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Ph.D. Program
The Ph.D. program, based on a curriculum that balances breadth and depth, is designed to train students for faculty and leadership BME positions in universities, hospitals, and industry. Students pursue coursework and research in a wide range of potential areas as represented by the faculty (see Research Porfolio). Most graduate students join a research group and start thesis research soon after the beginning of the first semester of residence. The requirements are flexible, allowing the student to develop a program that is best suited to his/her background and career goals. The no-nonsense timeline allows completion in about 4.5 years based on Bachelor's level preparation, and possibly as short as three years with an M.S. degree upon entry. The BME Department has a graduate student monitoring system that evaluates the progress each semester and ensures that students finish in a timely manner.
Direct Entry in the Ph.D. Program
Direct Entry is for students entering without an M.S. degree. Candidates for this option should typically expect to spend at least three years or equivalent in full-time graduate study. While thesis research generally starts after the first month of entry, much of the first year is devoted to the study of fundamental courses and basic training for research. Efforts are then shifted to thesis research starting the second year.
Students of Direct Entry must satisfactorily complete at least 192 course units (roughly equivalent to 64 credit points elsewhere), which include at least 84 units of formal coursework and at least 24 units of thesis research. The coursework consists of at least eight courses, at most 21 units of which may be advanced undergraduate courses (300 or 400 level) while the rest must be at graduate level (500 or higher), and at least four courses must be 12-unit. In addition, three of the courses must be 9 or more units each to cover three out of five core areas - molecular/cellular biology, physiology, bioimaging/bioinformatics, biomaterials, and biomechanics. The student must also take 42-701 Biomedical Engineering Seminar during each semester of residence. If the student with an M.S. degree is accepted into the direct Entry program, his/her background may be evaluated for a possible reduction of course requirements.
Advanced Entry into the Ph.D. Program
Qualified candidates with an M.S. degree may be accepted as Advanced Entry students. These students must satisfactorily complete at least 96 course units (roughly equivalent to 32 credit points elsewhere), which include at least 42 units of formal coursework and at least 24 units of thesis research. The coursework consists of at least four courses, at most 9 units of which may be advanced undergraduate courses (300 or 400 level) while the rest must be at graduate level (500 or higher), and at least two courses must be 12-unit. In addition, three of the courses must be 9 or more units each to cover three out of five core areas - molecular/cellular biology, physiology, bioimaging/bioinformatics, biomaterials, and biomechanics. The student must also take 42-701 Biomedical Engineering Seminar during each semester of residence.
General Degree Requirements for the Ph.D. Program
The minimum residency on campus is one year, while certain phases of the training may be completed on a part-time basis. Students of both Direct and Advanced Entry must take the Ph.D. Qualifying Examination within the first three semesters in residence (counting summer as one semester), with the purpose of ensuring that the student has a firm grasp of fundamentals and the ability to perform Ph.D. research.
The remainder of the training is devoted principally to completion of the thesis, which must be on a Biomedical Engineering topic. The Ph.D. thesis must embody the results of extended, original, coherent research, and should demonstrate the candidate’s ability to conduct an independent investigation, to abstract principles, and to interpret in a logical manner facts revealed by the research. The student must take the Ph.D. Proposal Examination within the first six semesters in residence, with the purpose of assessing the knowledge necessary for the research, the conception of the scope of the work, and familiarity with the methods to be used. The student must complete the thesis and pass the oral defense within six years of passing the Ph.D. Qualifier.
In addition to the above requirements, all Ph.D. students must complete three semesters’ performance as a Teaching Assistant, and must take 42-701 Biomedical Engineering Seminar during each semester in residence. Detailed requirements are described in the Graduate Student Handbook.
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