Biomedical Engineering, Ph.D.

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Biomedical engineering is an interdisciplinary program offered by the College of Engineering. The program culminates in the doctor of philosophy degree. In this research-oriented program, advanced scientific and engineering techniques are utilized to address modern problems in medicine and biology.

Program Learning Outcomes

Students will be able to:

apply engineering research and theory to advance the art, science, and practice of the discipline.
design and conduct experiments as well as to analyze, interpret, apply, and disseminate the data.
understand research methodology.

Contact Information

Bahram Parvin, Ph.D., Graduate Program Director
(775)784-6927
bparvin@unr.edu

bmeadmin@unr.edu

University of Nevada, Reno
Department of Biomedical Engineering, Mail Stop 0260
1664 North Virginia Street
Reno, NV 89557

Graduate Handbook *

Admission Requirements

Candidates must meet the admission requirements of the Graduate School as well as additional requirements of the program.

I. Program Requirements

The curriculum is centered around “areas of proficiency” related to research activities. Students must demonstrate proficiency in four areas, where at least one area is in the engineering or physical sciences and at least one other area is in the medical or life sciences.

In addition to the Graduate School requirements and the requirements outlined below, doctoral students must complete:

a research rotation,
communications courses, and
presentation of work at a national or international scientific meeting.

All courses of study must be approved by a student advisory committee and the program director. Students are encouraged to identify research interests and faculty mentors as early as possible during the program.

A. Required Course (3 units)

BME 601 - Measurements in Living Systems (3 units)

B. Additional Coursework (44 units)

Courses may be selected from the list below. Final course selection for each “area of proficiency” must be approved by the student advisory committee and the program director.

BCH 600 - Introductory Biochemistry (4 units)
BIOL 653 - Immunology (3 units)
BIOL 675 - Neurobiology (3 units)
BME 626 - Biomedical Instrumentation (3 units)
BME 631 - Introduction to Bioelectricity (3 units)
BME 725 - Ethics and Scientific Research (2 units)
BME 730 - Introduction to Imaging and Optics (3 units)
BME 770 - Research Rotation (3 units)
CMB 710 - Molecular Cell Biology (3 units)
EE 620 - Electronics II (3 units)
EE 621 - Digital Electronics (3 units)
EE 624 - Biomedical Instrumentation (3 units)
MICR 653 - Immunology (3 units)
PHAR 710 - Molecular Pharmacology (3 units)
PHAR 725 - Ethics and Scientific Research (2 units)
PHAR 730 - Introduction to Imaging and Optics (3 units)
PHYS 661 - Modern Optics and Photonics (3 units)
PHYS 711 - Electromagnetic Theory I (3 units)

C. Comprehensive Exam (1 unit)

The comprehensive examination consists of writing and presenting a grant proposal. This unit will count towards the required thirty units 700-level coursework.

BME 795 - Comprehensive Examination (1 unit)

D. Dissertation (24 units)

All students must pass an oral defense of dissertation research.

BME 799 - Dissertation (1 to 24 units)

II. Total Units (72 units)

Undergraduate Prerequisites

Ideally, the applicant’s background would include:

two semesters of biology or physiology,
two semesters of physics or biophysics,
two semesters of chemistry or biochemistry,
calculus (including differential equations), and
proficiency in at least one computer programming language.

Students who are admitted with a deficiency in any academic area must complete required courses early in the graduate program.