Biomedical Engineering BS + MS

Admissions Requirements
Graduate Standing Requirements
Program Requirements (141 units)
Advising Roadmap

The Biomedical Engineering Spartan Accelerated Graduate Education (SAGE) Scholars Program provides students the opportunity to earn their Biomedical Engineering, BS and Biomedical Engineering, MS degrees simultaneously, completing both degrees in five years, rather than the usual six years when completing them individually. The SAGE Scholars Program Coordinator works closely with the students to ensure a seamless transition from undergraduate to graduate status, without students having to file a formal application for admission to the graduate program. Students have the possibility to combine their senior project and MS project/thesis research requirements, enabling them to undertake more in-depth, publishable quality research which in turn better prepares them for PhD programs as well as professional careers. The Biomedical Engineering SAGE Scholars Program offers students intellectual stimulation and growth and the opportunity to strengthen their research competencies by working closely with their research mentors for a longer period of time.

Students interested in pursuing a Chemistry Minor concurrently should contact their advisor.

Total SAGE Program Units (BS + MS) 141

For more information, contact the BME SAGE Scholars Program Coordinator Alessandro Bellofiore.

Admissions Requirements

All SJSU Biomedical Engineering, BS undergraduates are eligible to apply for, and be admitted to, the Biomedical Engineering SAGE Scholars program if they fulfill the following requirements:

Completed a minimum of 75 units towards the Biomedical Engineering, BS degree;
Have a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or better, or GPA of 3.0 or better in the last 60 semester units;
Have completed all lower-division general education courses and American Institutions courses; and,
Must not be declared in another major.

Graduate Standing Requirements

Requirements for program continuation and advancement to candidacy in the graduate program, include:

Meeting every semester with an academic advisor to plan and track coursework and graduate status. Once the BS degree is conferred, students meet every semester with their graduate advisor to plan a formal course of study;
Maintain GPA of 3.0 or higher with no individual grade below a C. Students not maintaining these standards will be placed on probation initially, followed by disqualification if the grades are not improved within two semesters; and,
The proposed graduate program must be approved by the graduate coordinator before the student may be considered a candidate for the MS degree.
Students are converted to graduate status when they have completed 123 SAGE program-applicable units. The following University Requirements are waived or satisfied with required courses in the major: GE Areas A2, A3, B, C2, and E, SJSU Studies (R, S and V) and Physical Education. Alternate courses that may satisfy these requirements are not counted in the calculation of the 123 SAGE program-applicable units.

Program Requirements (141 units)

Biomedical Engineering, BS (123 units)

Students must satisfy all of the major and Undergraduate University Graduation Requirements , which includes unit, GPA, and residency requirements as well as the below identified General Education , American Institutions, Graduation Writing Assessment, and Physical Education requirements. Courses that meet Undergraduate University Graduation Requirements are noted with an area designation (see Course Note Abbreviations ).

University Requirements (18 units)

The Lower and Upper Division General Education requirements may be satisfied by coursework outlined below. To satisfy the Graduation Writing Assessment Requirement (GWAR) , students must pass ENGR 100W with a grade of “C” or better (“C-” not accepted).

GE Areas A1, C1, C1/C2, two D/American Institutions (US123) and F 18 unit(s)

Major Preparation (45 units)

BIOL 30 - Principles of Biology I 4 unit(s) (B2+B3)
CHEM 1A - General Chemistry 5 unit(s) (B1+B3)
CHEM 1B - General Chemistry 5 unit(s) (B1+B3)
CHEM 8 - Organic Chemistry 3 unit(s)
CHEM 9 - Organic Chemistry Lab 1 unit(s)
ENGL 1A - First Year Writing 3 unit(s) (A2)
ENGL 1B - Argument and Analysis 3 unit(s) (C2) (or equivalent second semester composition course.)
MATH 30 - Calculus I 3 unit(s) (B4) (or MATH 30X )
MATH 31 - Calculus II 4 unit(s) (B4) (or MATH 31X )
MATH 32 - Calculus III 3 unit(s) (B4) (or MATH 32H or MATH 32X )
MATH 33A - Ordinary Differential Equations for SCI & ENGR 3 unit(s) OR
MATH 33LA - Differential Equations and Linear Algebra
3 unit(s)
PHYS 50 - General Physics I: Mechanics 4 unit(s) (B1+B3)
PHYS 51 - General Physics II: Electricity and Magnetism 4 unit(s) (B1+B3)

Major Requirements (60 units)

Core Courses (11 units)

BME 25 - Introduction to Biomedical Engineering Design 2 unit(s)
BME 65 - Biomedical Applications of Statics 3 unit(s) (CE 95 or CE 99 also accepted)
ENGR 10 - Introduction to Engineering 3 unit(s) (E)
ENGR 100W - Engineering Reports 3 unit(s) (WID+R) A grade of C or better (C- not accepted) is required to meet graduation requirement.

Biomedical Engineering Required Courses (43 units)

BME 68 - Biomedical Applications of Metals and Ceramics 3 unit(s) (MATE 25 also accepted)
BME 115 - Foundations of Biomedical Engineering 4 unit(s)
BME 116 - Biosensors and Bioinstrumentation 3 unit(s) (EE 98 also accepted)
BME 133 - Programming Applications in Biomedical Engineering 1 unit(s)
BME 135 - Biomedical Engineering Design Methods 2 unit(s)
BME 147 - Quantitative and Statistical Methods for Biomedical Engineers 3 unit(s)
BME 165 - Applied Engineering Biomechanics 3 unit(s)
BME 168 - Medical and Biological Polymers 3 unit(s)
BME 177 - Physiology for Engineers 3 unit(s)
BME 198A - Senior Design Project I 2 unit(s) (S)
BME 198B - Senior Design Project II 2 unit(s) (V)
ENGR 195A - Global and Social Issues in Engineering 1 unit(s) (S)
ENGR 195B - Global and Social Issues in Engineering 1 unit(s) (V)
BME 210 - Mathematical Methods in Biomedical Engineering 3 unit(s)
BME 217 - Experimental and Computational Biofluid Mechanics 3 unit(s)
OR BME 254 - Microscale Biomedical Systems: Physics and Applications 3 unit(s)
BME 272 - Biomedical Device Design and Principles 3 unit(s)
BME 274 - Regulatory, Clinical and Manufacturing Aspects of Medical Devices 3 unit(s) (GWAR)

Technical Elective (6 units)

Electives must be selected from the approved departmental list in consultation with the student’s academic advisor.

Biomedical Engineering, MS (30 units)

Core Courses (9 units)

BME 207 - Experimental Methods in BME 3 unit(s) (GWAR)
BME 276 - Project Management in Biomedical Technologies 3 unit(s)
BME 291 - MS Thesis/Project Preparation Seminar 3 unit(s)

Biomedical Engineering Electives (3-6 units)

Additional electives must be selected from the approved departmental list in consultation with the student’s academic advisor.

Culminating Experience (3-6 units)

Students must complete a written thesis or project report and an oral defense of their thesis or project. Ideally, the culminating experience builds on the foundations laid in the student’s senior design project (BME 198A and BME 198B ). The candidate may choose either the Plan A (Thesis) or Plan B (Project) option. For either option, the student is required to develop a project proposal in BME 291 . This must be approved by the student’s project advisor and the reading committee at the culmination of BME 291 . Once the proposal is approved, the student is required to:

implement the approved research plan using appropriate methods for the investigation,
use appropriate statistical techniques for analysis of the data and drawing conclusions,
discuss the results in light of findings reported by other investigators,
write a professional report of appropriate length, and
present it and defend the project to the reading committee.

Culminating Experience Options

Plan A (Thesis) (6 units)
The student who opts to complete a master’s thesis is responsible for securing the commitment of a full-time tenured or tenure-track BME faculty member who agrees to serve as the thesis committee chair. The student must also secure the commitments of two additional committee members, one of whom must be a full-time tenured or tenure-track faculty member at SJSU, to serve on the student’s thesis committee. The student must write a thesis proposal and have it approved by the thesis committee and pass BME 291 - MS Thesis/Project Preparation Seminar (3 units) and BME 298 - MS Project (3 units) before enrolling in BME 299 - MS Thesis (3 units). The thesis must also meet all university requirements as stipulated in this catalog and in the SJSU Master’s Thesis and Doctoral Dissertation Guidelines. It will be written under the guidance of the candidate’s thesis committee chair with the assistance of the thesis committee.
Plan B (Project) (3 units)
Students opting to complete a master’s project must pass BME 291 - MS Thesis/Project Preparation Seminar (3 units) before enrolling in BME 298 - MS Project (3 units).

The project proposal is prepared in BME 291 and must be approved by the student’s reading committee at the culmination of that course.