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General Catalog

College of Engineering
Department Office: Suite 3100 Sorenson Molecular Biotechnology Building
Mailing Address: 36 S. Wasatch Dr.
Salt Lake City, UT 84112-9202
Phone: 801-581-8528
Fax: 801-585-5361
Website: www.bme.utah.edu

Department Chair: David Grainger, Ph.D.

Biomedical Engineering is the application of science and engineering to problems in medicine and biology. The Department of Biomedical Engineering is the academic center of an interdisciplinary program of research and training in the area of biomedical engineering. Many of the faculty have joint appointments with the School of Medicine, the College of Pharmacy, and other departments in the College of Engineering.

Undergraduate Program

The Biomedical Engineering undergraduate program is accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET).

The mission of the Undergraduate Biomedical Engineering degree is to advance human understanding, health, and the quality of life through:

  • Internationally recognized research, discovery, and invention in the area of biomedical engineering;

  • Education of world-class Ph.D. scientists and engineers for accomplishment in research, academics, medicine, and industry;

  • Education of nationally-recognized B.S. and M.S. graduates for success and leadership in industry and in preparation for future study in medicine, science and engineering;

  • Transfer of scientific discoveries and biomedical technology to the private sector nationwide;

  • Training of students throughout the College of Engineering in biobased solutions to traditional engineering problems and in the application of their specialty to biological and biomedical science.

Please see the Biomedical Engineering B.S. and H.B.S. listed in the Program and Course Offerings section.

Major Status-Lower Division Courses
Students beginning the undergraduate program, including transfer students, should choose the Biomedical Engineering category (BIO) or the Honors Biomedical Engineering category (HBO, if in the honors college) as their major for registration purposes. Major students are eligible based upon meeting course prerequisites to register for all classes listed at the 1000 and 2000 level in the Suggested Undergraduate Program of Study. Majors are strongly encouraged to meet early with a BME department advisor to outline a course of study that will prepare them to apply to take upper division BME classes in a timely manner. To be allowed to take 3000 level and higher BME classes, students must successfully complete the required 1000 and 2000 level classes and meet certain academic standards.

Major Status-Upper Division Courses
Biomedical Engineering is a tiered degree program. Students advance to upper division courses by application only. Applications are due on the last day of classes of Fall Semester. Students will be classified as BME-Upper-Division Ready based on a combination of two components:

1.         The student’s cumulative University of Utah GPA (i.e., not including transfer credit), and 

2.         The student’s Technical GPA from the following technical courses: 

·         BME 1010 Careers in Biomedical Engineering 

·         BME 1020 Fundamentals of Biomedical Engineering I

·         BME 2100 Fundamentals of Biomedical Engineering II 

·         BIOL 2020 (or BIOL 2021) Cell Biology 

·         CHEM 1220 (or CHEM 1221) General Chemistry II (or honors) 

·         CHEM 1225 (or CHEM 1241) General Chemistry II Lab (or honors) 

·         MATH 1321 (or MATH 1320 and 2310) Accel. Eng. Calc II (or Eng. Calc II and Vector Calc)

·         MATH 2250 Diff Eq/Lin Alg 

·         PHYS 2210 Physics for Scientists and Engineers I 

·         PHYS 2220 Physics for Scientists and Engineers II 

All students with a University of Utah GPA above 3.0 and a Technical GPA above 3.4 from the technical courses will be classified as BME-Upper-Division Ready with no further review.

Students with a University GPA above 3.0 and a Technical GPA between 3.0 and 3.4 are subject to further evaluation of all course work to determine readiness for upper-division courses. There are three possible outcomes:

1.      Classified as BME-Upper-Division Ready

2.      Allowed to take some 3000 level classes on probationary basis with performance requirements (work with BME Advisor to submit probationary contract and to obtain permission codes)

3.      Required to retake classes to improve preparedness and reapply (work with BME Advisor to develop an appropriate schedule)

Students with a University GPA below 3.0 or a Technical GPA below 3.0 are not considered ready for upper division courses and will have to improve one or both GPAs through retaking courses before reapplying (please review department retake policy).

See the current BME undergraduate handbook for more details including instructions on how to deal with missing technical classes or AP course work when applying (https://www.bme.utah.edu/undergraduate-current-students/). 

Scholarships
The College of Engineering provides a limited number of scholarships to highly qualified applicants. Contact the department office or department website for details.

Duplication of Credit
No single course may be counted more than once to fulfill the requirements. An exception to policy must be obtained before a third attempt can be considered (please see a BME Advisor for help)

Continuing Performance
Students must maintain a cumulative GPA above 3.0. Each course taken to satisfy departmental requirements listed above must be passed with a grade of C or better. A student may repeat upper-division courses (3000-level or above) only  once, and the second grade received will be counted for the requirement. All mathematics, science, and biomedical engineering core and technical electives should be taken for a letter grade whenever this option is available. Students are expected to complete all degree requirements within four years of starting upper division classes. Students who are not making satisfactory progress may be dropped from the program and declared inactive. To be reinstated to active status, students must submit a written petition to the Biomedical Engineering Director of Undergraduate Studies. Reinstated students matriculate under the latest graduation requirements.

Probation
A student admitted to major status whose GPA falls below 3.0 is placed on academic probation and given written instructions for a return to good standing. Normally, these conditions must be met during the ensuing semester. Students who fail to meet  probationary conditions are dropped from the program. Reinstatement requires a written petition to the Director of Undergraduate Studies. Reinstated students matriculate under the latest graduation requirements.

Graduate Program

Admissions Requirements
Please visit the BME website for instruction on applying to the MS and PhD graduate programs at www.bme.utah.edu.

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