Biomedical Engineering

Degrees Offered

  Minor Program
  Bachelor's Program
  Master's Program
  PhD Program

Biomedical Engineering is an exciting, multidisciplinary field that lies at the interface of medicine, biology and engineering. Biomedical engineers use engineering principles to analyze and solve problems in biology and medicine, providing an overall enhancement to healthcare. Biomedical engineers create technology to save lives and improve the quality of life. Much of the equipment in hospitals and clinics across the globe was designed, built and tested by biomedical engineers. At the same time, biomedical engineers employ concepts learned from biology and medicine to generate new (biomimetic) engineering designs in fields such as robotics and artificial intelligence.

Despite the advances in medicine to date, many injuries and diseases still lead to high rates of morbidity and mortality. Current research in biomedical engineering at CU Boulder focuses on innovative areas such as biomechanics, devices, imaging and therapeutics. Our goal is to create technology (drugs and devices) to treat these injuries and illnesses safely and effectively.

The biomedical engineering undergraduate curriculum at CU Boulder incorporates interdisciplinary courses to provide a balanced education in the fundamentals of engineering and human physiology. You can choose from two study tracks — one provides a broad, general education in biomedical engineering, while the other allows you to specialize in requirements for medical school.  Both paths will prepare you for a successful career in industry or government or to continue on to graduate education.

As a student, you’ll receive a hands-on education starting freshman year and continuing through our senior design program. Senior design is a year-long capstone project where you will work in a team to solve a real-world biomedical engineering problem. As a student, you can also participate in undergraduate research internships and industry co-ops, and gain professional exposure through the student chapter of the Biomedical Engineering Society on campus.

On campus graduate and undergraduate research opportunities are available through individual faculty in the following focus areas:

  • Biomechanics
  • Bioinstrumentation
  • Medical devices
  • Medical imaging
  • Therapeutics

Research topics range from studying the skeletal mechanical environment and its regulation of cancer, to light-matter interaction in nanoscale materials for biomedical imaging, to developing strategies for rationally engineering next-generation smart antimicrobials that can eliminate multi-drug resistant superbugs.

We also have strong connections to CU Anschutz and local national laboratories, such as National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), providing opportunities for you to take part in real-world research.

A biomedical engineering degree prepares you for a career in medicine, academic research, and the biotech industry.

Colorado employers hiring biomedical engineering graduates include:

  • 3D Systems
  • Boulder iQ
  • Children’s Hospital Colorado
  • Conmed
  • Medtronic
  • National Institute for Standards and Technology
  • Surefire Medical
  • Terumo BCT
  • Veterans Affairs Hospital

We anticipate that our biomedical engineering graduates will go on to industry, graduate school and medical school in roughly equal proportions.

Biomedical engineering jobs are projected to grow 7 percent through 2024, faster than the average for all occupations (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics). 
Biomedical Engineering has a 2% unemployment (US News & World Report), well below the national average, and has been rated the “most valuable major” (2019, Forbes Magazine).

The average starting salary for new CU Boulder engineering graduates is $69,000. (2019)