Biomedical Engineering Graduate Programs
Revised September 5, 2007
by SAJ
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Louisiana Tech University Biomedical Engineering Program
Policies on Graduate Student Coursework
The following policies will apply to all students being admitted as of spring quarter 2004.
I. Entrance Requirements
For admission to the MS program in Biomedical Engineering, the student must fulfill all
of the following criteria:
1. A bachelor’s or degree in Biomedical Engineering or a related field (e.g. another
engineering discipline, physics, chemistry, biology, medicine or mathematics).
2. Undergraduate GPA of 3.0 or above (students from countries that operate on a
percentage basis will be required to have a GPA of 65% or above).
3. Composite verbal plus quantitative GRE score of 1070.
4. Demonstrated undergraduate coursework in the 5 key areas listed in section III
below.
For admission to the Ph.D. program in Biomedical Engineering, the student must fulfill
all of the following criteria:
1. A bachelor’s or medical degree in Biomedical Engineering or a related field (e.g.
another engineering discipline, physics, chemistry, biology, or mathematics).
2. Undergraduate GPA of 3.2 or above (students from countries that operate on a
percentage basis will be required to have a GPA of 65% or above).
3. Composite verbal plus quantitative GRE score of 1270.
4. Demonstrated undergraduate coursework in the 5 key areas listed in section III
below.
or
1. A MS or other post-bachelor’s degree in biomedical engineering or a related field,
(e.g. other engineering disciplines, physics, chemistry, biology, medicine, or
mathematics.
2. Graduate GPA of 3.5 or above.
3. Composite verbal plus quantitative GRE score of 1170.
4. Demonstrated undergraduate coursework in the 5 key areas listed in section III
below.
The above requirements do not guarantee admission.
II. Requirements for College-Funded Assistantships
To obtain a college-funded assistantship at the MS level, a student must satisfy all of
the requirements below.
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Biomedical Engineering Graduate Programs
Revised September 5, 2007
by SAJ
1.
2.
3.
4.
Have GRE scores of 1170 or above.
Have graduate status.
Have unconditional admission status.
Have submitted all deliverables required for the given quarter (e.g. Plan of Study by
the end of the first quarter, Proposal by the end of the second quarter).
5. Have demonstrated satisfactory progress on their plan of study, defined as
completing, on average, 15 of the semester hours listed on their plan of study
(excluding research and thesis or research and dissertation) in the first year of study
and 12 semester hours per year each year afterward until all non-research courses
in the plan of study are completed.
Note: According to COES policy, students on college-funded assistantships are required
to devote an appropriate amount of time on college-related duties, which generally
means assisting in the teaching and grading of courses. Work required for the student
to complete his/her thesis or dissertation is not considered college-related in this
context.
III. Purpose of coursework
The program considers the masters degree in biomedical engineering to indicate an
understanding of key engineering concepts and the ability to perform directed research
in an area of biomedical engineering. Therefore, the coursework undertaken by
students will serve two purposes:
1. To allow the student to achieve proficiency in the key areas.
2. To provide a foundation that will be needed for the student’s research project.
It is expected that students entering the program have an undergraduate-level
understanding of the 5 key areas below.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Chemistry (8 Hours, 6 Hours of lecture + 2 hours of lab).
Calculus-Based Physics
Engineering (Statics, Circuits, and Thermodynamics)
Calculus, through Differential Equations
Introductory Biology
Proficiency in these areas will be assessed by an entrance exam. In addition, it is
expected that students who graduate will have a graduate-level understanding of
systems physiology, bioinstrumentation, partial differential equations and physiological
modeling, along with other concepts relevant to their research area.
IV. Entrance Exam
An entrance exam that covers the key undergraduate areas will be given to all graduate
students prior to their first quarter of study. Students who are found to lack fundamental
knowledge in these areas will be directed to appropriate undergraduate courses.
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Biomedical Engineering Graduate Programs
Revised September 5, 2007
by SAJ
Students who are required to take up to three undergraduate courses will be placed on
conditional admission status until they have completed the required courses. Students
who are required to take more than three such courses will be placed on postbaccalauriate status until they have completed all but 3 courses, at which time they will
be placed on conditional status until all undergraduate requirements are fulfilled.
V. Plan of Study
The plan of study (download doc) is a list of all courses the student will be required to
take to fulfill degree requirements. The courses will be selected by the student and his
committee, with the following guidelines being followed.
For the MS degree, the plan must include the three core courses:
Course Number
Course Name
Semester Hours
BIEN 500
Systems Physiology
4
BIEN 510
Biomedical Instrumentation
4
BIEN 501
Physiological Modeling I
4
1)
For the Ph.D. degree, the plan must include four core courses:
Course Number
Course Name
Semester Hours
BIEN 500
Systems Physiology
4
BIEN 510
Biomedical Instrumentation
4
BIEN 501
Physiological Modeling I
4
Statistics
Graduate Statistics Courses
3
2)
3)
Additional graduate courses will be selected from Engineering (including Biomedical
Engineering, other Engineering disciplines), Science (including Physics, Chemistry,
and Biology), Computer Science and Mathematics. Graduate courses outside of
these specified Science, Engineering and Mathematics (SEM) areas may be
considered only if they are determined to be necessary to the student’s research
project. For the MS degree (thesis or practicum) only one non-SEM graduate
course will be allowed. For the Ph.D. degree, up to two non-SEM courses will be
allowed. At least two thirds of the coursework on the plan of study (not counting
BIEN 551, 555 and 651) must be in engineering disciplines.
The makeup of the plan of study for Thesis MS, Practicum MS and Ph.D. are
summarize
d below.
Plan of Study Requirements for Thesis MS
Semester
BIEN Core
Hours (24)
12
ENGR 501 – Research Methods
3
ENGR 541 or ENGR 592 (Mathematical/Computational)
3
Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics, Biology, Engineering,
Computer Science
Courses from other disciplines
3 to 6
0 to 3
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Biomedical Engineering Graduate Programs
Revised September 5, 2007
by SAJ
Plan of Study Requirements for Practicum MS
BIEN Core
Semester
Hours (33)
12
ENGR 501
3
ENGR 541 or ENGR 592
3
Additional Engineering Courses
3 to 12
Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics, Biology, Computer Science
0 to 9
Courses from other disciplines
0 to 3
Plan of Study Requirements for Coursework MS
BIEN Core
Semester
Hours (36)
12
ENGR 501
3
ENGR 541 or ENGR 592
3
Additional Mathematics Course
3
Additional Statistics Course
3
Additional Engineering Course
3 to 12
Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics, Biology, Computer Science
0 to 9
Courses from other disciplines
0 to 3
Plan of Study Requirements for Ph.D.
BIEN Core
Semester
Hours
12
Other Core (Statistics)
3
Additional Engineering Courses
At least 15
Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics, Biology
Up to 18
Courses from other disciplines
Up to 6
VI. Changes to the Plan of Study
A plan of study may need to be changed in response to changing conditions within the
college (such as the offering of a new course, or the discontinuation of an existing
course) and changing needs of the student. If the student must substitute a course for
one that is not listed on the current plan of study, a new plan of study must be filed
before the last day of classes of the quarter in which the substitute course is being
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Biomedical Engineering Graduate Programs
Revised September 5, 2007
by SAJ
taught. If the new plan is not filed within the deadline, it will not be possible to
retroactively use the course as a substitute on the plan of study.
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