I blogged about Biomedical Engineering last year, so check that out for a quick primer on how I felt about it then. Honestly not much has changed since then, but I have definitely gained some perspective I’d like to share.
Since writing that blog, I did a summer internship in Information Systems at Amgen, started my senior design project, attended the Biomedical Engineering Society National Conference, started working more closely with the BME faculty here, got accepted into USC’s Progressive Degree Program to complete my Masters degree in Biomedical Engineering next year, and even accepted an internship for the coming summer with Abbott. The Associated Students of Biomedical Engineering also got cockier and switched our motto from “Proud to B ME” to “You wish you could B ME”
and don’t pretend it’s not true 😛
So ya, I think I know a thing or two more now, but Biomedical Engineering is still extremely difficult to describe.
Basically at this point, I think BME is different for every person. No two of my friends have the same exact career goal, and yet each of us will be prepared for whatever we’re pursuing after completing a Biomedical Engineering degree here. Obviously we’re not taking law or business classes as part of the curriculum (though you could fit them in!), but BME requires you to learn and integrate such a wide variety of topics and skills that there’s virtually nothing a BME can’t handle after graduation. You become a super-powered, self-driven learner!
…who can take their own EKG and diagnose their heart conditions! Useful!
In my time here I’ve gained enough coding skill to get a final round interview with Microsoft for a project management position. I learned enough about medical imaging to join GE Healthcare’s sales force or quality control program. I accepted and completed an internship in Information Systems at Amgen (I was the only Biomedical Engineer in the department), and I’ve done enough product design to land an engineering internship with Abbott this summer. My friends have done years of research and presented at national conferences, they’ve gotten accepted to the med schools of their dreams, and they’ve gone on to a wider variety of masters/Ph.D programs than I could ever count.
The sheer volume of opportunities I discovered at the BMES conference could crush a man
People call us the Jacks of all Trades, and they’re right! But more importantly, we don’t just know all these disparate things, we have the tools to combine them!
I don’t know how to explain it better than that! If you like math, science, and logic, and have any interest at all in healthcare, then Biomedical Engineering might be a great fit for you!
Our department chair, Norberto, loves to discuss what it means to be a BME. We have had multiple hours of meetings and have yet to land on a short answer, and I don’t think one is going to be forthcoming
