Master of Science in Biomedical Engineering

Cleveland State University's graduate program in biomedical engineering is designed to provide students with the skills to apply engineering analysis and design to the solution of biomedical-related problems. The program provides a foundation built on fundamentals in the life sciences, including those at the cellular, tissue, and human physiology level. Advanced engineering courses are selected from fields including tissue engineering, biomechanics, imaging, bioMEMS, materials and nanotechnology, bioprocessing, and instrumentation/controls.

The program offers three tracks: a thesis track, a design track, and a course-only track. In-depth study of a specific research topic with a faculty mentor is conducted in the thesis track. Students in the design track work in teams on a year-long design project with mentors from either local industry or the Medical Device Solutions Department at the Cleveland Clinic. This biomedical design option is unique in northeast Ohio and among only a handful of similar programs nationwide. The design option is especially appropriate for those who will seek industrial employment directly after completion of the program and/or are interested in starting their own business. Upon completion of the program, students will be prepared to work in the medical device industry or to continue their education at the doctoral level.

Admission Requirements

  • Application Form
  • Application Fee
  • Undergraduate Transcripts
    • Minimum 3.0 Undergraduate GPA
  • Two Letters of Recommendation
  • GRE Test Scores

    • The GRE General section is required if one or more of the following conditions is true:

    • An unaccredited college or university awarded the undergraduate degree.
    • The student's undergraduate cumulative grade-point average is below 3.00.
    • The year of the baccalaureate degree precedes the date of application to the College of Graduate
      Studies by more than six years; however, in this case, the examination requirement may be waived, with program approval, if the applicant's undergraduate grade-point average is 3.0 or above.

      • If the GRE is required, a minimum score at the 70th percentile on the Quantitative section, and a score of 3.5 or higher in the Analytical Writing Qualitative section, are typically required.

*Admission to the program is based on a combination of a candidate’s undergraduate GPA and the GRE score.  

-International students are required to have met at least one of the following English language proficiency requirements:

  • TOEFL iBT (Internet-Based): 78 (including at least 20 in reading, 21 in listening, 17 in writing, and 20 in speaking)
  • TOEFL PBT (Paper-Based): 550
  • IELTS: 6.0 and at least 5.0 in each section
  • PTE (Pearson’s Test of English): 50
  • iTEP: 5.0

Admission Deadlines

All applications must be submitted and complete on the following application deadline dates:

  • Domestic Students
    • Rolling
  • International Students
    • Fall Semester – March 15th

 

Program Requirements

Students who have an undergraduate background in a field other than engineering are required to have completed additional undergraduate coursework, including calculus through differential equations (ESC 250 or MTH 286) and multivariable calculus (MTH 283), one year of calculus-based physics (PHY 241 and 242), one semester of general chemistry with laboratory (CHM 262/266), and at least 9 credits of engineering courses, selected from the following five options. In addition to these 9 credits, the following courses are strongly recommended: ESC 152 Matlab, MCE 181, 181 (CAE I, II), and ESC 350 (Linear Algebra).

Field of Specialization 

Biomaterials and Tissue Engineering

  • ESC 270 Materials Science & Engineering
  • ESC 201 Statics
  • ESC 211 Strength of Materials
  • CVE 310 Strength of Materials Lab

Biomechanics

  • ESC 211 Strength of Materials
  • ESC 202 Dynamics
  • MCE 260 Kinematics

Mechanical Design

  • ESC 201 Statics
  • ESC 211 Strength of Materials
  • MCE 260 Kinematics

Imaging

  • EEC 310 Electric Circuits I
  • EEC 311 Electric Circuits II
  • EEC 383 Digital Systems
  • EEC 430 Digital Signal Processing

General

  • ESC 301 Fluid Mechanics
  • ESC 315 Electrical Engineering Concepts
  • CHE 306 Transport Phenomena
  • CHE 300 Chemical Engineering Principles
  • BIO 624 - Foundations of Biomedical Physiology (3 credits) 
  • BME 553 - Cell and Tissue Biology (3 credits) 
  • BME 570 - Biomedical Signal Processing (3 credits)
  • Key elective:  BME 655 - Biomaterials or BME 659 - Medical Imaging or BME 651 - Biomechanics (3 credits)

Thesis Track

This option is for the student who wants extensive research experience and a focus within a particular field. Students who plan to apply to the doctoral program in Applied Biomedical Engineering should select this track. A total of 30 credits is required for this track.

The requirements are:

  • 9 credits of BME 699 - Master's Thesis.
  • The student plans and completes a research project, which may lead to publication in a peer-reviewed scientific journal, under the direction of a faculty advisor. Students are required to enroll in BME 650 - Biomedical Engineering Seminar (for 0 credits) each semester while enrolled in BME 699.
  • Electives (9 credits) selected from the list of approved courses on the program website.
  • Prior to the student's thesis defense (usually one semester in advance), the student is required to give a public presentation on their research, either in a department seminar, or at a regional, national, or international symposium.

Design Track

This option is for the student who wants to apply engineering skills to the design of a biomedical process or product that may have direct benefit to health-care and/or the health-care industry. This option is especially appropriate for those who will seek industrial employment directly after completing the master's program and/or are interested in starting their own business. A total of 33 credits is required for this track.

The requirements are:

  • BME 658 Medical Device Design 
  • BME 674 Biomedical Design Project I 
  • BME 675 Biomedical Design Project II 
  • MGT 543 Entrepreneurship 
  • Engineering* electives (9 credits) selected from the list of approved courses on the program website
    • *If completing the Entrepreneurship Certificate, BUS 615 Entrepreneurship Toolkit can substitute for one elective.

Course Track

This option is for the students who work full time and are not able to devote sufficient blocks of time for a Thesis or Design Project; or for Doctoral students who wish to earn a MSBME degree en route to their doctorate.

The requirements are:

  • BME 658 Medical Device Design 
  • BME 580 Biomedical Instrumentation 
  • Research Communication or alternative approved course (3 credit hours)
  • Engineering* electives (15 credit hours)
    • *If completing the Entrepreneurship Certificate, BUS 615 Entrepreneurship Toolkit can substitute for one elective

 

Electives are selected from the approved list of electives from the department website.  Electives must be selected with advisor approval. It is recommended that students take a course sequence in a specific area in order to build depth of knowledge.

Suggested Course Sequences are Listed Below

Signal, Image & Data Analysis

  • PHY 565 - Image Processing
  • BME 659 - Medical Imaging
  • IME 510 - Advanced Engineering Statistics
  • IME 520 - Applied Engineering Design
  • PHY 550 - Optics
  • PHY 660 - Electronics
  • CHE 594 - Selected Topics in Chemical Engineering

Biomechanics

  • BME 651 - Biomechanics
  • MCE 580 - Finite Element Analysis I
  • MCE 680 - Finite Element Analysis II
  • CVE 604 - Elasticity
  • BME 694 - Selected Topics in Biomedical Engineering

Tissue Engineering

  • BME 655 - Biomaterials
  • BME 651 - Biomechanics
  • CHE 586 - Fundamentals Of Polymers
  • BME 694 - Selected Topics in Biomedical Engineering

Materials Synthesis, Characterization/Nanotechnology 

  • CHE 586 - Fundamentals Of Polymers
  • EEC 514 - Introduction to Nanotechnology
  • BME 615 - Drug Design and Development
  • BME 625 - Pharmaceutical Assay Development
  • BME 650 - Biomedical Engineering Seminar
  • BME 694 - Selected Topics in Biomedical Engineering
  • CHE 570 - Characterization and Selection of Solid Materials
  • CHE 544 - Colloidal and Interfacial Phenomena
  • CHE 609 - Rheology
  • CHE 620 - Carbon Nanotubes: Properties, Processing, and Applications
  • CHE 644 - Colloidal Hydrodynamics

Bioprocessing

  • CHE 566 - Biochemical Engineering
  • CHE 504 - Advanced Reactor Design
  • CHE 506 - Advanced Transport Phenomena
  • CHE 508 - Advanced Separation Processes
  • CHE 502 - Advanced Thermodynamics

Instrumentation/Sensors/Mems Devices/Controls 

  • BME 580 - Biomedical Instrumentation
  • BME 655 - Biomaterials
  • EEC 515 - Biosensors, Bioelectronics and BioMEMS
  • EEC 514 - Introduction to Nanotechnology
  • BME 694 - Selected Topics in Biomedical Engineering
  • EEC 693 - Special Topics In Electrical Engineering
  • EEC 530 - Digital Signal Processing
  • PHY 660 - Electronics
  • EEC 645 - Intelligent Control Systems
  • CHE 594 - Selected Topics in Chemical Engineering
  • BME 625 - Pharmaceutical Assay Development

Software Engineering

  • EEC 525 - Data Mining
  • EEC 517 - Embedded Systems

 

Did You Know?

The median annual wage for biomedical engineers was $88,550 in May 2018.

Bureau of Labor Statistics

 

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Career Outcomes

  • Graduates of the MS in Biomedical Engineering program work in biomedical product development and design, testing and quality assurance, and research. Students planning careers in academia or industrial research and development are strongly encouraged to select the thesis track, which will prepare them for continued education at the doctoral level (e.g. in Applied Biomedical Engineering).
  • These are some of the local companies that are hiring CSU grads: University Hospitals, Cleveland Clinic, Agiliti, Brooksource, Medasource, and The MetroHealth System.