Master of Science in Engineering in Bioengineering

The bioengineering laboratories are state-of-the-art facilities designed to provide students with hands-on experience in various subfields. Many laboratories serve both teaching and research purposes. Further information is available on our laboratories.

The program faculty are engaged in research in orthopaedic biomechanics, human movement, ocular biomechanics, impact safety, biomaterials, tissue engineering, hypoxia, protein engineering, cellular engineering, biomineralization, bioprocessing, drug delivery, nanotheranostics, pharmaceutical formulation, microspectroscopy, thermogravimetrics, biophotonics, microoptics, biosensors, MEMS, microfluidics, mechanotransduction, bioreactor design and fabrication, biofluid dynamics and biotransport, an more. Further information is available on our faculty.

Research and teaching assistantships may be available to exceptionally qualified students. 

MSE-BENG Program Goals

To provide students with a strong background in the physical, chemical, and mathematical foundations of biology in relation to bioengineering.

MSE-BENG Learning Outcomes

1. Students will be able to demonstrate the ability to apply physical, chemical, and mathematical principles in bioengineering.
2. Students will be able to formulate, analyze, and solve complex health-related problems using bioengineering tools.
3. Students will be able to utilize the rapidly advancing science and technologies of bioengineering in their professional endeavors.

Undergraduate Degree Required

An applicant to the program should hold a Bachelor of Science (BS) or equivalent degree in engineering from an accredited program with a minimum cumulative grade point of 3.0 (on a 4.0 scale). An applicant with a lower GPA, or an applicant with a non-engineering Bachelor degree in a science or mathematics program, may be considered for admission consistent with the guidelines.

Students from non-bioengineering fields are often admitted to the program but may be required to take preparatory courses before or after starting the program. It is suggested that such students have their background reviewed prior to submitting an application. Please contact the BENG graduate program coordinator for more information at [email protected].

Standardized Test Scores

GRE not required

Please note: At least 2 letters of recommendation are required as part of the application. These should come from people who know you as an engineer, either academically (professor or research advisor) or professionally (supervisor or manager). Letters of reference from peer employees or personal sources are invalid and will not be considered.

The candidate must complete at least 30 semester hours of graduate course work approved by the BENG graduate committee with a grade of at least a B covering all courses elected. These 30 hours must include two required courses (ME 518 and BENG 520), six BENG elective courses, and two cognate courses (see list below).

Students must earn a C or better in every graduate course to be credited toward the degree requirements. In addition, students must maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher.

2 courses (6 credit hours):

• ME 518: Advanced Engineering Analysis
• BENG 520: Molecular and Cell Biology for Engineers

5-6 courses (15-18 credit hours) from the following list:

• BENG 521: Biomaterials and Biochemical Interfaces
• BENG 526: Fundamentals of Drug Delivery
• BENG 550: Biomedical Optics and Photonics
• BENG 551: Microfluidics
• BENG 560: Nanobiosystems Engineering
• BENG 570: Orthopedic Biomechanics
• BENG 571: Impact Biomechanics
• BENG 575: Regenerative Engineering
• BENG 580: Mechanotransduction
• BENG/ME 595: Digital Manufacturing and Product Innovation

Students must elect at least 1 course (at least 3 credits) from the Bioengineering Cognate list and at least 1 course (at least 3 credits) from the General Cognate list. The total number of bioengineering and general cognate electives cannot exceed 3 courses (9 credits). 

Bioengineering Cognates

• BIOL 552 Medical & Environmental Toxicology
• BIOL 561  Advances in Cell Biology
• ME 510 Finite Element Methods
• ME 568 Computational Materials Design
• ME 569 Intro to Material Characterization
• ME 523 Sustainability Science and Engineering
• ME 555 Computational Uncertainty Quantification for Engineering Applications

General Cognates

• CIS 515       Computer Graphics
• CIS 551       Advanced Computer Graphics
• ECE 502     Electromagnetic Theory and Simulation
• ECE 545     Introduction to Robotic Systems
• ECE 552     Fuzzy Systems
• ECE 554     Embedded Systems
• ECE 580     Digital Signal Processing
• ECE 5831   Pattern Recognition and Neural Networks
• ECE 585     Pattern Recognition
• IMSE 511    Design and Analysis of Experiments
• IMSE 501    Human Factors and Ergonomics
• IMSE 510    Probability and Statistical Modeling
• IMSE 514    Multivariate Statistics
• IMSE 543    Industrial Ergonomics
• IMSE 544    Industrial Biomechanics
• IMSE 545    Vehicle Ergonomics I
• IMSE 546    Safety Engineering
• IMSE 561    Total Quality Management and Six Sigma
• IMSE 567    Reliability Analysis
• MATH 504   Dynamical Systems
• MATH 514   Fin Diff Meth for Diff Equat
• MATH 516   Fin Element Meth for Diff Equat
• MATH 520   Stochastic Processes
• MATH 523  Linear Algebra with Applications
• MATH 554  Fourier and Boundary
• MATH 555  Functions of a Complex Variable
• MATH 562  Mathematical Modeling
• MATH 572  Intro to Numerical Analysis
• MATH 573  Matrix Computation
• ME 522       Advanced Fluid Mechanics
• ME 525       Computational Thermo-Fluids
• ME 540       Mechanical Vibrations
• ME 542       Advanced Dynamics
• ME 564       Linear Control Theory
• ME 565       Mechatronics
• ME 574       Advanced Heat Transfer
• ME 589       Composite Materials
• ME 591       Degradation of Materials
• STAT 530   Applied Regression Analysis
• STAT 535   Data Analysis and Modeling
• STAT 560   Time Series Analysis