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2024-2025

Biomedical Engineering, Bachelor of Science

VCU

Community college:
AA&S or AS in Engineering (Virginia Community College System)
Virginia Community College System
Associate degree

Associate of Science in Engineering or Associate of Arts and Sciences in Engineering

Completing the associate degree will waive VCU's general education requirements.

Program description

Biomedical engineering applies engineering expertise to analyze and solve problems in biology and medicine in order to enhance health care. Students involved in biomedical engineering learn to work with living systems and to apply advanced technology to the complex problems of medical care. Biomedical engineers work with other health care professionals including physicians, nurses, therapists and technicians toward improvements in diagnostic, therapeutic and health delivery systems. Biomedical engineers may be involved with designing medical instruments and devices, developing medical software, tissue and cellular engineering, developing new procedures or conducting state-of-the-art research needed to solve clinical problems.


Students take hands-on REAL laboratories in each year of the curriculum. These required labs include EGRB 104, EGRB 209, and EGRB 310. All students complete a year-long capstone with REAL experience in EGRB 401 and EGRB 402.  All of these experiences prepare biomedical engineering students to become integrators of physiology, life science, and engineering to become innovative contributors to medical research and industry.

Career opportunities

Biomedical engineers develop devices and procedures that solve medical and health-related problems by combining their knowledge of biology and medicine with engineering principles and practices. Many do research, along with medical scientists, to develop and evaluate systems and products such as artificial organs, prostheses (artificial devices that replace missing body parts), instrumentation, medical information systems, and health management and care delivery systems. Biomedical engineers also may design devices used in various medical procedures, imaging systems such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and devices for automating insulin injections or controlling body functions.


Most engineers in this specialty need a sound background in another engineering specialty, such as mechanical or electronics engineering, in addition to specialized biomedical training. Some specialties within biomedical engineering are biomaterials, biomechanics, medical imaging, rehabilitation engineering, and orthopedic engineering.  

Bachelor-level job titles
  • Business consultant
  • Clinical engineer
  • Human factors engineer
  • Manufacturing engineer
  • Patent examiner
  • Policy analyst
  • Product development engineer
  • Quality engineer
  • Regulatory affairs specialist
  • Research and development engineer
  • Sales engineer
Graduate and professional level job titles
  • College Professor
  • Device Engineer
  • Director of Clinical Research
  • Medical Equipment Design & Development Engineer
  • Project Leader
  • Research & Development Engineer
  • Research Scientist
Contact information

 

VCU Transfer Center

Telephone: (804) 827-1349

Email: transferinfo@vcu.edu

Transfer Advising Request

VCCS Transfer Planning Checklist


Office of Admissions

Telephone: (804) 828-1222 or (800) 841-3638

Email: ugrad@vcu.edu
Apply Here.

Guaranteed transfer admission requirements
  • Completion of associate degree (A.S. in Engineering)
  • Minimum GPA of 3.0
  • All courses must be completed with a grade of "C" or better
  • Earn a minimum grade of "B" in all your math, science and engineering classes
Degree requirements in Bulletin
Plan of study in Bulletin
Requirements
Highest level of math required
  • MATH 307
  • STAT 212
Science required
  • 5+ additional science courses
Foreign language requirements
  • No
Additional tuition/fees
  • Yes
GPA requirements (to progress/graduate in the major)
  • Students with a cumulative institutional GPA of 3.0+ and with grades of B or better in math and science courses are good candidates for this major. All interested students are encouraged to apply and will be evaluated for acceptance.
VCU Major Maps

View VCU Major Map for Biomedical Engineering

Transfer major map
Visit majormaps.vcu.edu for the online version with links.
Sponsored by the Office of the Provost
Major map compass icon
2024-2025

Biomedical Engineering, Bachelor of Science

Virginia Community College System (AA&S or AS in Engineering)

MAXIMIZE COURSE AND DEGREE PLANNING GET CONNECTED WITH YOUR COMMUNITY DEVELOP CULTURAL AGILITY EXPLORE CAREERS AND DEVELOP ESSENTIAL SKILLS PREPARING FOR LIFE AFTER COLLEGE
Explore Year 1
  • Schedule an appointment with your community college advisor to map out your associate degree course plan.
  • Enroll in the SDV student success course.
  • Complete your english and start your math requirements in your first year.
  • Be prepared for academic challenges and utilize tutoring resources to get ahead.
  • Explore community college financial aid resources and submit the FAFSA on time.
  • Identify a mentor in a diversity organization.
  • Attend diversity-focused events on your community college campus and in your community (e.g., international festival).
  • Make friends with people with diverse perspectives and join a cultural or identity-related student organization.
  • Create a weekly and monthly budget.
  • Prepare for a career after college by creating a brand for yourself.
  • Develop personal and career goals and create SMART steps for 2-3 "dream jobs."
  • Practice independent living skills such as money and time management, self-care, and personal responsibility.
Experience Year 2
  • Apply to VCU.
  • Visit the VCU campus and attend a transfer admission session.
  • Research housing options for next year.
  • Attend a talk or other event sponsored by the VCU Biomedical Engineering department, consider joining a VCU club, or meeting with VCU students to make professional and personal connections.
  • Consider learning a foreign language to open doors to international organizations and future study.
  • Learn about short-term, semester and year-long study abroad options.
  • Attend VCU cultural events, including the monthly Global Café, VCU Diversity Scholars in Research week, or VCU Biomedical Engineering department-related events.
  • Check out the VCU Office of Multicultural Student Affairs (OMSA) and follow @vcuomsa.
  • Find out about VCU REAL and learn about VCU's REAL graduation requirement.
  • Attend Career & Internship Fairs throughout the year.
  • Acquire career related experience (e.g., job, internship, organization involvement).
  • If your GPA is 3.5 or higher, consider applying for the VCU Honors College.
  • Using LinkedIn, connect to at least 10 people. Check out the VCU alumni page in My Network.
  • Conduct informational interviews or shadow someone in a field of career interest.
  • Use the cost calculator to estimate your tuition/fees as an upperclassman at VCU.
  • Explore the types of aid available at VCU.
  • Consider who you would like to have serve as professional and academic references for future letters of recommendation.

Explore
MAXIMIZE COURSE AND DEGREE PLANNING
  • Schedule an appointment with your community college advisor to map out your associate degree course plan.
  • Enroll in the SDV student success course.
  • Complete your english and start your math requirements in your first year.
  • Be prepared for academic challenges and utilize tutoring resources to get ahead.
  • Explore community college financial aid resources and submit the FAFSA on time.
GET CONNECTED WITH YOUR COMMUNITY
DEVELOP CULTURAL AGILITY
  • Identify a mentor in a diversity organization.
  • Attend diversity-focused events on your community college campus and in your community (e.g., international festival).
  • Make friends with people with diverse perspectives and join a cultural or identity-related student organization.
EXPLORE CAREERS AND DEVELOP ESSENTIAL SKILLS
PREPARING FOR LIFE AFTER COLLEGE
  • Create a weekly and monthly budget.
  • Prepare for a career after college by creating a brand for yourself.
  • Develop personal and career goals and create SMART steps for 2-3 "dream jobs."
  • Practice independent living skills such as money and time management, self-care, and personal responsibility.

Experience
MAXIMIZE COURSE AND DEGREE PLANNING
GET CONNECTED WITH YOUR COMMUNITY
  • Apply to VCU.
  • Visit the VCU campus and attend a transfer admission session.
  • Research housing options for next year.
  • Attend a talk or other event sponsored by the VCU Biomedical Engineering department, consider joining a VCU club, or meeting with VCU students to make professional and personal connections.
DEVELOP CULTURAL AGILITY
  • Consider learning a foreign language to open doors to international organizations and future study.
  • Learn about short-term, semester and year-long study abroad options.
  • Attend VCU cultural events, including the monthly Global Café, VCU Diversity Scholars in Research week, or VCU Biomedical Engineering department-related events.
  • Check out the VCU Office of Multicultural Student Affairs (OMSA) and follow @vcuomsa.
EXPLORE CAREERS AND DEVELOP ESSENTIAL SKILLS
  • Find out about VCU REAL and learn about VCU's REAL graduation requirement.
  • Attend Career & Internship Fairs throughout the year.
  • Acquire career related experience (e.g., job, internship, organization involvement).
  • If your GPA is 3.5 or higher, consider applying for the VCU Honors College.
PREPARING FOR LIFE AFTER COLLEGE
  • Using LinkedIn, connect to at least 10 people. Check out the VCU alumni page in My Network.
  • Conduct informational interviews or shadow someone in a field of career interest.
  • Use the cost calculator to estimate your tuition/fees as an upperclassman at VCU.
  • Explore the types of aid available at VCU.
  • Consider who you would like to have serve as professional and academic references for future letters of recommendation.
Recommended courses
Major map compass icon
2024-2025

Biomedical Engineering, Bachelor of Science

Virginia Community College System (AA&S or AS in Engineering)

Virginia Community College System courses
Course Title Equivalent course Credits Requirements
SDV 100 or 101 College Success Skills UNIV 101 1 Elective
ENG 111 College Composition I Note: students with credit for AP English Language and Composition will only receive credit for UNIV 111 at VCU and should take ENG 112 to fulfill the VCU composition requirement. UNIV 111-112 3 General education
ENG 112 College Composition II UNIV 200 3 General education
Humanities or Fine Arts Select one of the following (UCGS Block II): ART 100, ART 101, ART 102, CST 130, CST 151, MUS 121, MUS 221, MUS 222, MUS 226, HUM 201, HUM 202, HUM 210, HUM 216, HUM 220, HUM 256, HUM 259, PHI 100, PHI 111, PHI 220, REL 100, REL 230, REL 237, REL 240. VCU equivalent 3 General education
Humanities, Fine Arts or Literature Select one of the following (UCGS Block II): ART 100, ART 101, ART 102, CST 130, CST 151, MUS 121, MUS 221, MUS 222, MUS 226, HUM 201, HUM 202, HUM 210, HUM 216, HUM 220, HUM 256, HUM 259, PHI 100, PHI 111, PHI 220, REL 100, REL 230, REL 237, REL 240, ENG 225, ENG 245, ENG 246, ENG 250, ENG 255, ENG 258, ENG 275 (the course must come from a different group than the previous requirement). VCU equivalent 3 General education
Social Science Select one of the following (UCGS Block III): ECO 150, ECO 201, ECO 202, GEO 210, GEO 220, PLS 135, PLS 140, PLS 241, PSY 200, SOC 200, SOC 211, SOC 268 VCU equivalent 3 General education
History Select one of the following (UCGS Block VI): HIS 101, HIS 102, HIS 111, HIS 112, HIS 121, HIS 122 VCU equivalent 3 General education
MTH 263 Calculus I (earn minimum grade of "B") MATH 200 4 Major (Ancillary)
MTH 264 Calculus II (earn minimum grade of "B") MATH 201 4 Major (Ancillary)
MTH 265 Calculus III (earn minimum grade of "B") MATH 307 4 Elective
MTH 266 LInear Algebra (earn minimum grade of "B") MATH 310 3 Major (Ancillary)
MTH 267 Differential Equations (earn minimum grade of "B") MATH 301 3 Major (Ancillary)
PHY 241 University Physics I (earn minimum grade of "B") PHYS 207 4 Major (Ancillary)
PHY 242 University Physics II (earn minimum grade of "B") PHYS 208 4 Major (Ancillary)
CHM 111 General Chemistry I (earn minimum grade of "B") CHEM/Z 101 4 Major (Ancillary)
CHM 112 General Chemistry II (earn minimum grade of "B") CHEM/Z 102 4 Major (Ancillary)
EGR 121 + EGR 122 Foundations of Engineering + Engineering Design (both must be completed to receive credit for VCU equivalents) (earn minimum grade of "B") EGRB 102 + EGRB 104 5 Major
EGR 240 + EGR 246 Solid Mechanics (Statics) + Mechanics of Materials (both must be completed to receive credit for EGRB 203) (earn minimum grade of "B") EGMN 102 + EGRB 203 6 Major
BIO 101 General Biology I (substitutes for EGRB 111) (earn minimum grade of "B") BIOL/Z 151 4 Major (Substitutes for EGRB 111)
Community college credits transferred to VCU 68
VCU courses
Course Title Credits Requirements
EGRB 101 Biomedical Engineering Practicum (take in first year at VCU) 2 Major
EGRB 209 Applied Physiology for Biomedical Engineers (take in first year at VCU) 4 Major
ENGR 395 Professional Development (take in first year at VCU) 1 Major
EGRB 215 Computational Methods in Biomedical Engineering (or CMSC 210) 3 Major
EGRB 301 Biomedical Engineering Design Practicum 3 Major
EGRB 307 Biomedical Instrumentation 4 Major
EGRB 310 Biomechanics 4 Major
EGRB 315 Device Design Methods 3 Major
EGRB 401 + EGRB 402 Biomedical Engineering Senior Design Studio 6 Major
EGRB 427 Biomaterials 3 Major
EGRE 206 Electric Circuits 4 Major
EGRB 303 or EGRB 308 Biotransport Processes or Biomedical Signal Processing 3 to 4 Major
Science or engineering elective 3 to 4 Major
Technical electives 21 Major
Statistics STAT 441 Applied Statistics for Engineers and Scientists 3 Major (Ancillary)
REAL The REAL requirement may be satisfied by successfully completing a 300-level (or higher) course that has received a REAL attribute of Level 2, 3 or 4 or through an approved “REAL” co-curricular experience that has received a REAL attribute of Level 3 or 4. See VCU advisor for options. 0 Major
Credits completed at VCU 67 to 68
Minimum credits required for bachelor's degree 131
The accelerated B.S. and M.S. program allows qualified students to earn both the B.S. and M.S. in Biomedical Engineering in a minimum of five years by completing approved graduate courses during the senior year of their undergraduate program. Minimum qualifications for entrance to this accelerated program include completion of 95 undergraduate credit hours including EGRB 307, EGRB 310, EGRB 315, and either EGRB 303 or EGRB 308; an overall GPA of 3.0; and a GPA of 3.2 in biomedical engineering course work.