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Offered by: Department of Biomedical Engineering
Administered by: Carol Casler, Undergraduate Minor Coordinator, 120 Olin Hall, minor_bme-mailbox@cornell.edu, 255-1489
Eligibility: All undergraduates in the College of Engineering are eligible to participate in the Biomedical Engineering minor. Students may participate in only one of the Bioengineering Option, the Biological Engineering Minor, and the Biomedical Engineering minor.
Educational Objectives: Biomedical engineering is the application of engineering principles and methods to a wide array of problems associated with human health. The discipline includes the design of biocompatible materials, prostheses, surgical implants, artificial organs, controlled drug-delivery systems, and wound closure devices. Diagnosing diseases and determining their biological origins depend upon increasingly sophisticated instrumentation and the use of mathematical models. The  purpose of this minor is to allow students in the College of Engineering to gain exposure to the breadth and depth of biomedical engineering offerings at Cornell, to prepare for advanced studies in biomedical engineering, and to obtain recognition for their interest and capability in this rapidly growing area.

Requirements

• The one credit Bioengineering Seminar as well as at least six (6) courses (minimum of 18 credits) from the five groups listed below.
• Two courses need to be in categories I. Introductory biology and/or II. Advanced biology with no more than one course from category I.
• Four courses must come from the following categories III. Molecular and cellular biomedical engineering, IV. BME analysis of physiological systems, and V. Biomedical engineering applications with courses from at least two of these categories.
• At least four of the six courses must not be specifically required major degree courses or cross-listings.
  Students are asked to complete a form declaring their interest in the minor with the Biomedical Engineering undergraduate minor coordinator in 120 Olin Hall. On the form you will be asked to choose a BME faculty advisor that you can consult about your BME minor plan.

Required Course

BME/BEE 501 (1cr)

Bioengineering Seminar

I. Introductory Biology (maximum of 4 credits and one course)

A “5” on AP Biology Exam	(CEEB) Advanced Placement Biology
A “4” on AP Biology Exam and ENGRI 131	(CEEB) Advanced Placement Biology and Introduction to Biomedical Engineering
A “4” on AP Biology Exam and BIOG 103 or BIOG 104	(CEEB) Advanced Placement Biology and a Biological Sciences Laboratory
BIOG 101, 102, 103, and 104	Biological Sciences
BIOG 105 and 106	Introductory Biology
BIOG 107 and 108	General Biology
BIOG 110 and ENGRI 131	Biological Principles and Introduction to Biomedical Engineering

      
II. Advanced Biology

BIOBM 330	Principles of Biochemistry, Individualized Instruction
BIOBM 333	Principles of Biochemistry, Proteins, Metabolism, and Molecular Biology
BIOBM 331	Principles of Biochemistry, Proteins and Metabolism
BIOBM 332	Metabolism and Principles of Biochemistry: Molecular Biology
BIOAP 311/VTBMS 346	Introductory Animal Physiology Lectures
BIOGD 281	Genetics
BIONB 222	Introduction to Neurobiology
BIOMI 290	General Microbiology Lectures

III. Molecular and Cellular Biomedical Engineering

BME 301*	Molecular Principles of Biomedical Engineering
BME 302*	Cellular Principles of Biomedical Engineering
A&EP 252/ENGRD 252	The Physics of Life
BEE 360	Molecular and Cellular Bioengineering

IV. BME Analysis of Physiological Systems

BME 401*	Biomedical Engineering of Metabolic and Structural Systems
BME 402*	Electrical and Chemical Physiology
M&AE 464	Orthopedic Tissue Mechanics
M&AE 463	Neuromuscular Biomechanics
BEE 454	Physiological Engineering
CHEME 481	Biomedical Engineering
BIONB 330	Introduction to Computational Neuroscience
BIONB 491	Principles of Neurophysiology

 
V. Biomedical Engineering Applications

A&EP 470	Biophysical Methods
BEE 365	Properties of Biological Materials
BEE 450	Bioinstrumentation
BEE 453	Computer-Aided Engineering: Applications to Biomedical Processes
BEE 459	Biosensors and Bioanalytical Techniques
COM S 321	Numerical Methods in Computational Molecular Biology
BEE 494	Fundamentals of Tissue Engineering
ECE 402	CDE in Biomedical System Design
ECE 336	Nanofabrication
ECE 578	Computer Analysis of Biomedical Images
BIONB 440	Electronics in Neurobiology
BIONB 441	Computer in Neurobiology
MS&E 461	Biological Materials and Their Applications
TXA 439	Biomedical Materials and Devices for Human Body Repair
M&AE 565	Biomechanical Systems—Analysis and Design

 
Academic Standards
At least C– in each course in the minor and a GPA > 2.0 for all courses in the minor.

*Students interested in professional practice as biomedical engineers should consider the MEng degree in BME. The recommended sequence for admission to the M. Eng. BME degree program are BME 301, 302, 401, and 402.  A knowledge of molecular and cellular BME and of BME analysis of physiological systems are required.

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