Questions About the CU Biomedical Engineering Society (BMES)

When and where does our BMES chapter meet?

Our chapter will meet for the Spring 2024 semester at 6-7:30 pm on Mondays in ECCR 245. Check our Instagram or Facebook page for updates, and make sure you are subscribed to our mailling list to get the most up to date information!

What is our BMES chapter constitution?

Article I. Name

 

This organization shall be known as BMES Student Chapter at the University of Colorado at Boulder, hereinafter called the “chapter” which shall have been granted a charter by the Biomedical Engineering Society.

Article II. Objectives

The chapter’s mission is to introduce students to the profession of biomedical engineering, expand their knowledge of tools and techniques used in the field, and develop members’ leadership and professional qualities through a variety of technical, professional, and social events. The chapter shall also promote membership in the BMES by acquainting the student body with the ideas, purposes, and objectives of BMES.

Article III. Membership

  • 3.1. Any person who is a registered student enrolled in an undergraduate college curriculum in engineering, engineering technology, or pre-medicine, which culminates in a bachelor’s or associate’s degree, or in any graduate level degree program which will enhance professional competence, and who is also a Student member in good standing of BMES is eligible for official national membership in the student chapter.
  • 3.2. The Colorado chapter and its activities are open to all CU Boulder students.
  • 3.3. All members of the student chapter are subject to the Constitution and Bylaws of the Biomedical Engineering Society.

Article IV. Student Council

The chapter is classified as a professional organization and is to be registered with the appropriate Center of Student Involvement (CSI). The chapter is directly represented by CSI and CSI decisions shall be binding upon this organization as long as they are not in any way conflicting with the BMES Constitution and Bylaws.

Article V. Officers

  • 5.1. The officers of the chapter shall be President, Vice President, Treasurer, Outreach Coordinator, Marketing Coordinator, and Project(s) Coordinator. 
  • 5.2. The officers of the chapter shall be elected in the manner prescribed by the Bylaws of the chapter. They shall hold office for a period of one year if possible.
  • 5.3. The officers shall be able to appoint other positions to BMES members as needed by the chapter (i.e. Projects Lead, Planning Committee for specific events, etc.)

Article VI. Constitution

This Constitution may be amended by a three-fourths vote of the members present at any regular or special meeting. 

Updated: July 25, 2019

What are our BMES chapter bylaws?

Article I. Dues

 

 

  • 1.1. The annual dues for the national BMES for Student members have been established at $30.
  • 1.2. The chapter membership shall be authorized to suggest a voluntary contribution to the chapter treasury; beyond the amount collected as national dues. This amount shall not be remitted by the chapter members to the national Society, but shall be given directly to the chapter treasury for use by the chapter.
  • 1.3. Student applications for national membership are evaluated at Society headquarters. Students will individually be notified of their acceptance for national BMES membership.

Article II. 

2.1. At least one week prior to the election meeting, all chapter members shall be eligible to run for any office. It is their duty to notify the current president of the specific position they shall be running for. He or she will then compile a ballot for use during elections.

Article III. Elections

  • 3.l. Elections shall be held no later than April.
  • 3.2. New officers shall take office on May 1 and continue through April 30 of the following year.
  • 3.3. Special meetings will be called to elect new officers to fill any vacancies which may occur, provided that written notice of this meeting, its purpose, and office to be filled has been posted on the chapter Biomedical Engineering Website at least one week prior to the date of such a meeting.
  • 3.4. No student shall be elected to office if graduating before completing at least one full year in office.
  • 3.5. No officer may hold a particular office for more than one year, unless he or she is re-elected by the chapter.
  • 3.6. A majority vote of all members present shall be necessary to elect an officer.
  • 3.7. All elections shall be by secret ballot, and may be conducted using an online form tool.
  • 3.8. Impeachment of any officer may be accomplished only upon presentation of just and reasonable cause for such action to the Faculty Advisor of the chapter and, upon the Faculty Advisor’s approval, with a two-thirds vote of all officers of the chapter, subject to review by the BMES national office.

Article IV. Meetings

  • 4.1. The chapter shall hold regular meetings at least once each month during the school year, with the exact date determined by the officers.
  • 4.2. Notice of all meetings shall be posted on the chapter Biomedical Engineering Society website at least one week prior to the date of the meeting and may be further publicized in any manner deemed necessary and proper.

Article V. Programs

  • 5.1. Regular meetings shall be devoted primarily to the profession of biomedical engineering and may include relevant guest speakers.
  • 5.2. At least two volunteering events related to biomedical engineering or medicine/health fields should be organized by the Outreach Coordinator each semester.
  • 5.3. At least one professional networking/career development event should be organized every academic year (i.e. career fair, networking night, etc.) 

Article VI. Duties of Officers

  • 6.1. The President, as Chief Executive of the organization, shall supervise the organization’s affairs and activities. The President is the executive administrative, presiding and reporting officer. The President shall be responsible for public relations, publicity, and promotion of the organization’s activities. The President will appoint or act as the representative to the Engineering Student Council at the university, if one exists, and will work with the Faculty Advisor and Society national office in all council and Society matters. He or she shall also be responsible, along with the Vice President, for organizing all speakers and industry events.
  • 6.2. The Vice President, who shall preside at meetings in the absence of the President, shall also supervise membership promotion. The Vice President may be the appointed representative to the Joint Engineering Council. The Vice President’s primary responsibility will be, in conjunction with the President, to organize all speakers and industry events.
  • 6.3. The Treasurer shall be responsible for the financial records of the organization, for the disbursement of funds at the direction of the membership (by vote) and with the approval of the Faculty Advisor, and for reporting in detail when requested by the membership. Income will be received through income producing functions approved by the membership and Faculty Advisor. He or she will also be responsible for recruiting new members and delegating duties to Membership Committee members if deemed necessary by the Treasurer.
  • 6.4 The Outreach Coordinator shall be responsible for organizing volunteering events, in addition to assisting in organizing guest speakers and industry events.
  • 6.5. The Marketing Coordinator shall be responsible for keeping current the website and social media groups, in addition to ordering any potential marketing materials for tabling and/or other promotional events with the help of the Treasurer. He or she shall also be responsible for signing up for student society fairs and other promotional events on campus.
  • 6.6. The Project Coordinator shall be responsible for monitoring all project teams and act as the liaison for industry, members, and officers. The Project Coordinator will work with all officers to build project infrastructure, obtain resources needed, and support project efforts. This position should be filled as needed.

Article VII. Awards Program

The chapter shall encourage its qualified members to apply for the Young Investigator Award, Graduate Student Awards, and Undergraduate Design Awards, sponsored by the Biomedical Engineering Society.

Article VIII. Committees

8.1. The President shall determine and appoint any committees deemed necessary and proper to fulfill the objectives of the organization.

Article IX. Faculty Advisor

  • 9.1. The Faculty Advisor shall be appointed annually by the Student Chapter.
  • 9.2. The Faculty Advisor must be an Associate member, Member, or Senior member of the Society. He or she shall serve the chapter and the BMES as an intermediary and resource person.

Article X. Amendment

These Bylaws may be amended by a three-fourths vote of the members present at any regular or special meeting, provided notice of the proposed amendment has been posted on the Chapter Biomedical Engineering Society Website at least one week prior to the meeting. 

Updated: July 25, 2019

Is our BMES chapter affiliated with CU Boulder's biomedical engineering major (BMEN)?

Our club is seperate from the biomedical engineering major and minor, though many people in our club are enrolled in either the major or minor. To find out more information about the BME major or minor visit the Biomedical Engineering site. 

Questions About Biomedical Engineering

What is biomedical engineering?

A biomedical engineer uses traditional engineering expertise to analyze and solve problems in biology and medicine, providing an overall enhancement of health care. Students choose the biomedical engineering field to be of service to people, to partake of the excitement ofworking with living systems, and to apply advanced technology to the complex problems of medical care. The biomedical engineer works with other health care professionals including physicians, nurses, therapists and technicians. Biomedical engineers may be called upon in a wide range of capacities: to design instruments, devices, and software, to bring together knowledge from many technical sources to develop new procedures, or to conduct research needed to solve clinical problems.

Where do biomedical engineers work?

Biomedical engineers are employed in universities, in industry, in hospitals, in research facilities of educational and medical institutions, in teaching, and in government regulatory agencies. They often serve a coordinating or interfacing function, using their background in both the engineering and medical fields.

What are the salaries of biomedical engineers and what is their future demand?

In 2009, the Bureau of Labor Statistics found that there were 14,760 biomedical engineers working in the US. They estimate employment growth of 72 percent over the net decade, much faster than the average for all occupations. The aging of the population and a growing focus on health issues will drive demand for better medical devices and equipment designed by biomedical engineers.

Median annual earnings of biomedical engineers were $78,860 in 2009. The middle 50 percent earned between $60,980 and $100,890. Major categories of employment include 3,440 were employed in medical equipment and supplies manufacturing, 2,680 in scientific research and development and 2,410 in pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing.

How should I prepare for a career in biomedical engineering?

The biomedical engineering student should first plan to become a good engineer, who then acquires a working understanding of the life sciences and terminology. Good communication skills are also important, because the biomedical engineer provides a vital link with professionals having medical, technical, and other backgrounds.

At the college level, the student usually selects engineering as a field of study, then chooses a discipline concentration within engineering. Many students continue their education in graduate school where they obtain valuable biomedical research experience at the Masters or Doctoral level. When entering the job market, the graduate should be able to point to well defined engineering skills for application to the biomedical field, with some project or in-the-field experience in biomedical engineering.

What are some little known facts about biomedical engineering?

  • Biomedical engineers play a significant role in mapping the human genome, robotics, tissue engineering, and in nanotechnology.

  • Biomedical engineering has the highest percentage of female students in all of the engineering specialties.

  • 30% of biomedical engineering graduates are employed in manufacturing.

  • Many biomedical engineering graduates go on to medical school. The percentage of students applying to medical school is as high as 50% in some programs.

  • There are 15 chapters of the national biomedical engineering honor society, Alpha Eta Mu Beta, located on college campuses throughout the United States.

  • BMES has more than 132 student chapters on college and university campuses.

  • Judith A. Resnick, PhD, a U.S. astronaut who died when Challenger exploded in 1986, was a biomedical engineer working at NIH from 1974 to 1977.

  • Willem Kolff, MD PhD, a biomedical engineer and physician, designed early artificial hearts and the first kidney dialysis machine. He supervised the first implanted artificial heart into Barney Clark, and his latest work is on a portable artificial lung.

  • The National Institutes of Health has a new institute for biomedical engineering and imaging. The Institute (NIBIB) coordinates with the biomedical imaging and bioengineering programs of other agencies and NIH Institutes to support imaging and engineering research with potential medical applications and facilitates the transfer of such technologies to medical applications.

  • A single U.S. foundation, the Whitaker Foundation in Arlington, Virginia, has made significant contributions to the development of this profession. Whitaker Foundation grants more than doubled the number of biomedical engineering academic programs in the United States by adding 38 new departments in this field.