The University of Massachusetts Medical School (UMMS) is nationally ranked for its excellence in research, health care and health sciences education, while Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) is ranked as one of the best engineering schools in the Northeast.
Capitalizing on these factors, the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences (GSBS) and WPI initiated a joint PhD program in Biomedical Engineering & Medical Physics in 1996. This formal program employs the advanced technical expertise of engineering and medical faculty and utilizes the experience and resources available from a public research university and a private institute of higher education to train students in the application of engineering to medical research.
Graduates of the joint PhD program are prepared to work as faculty of academic institutions or as employees of the growing medical device and biotechnology industries that have seen major economic growth in Massachusetts.
Prerequisites
Due to the highly specialized nature of the program, it is open only to those applicants who already have an undergraduate degree or a strong background in mathematics, physics or engineering. Applicants are also expected to have had one semester of organic chemistry and a full year of biology. Course of Study
Prior to completing qualifying examinations, students spend approximately two years taking advanced biomedical science and engineering courses at UMMS and WPI. Flexibility will be allowed for specific course requirements based upon students' backgrounds and areas of interest. Since the two campuses are only ten minutes apart, laboratory rotations, courses and seminars can be taken simultaneously during the first two years. The joint program also offers shared courses and options to do thesis work at either institution. Committee structure, qualifying examinations and dissertation defenses follow the same basic format currently used by the GSBS, with the exception that all committees are made up of representatives from both institutions. The program is for full-time students, for a minimum of at least three years (residency requirement). Approximately 90 credits of graduate-level courses and thesis research are required, and the PhD in Biomedical Engineering is awarded jointly by WPI and UMMS, with the appropriate designation on the diploma.
Admission Procedures
Applicants may apply to either the Department of Biomedical Engineering at WPI or to the GSBS. All application fees and materials requested for application to the GSBS, such as transcripts, official GRE scores and letters of recommendation, apply to this program. Admission to the program is administered through a joint GSBS/WPI Admissions Committee. |