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Biomedical engineering is an evolving discipline in engineering that draws on collaboration among engineers, physicians, and scientists to provide interdisciplinary insight into medical and biological problems. The field has developed its own knowledge base and principles that are the foundation for the academic programs designed by the department.

The Ph.D. program in biomedical engineering at Columbia prepares students to apply engineering and applied science to problems in biology, medicine, and the understanding of living systems and their behavior, and to develop biomedical systems and devices. Modern engineering encompasses sophisticated approaches to measurement, data acquisition and analysis, simulation, and systems identification. These approaches are useful in the study of molecules, individual cells, organs, entire organisms, and populations of organisms. The increasing value of mathematical models in the analysis of living systems is an important sign of the success of contemporary activity. The programs emphasize the confluence of basic engineering science and applied engineering with the physical and biological sciences, particularly in the areas of biomechanics, cellular and tissue engineering, and biomedical imaging.

The program in biomedical engineering is taught by its own faculty, members of other engineering departments, and faculty from other divisions who have strong interests and involvement in biomedical engineering. Several of the faculty hold joint appointments in Biomedical Engineering and other University departments. Areas of particular interest to Columbia faculty include orthopedic and musculoskeletal biomechanics, cardiovascular biomechanics, cellular and tissue engineering and artificial organs, auditory biophysics, body composition, and biomedical imaging.

Degree Requirements

The graduate curriculum in biomedical engineering employs three tracks:

Biomechanics: One year of biology and/or physiology, solid mechanics, statics and dynamics, fluid mechanics, ordinary differential equations.

Cellular Engineering: One year of organic chemistry or biochemistry with laboratory; one year of biology and/or physiology, fluid mechanics, rate processes, ordinary differential equations.

Biomedical Imaging: Digital signal processing, linear algebra and/or discrete mathematics, data structures, biology and/or physiology and/or biochemistry.

For the Ph.D. Degree

Doctoral students must complete a program of 30 points of credits beyond the M.S. degree. At least one graduate mathematics course must be taken in addition to 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 course requirements.

Teaching requirement: Participation in the instructional activities of the department for a minimum of one year. This may be fulfilled over the period of study.

Doctoral qualifying examination: Ph.D. candidates are required to pass a qualifying examination, given once a year, in January. It is usually taken after the student has completed 30 credits of graduate study but may not be delayed beyond the next examination given after the student has completed 45 credits. The qualifying examination consists of a written examination and an analysis of assigned scientific papers. 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 cellular 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. A candidate who fails the examination may be permitted to repeat it once at the time of the next examination. Additional guidelines for this examination are available from the departmental office.

Doctoral committee and thesis: Students who pass the qualifying examination choose an approved Ph.D. faculty sponsor to serve as the research adviser. Each student submits a research proposal and present it to a thesis committee that consists of at least four 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 should submit his/her research proposal in not more than four semesters after commencing doctoral studies. In accordance with regulations of the School, each student submits a thesis and defends it before a committee of five faculty, two of whom hold primary appointments in another department. Every doctoral candidate should have accepted at least one full-length paper for publication in a peer-review journal prior to recommendation for award of the degree.

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