3 credits that count towards Humanities, Social Science, Theology Electives) and PSY 110 General Psychology (3 credits).

Bioengineering Electives: Additional bioengineering and mechanical engineering courses are to be selected to provide areas of individual study emphasis from the following courses: BE 200, 468, ME 253, 353, 361, 363, 364, 365, 366, 367, 368, 369, 374, 405, 452, 453, 455, 456, 457, 467, and multiple sections of ME 490 or BE 490.  Other courses may be used to satisfy this elective with the approval of the department faculty.  Up to three credits may be substituted for students taking an approved second technical major or an approved technical minor.  Only three hours of BE 499 or ME 499course credits may be applied as a BE elective.  Courses which fulfill mechanical engineering elective requirements are indicated with a superscript “b”(…)^b.

Computer Specifications: When looking for a computer to use for engineering classes, click here for the specifications.

Electives

Writing Intensive Course (as indicated by a superscript “w”): At least one course taken to satisfy the World Languages/Diversity Elective, Humanities, Social Science, and Theology Electives, THEO 200:  The Christian Tradition, or ME 201 must be a Writing Intensive Course.  List of approved Writing Intensive Courses

Cooperative Education:  GE 481 through GE 483 may be used to satisfy the Professional Electives requirement.  All courses are graded S/U only.

Humanities, Social Science, Theology Electives: Students may take six credits from the approved list of Humanities courses, Social Science courses, or Theology courses.  Courses may be from the same area or from different areas.  List of approved Humanities, Social Science, Theology Electives

MCAT Preparation:  Students participating in the Biomedical Track that wish to take the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) should take SOC 110 Introduction to Sociology (3 credits that count towards Humanities, Social Science, Theology Electives) and PSY 110 General Psychology (3 credits).

Bioengineering Electives: Additional bioengineering and mechanical engineering courses are to be selected to provide areas of individual study emphasis from the following courses: BE 200, 468, ME 253, 353, 361, 363, 364, 365, 366, 367, 368, 369, 374, 405, 452, 453, 455, 456, 457, 467, and multiple sections of ME 490 or BE 490.  Other courses may be used to satisfy this elective with the approval of the department faculty.  Up to three credits may be substituted for students taking an approved second technical major or an approved technical minor.  Only three hours of BE 499 or ME 499course credits may be applied as a BE elective.  Courses which fulfill mechanical engineering elective requirements are indicated with a superscript “b”(…)^b.

Computer Specifications: When looking for a computer to use for engineering classes, click here for the specifications.

Current research being performed in the Human Movement Research Laboratory in Gellersen falls under three main projects:

• the analysis of gait while wearing different running shoes (four current engineering students),
• the design and control of a prosthetic arm (three current engineering students),
• and the development of a statistical metric that will be used to indicate when an athlete is on the verge of an injury (nine current engineering students and five current kinesiology students).

These studies are supported by state-of-the-art equipment that allows researchers to track people in motion using motion-capture cameras, record muscle activity using electromyogram (EMG) sensors, and study impact loads using in-sole pressure maps. These research projects have helped the College of Engineering send two students to the annual American Society of Biomechanics Conference in 2011, two students to the American Society of Mechanical Engineers 2012 Summer Bioengineering Conference, five students to the American Society of Mechanical Engineers 2013 Summer Bioengineering Conference, and six students to the World Congress of Biomechanics in 2014.