Graduate Programs
The graduate curriculum in biomedical engineering employs the same three tracks that compose the undergraduate curriculum: biomechanics, cell and tissue engineering, and biomedical imaging. Initial graduate study in biomedical engineering is designed to expand the student’s undergraduate preparation in the direction of the track chosen. In addition, sufficient knowledge is acquired in other areas to facilitate broad appreciation of problems and effective collaboration with specialists from other scientific, medical, and engineering disciplines. The Department of Biomedical Engineering offers a graduate program leading to the Master of Science degree (M.S.), the Doctor of Philosophy degree (Ph.D.), and the Doctor of Engineering Science degree (Eng.Sc.D.). Applicants who have a Master of Science degree or equivalent may apply directly to the doctoral degree program. All applicants are expected to have earned the bachelor’s degree in engineering or in a cognate scientific program. The Graduate Record Exam-ination (General Test only) is required of all applicants. Students whose bachelor’s degree was not earned in a country where English is the dominant spoken language are required to take the TOEFL test. M.S. degree candidates must reach level 8 on the English Placement Test (EPT) offered by Columbia’s American Language Program (ALP). Doctoral degree candidates must attain level 10 on the English Placement Test (EPT). The ALP examination must be taken at orientation upon arrival. It is strongly recommended the students enroll in an appropriate ALP course if they have not achieved the required proficiency after the first examination. In addition, the individual tracks require applicants to have taken the following foundation courses:
- Biomechanics: One year of biology and/or physiology, solid mechanics, statics and dynamics, fluid mechanics, ordinary differential equations.
- Cell and Tissue Engineering: One year of biology and/or physiology, one year of organic chemistry or
biochemistry with laboratory, fluid mechanics, rate processes, ordinary differential equations. - Biomedical Imaging: One year of biology and/or physiology and/or biochemistry. Linear algebra, ordinary differential equations, Fourier analysis, digital signal processing.
Applicants lacking some of these courses may be considered for admission with stipulated deficiencies that must be satisfied in addition to the requirements of the degree program. The Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science does not admit students holding the bachelor’s degree directly to doctoral studies; admission is offered either to the M.S. program or to the M.S. program/doctoral track. The Department of Biomedical Engineering also admits students into the 4-2 program, which provides the opportunity for students holding a bachelor’s degree from certain physical sciences to receive the M.S. degree after two years of study at Columbia.
Curriculum and Exam Requirements
Master’s Degree
In consultation with an appointed faculty adviser, M.S. students should select a program of 30 points of credit of graduate courses (4000 level or above) appropriate to their career goals. This program must include the course in computational modeling of physiological systems (BMEN E6003); two semesters of BMEN E9700: Biomedical engineering seminar; at least four other biomedical engineering courses; and at least one graduate-level mathematics course. Students with deficiency in physiology course work are required to take the BMEN E4001-E4002 sequence before taking BMEN E6003. Candidates must achieve a minimum grade-point average of 2.5. For students interested in obtaining research experience, up to 6 credits of research (BMEN E9100) may be applied toward the M.S. degree.
Doctoral Degree
Students admitted to the doctoral degree program should select courses to prepare for the doctoral qualifying examination and register for research rotations during the first two semesters of graduate study. To facilitate future
collaboration with clinicians and biomedical scientists, students are encouraged to consider courses at the Health Sciences campus or in the Department of Biological Sciences.
Doctoral students must complete a program of 30 points of credits beyond the M.S. degree. The course in computational modeling of physiological systems (BMEN E6003) is required for the doctoral program. At least two graduate mathematics courses must be taken, which may include the mathematics course required for the M.S. degree. Students must register for BMEN E9700: Biomedical engineering seminar and for research rotations during the first two semesters of graduate study. Remaining courses should be selected in consultation with the student’s faculty adviser to prepare for the doctoral qualifying examination and to develop expertise in a clearly identified area of biomedical engineering. Up to 12 credits of research (BMEN E9500) may be applied toward doctoral degree course requirements.
All graduate students admitted to the doctoral degree program must satisfy the equivalent of three semesters’ experience in teaching (one semester for M.D./Ph.D. students). This may include supervising and assisting undergraduate students in laboratory experiments, grading, and preparing lecture materials to support the teaching mission of the department. The Department of Biomedical Engineering is the only engineering department that offers Ph.D. training to M.D./Ph.D. students. These candidates are expected to complete their Ph.D. program within 3.5 years, with otherwise the same requirements.
Doctoral Qualifying Examination
Doctoral candidates are required to pass a qualifying examination. This examination is given once a year, in January. It should be taken after the student has completed 30 points of graduate study. The qualifying examination consists of oral and written examinations. The oral examination consists of the analysis of assigned scientific papers, and the written examination covers three areas: applied mathematics, quantitative biology and physiology, and track-specific material. Students must declare a track (biomedical imaging, biomechanics, or cell and tissue engineering) at the time of registration for the qualifying examination. A minimum cumulative grade-point average of 3.2 is required to register for this examination.
Doctoral Committee and Thesis
Students who pass the qualifying examination choose a faculty member to serve as their research adviser. Each student is expected to submit a research proposal and present it to a thesis committee that consists of three to five faculty members. The committee considers the scope of the proposed research, its suitability for doctoral research and the appropriateness of the research plan. The committee may approve the proposal without reservation or may recommend modifications. In general, the student is expected to submit his/her research proposal after five semesters of doctoral studies. In accord with regulations of The Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science, each student is expected to submit a thesis and defend it before a committee of five faculty, two of whom hold primary appointments in another department. Every doctoral candidate is required to have had accepted at least one first-author full-length paper for publication in a peer-reviewed journal prior to recommendation for award of the degree.