Minor in Biomedical Engineering

Undergraduate Minor in Biomedical Engineering

The purpose of the Biomedical Engineering (BME) minor is to more strongly attract and serve engineering undergraduate students who are seriously interested in biomedical engineering careers. The minor will provide substantial exposure to biomedical engineering concepts and applications, and provide a stronger credential for students seeking jobs in the biomedical field. It will also better prepare students to be more effective in careers in the field, and will help better prepare students who are seeking graduate studies in biomedical engineering.

The general goals and objectives for the BME Minor are:

1. Provide students with exposure and experiences with theapplication of engineering principles, physics, chemistry,physiology, and modern biology to BME applications;
2. Train students to apply basic sciences and engineering principlesto biological problems;
3. Train students to apply research/design to relevant BME problems.

Eligibility and Declaring the Minor

In order to declare a minor in Biomedical Engineering, students must have been admitted to the School of Engineering and to the major of their choice. Students must declare the BME minor by completing a declaration of minor form and are strongly encouraged to do so as early as possible. This will allow the best opportunity for advising to minimize the number of courses/credits required beyond the major degree requirements.

BME Minor Requirements

The BME minor requires a minimum of 18 credit hours. Students must complete the courses required with a cumulative GPA of 2.0 or better. All Biomedical Engineering minor courses must be taken for a letter grade; neither S/U nor credit/no credit is permitted. Students who complete the BME minor are not eligible for the Bioengineering Undergraduate Certificate.

BME Core Course:

BME technical elective courses: Two (2) courses are required from the following list (min 6 cr).

BME research/design experience:  Choose from the following list (min 3 cr).

Biomedical Projects all require review and approval for biomedical content/emphasis (using a course substitution petition), except for ME 640 & ME 643.

Bioengineering may also consider REU experiences for the BME Minor if that experience has sufficient BME content, and the experience is at least 8 weeks full-time and in-person.

Biomedical Sciences Core:  One of the following courses (3 cr).

Biomedical Sciences Elective:  Either Biomedical Sciences Core course above not used to fulfill the Biomedical Sciences Core or one of the following courses (min 3 cr).

Step 1. How to sign up

If your current major is in the School of Engineering, then

1. Go to the "Change of Engineering Major" form
2. Fill out the form, keeping your major the same and selecting “Biomedical Engineering” for “Are you adding an engineering minor?”
3. Click Submit.

Step 2. Have your planned Research or Design Course/Project Topic Pre-Approved!

If you complete ME 640/643 with a passing grade, your project will automatically be credited for the research/design requirement of the BME minor.  It does not require pre-approval nor a course substitution.  For all others, when you have determined your Research or Design project for the BME minor, have your project pre-approved: 

1. Download the project topic Pre-Approval Form (docx) and fill it out completely.
2. Email your completed form to fischer@ku.edu.

Step 3. Complete your Coursework  and Research/Design Project

This is includes doing the project work under the direction of your advisor, and completing a report on the work.

Step 4. BME minor Research or Design Course Substitution/Approval Petition

When you have completed your pre-approved research/design project, then follow these steps for verification of completion of your Research/Design Requirement.

1. Go to the “Course Substitution Petition” form. (this will open a new browser tab, so you can refer to the instructions in this tab).
2. Fill out the form.  There is a PDF example/instructions document linked below.

2a. Enter your student information. You MUST enter student ID in the Lookup box. The website will autofill name and ID into the form fields.

2b. For Department and Major select/enter “Bioengineering”

2c. Enter your GPA, first semester at KU, and expected graduation semester.

2d. Enter your substitute course number from the list above, or enter “External Project” and the semester you completed the research requirement.  For required course enter “BME Minor Project”

2e. In the “Reasons:” box, enter the following:

♦ The Title of your research project

♦ Your Research Advisor’s Name, email and phone number

♦ A very brief (one paragraph) description of your research/design project

2f. ALL petitions must be accompanied by a REPORT.  For courses, you may attach a copy of the report required for your course as a PDF file (does not need to be reformatted).  For external research opportunities, the minimum report is two pages of double-spaced text, excluding the Title page, figures and tables.  Use the “Attachments” button to upload your report.

2g. Use the “Print” button, if you want to print a copy of your substitution petition.

2h. When complete and printed (if desired) use the “Submit” button to submit your petition.

Example Course Substitution Petition for fulfilling the Research or Design Course Requirement (pdf)

An accessible version of the content above will be made available upon request. Please contact bioe@ku.edu to request the content be made available in an accessible format.

Step 5. Apply for Degree AND the BME Minor!

When you apply for your degree (prior to graduation), make sure to CHECK the BOX for the Biomedical Engineering Minor! Otherwise, your record will NOT be reviewed for the BME minor requirements and you will NOT receive the minor.

If you have questions about the BME minor requirements and/or process, please contact the Bioengineering Program Director, Professor Ken Fischer (fischer@ku.edu).