The Biomedical Engineering Certificate trains next-generation professional engineers to interface engineering and medicine with design and problem solving to improve human health.

About the Program

  • Apply knowledge and skills to a broad range of biomedical fields, from the establishment of disruptive imaging technologies or fabrication of new biomimetic tissue replacements to conception of innovative medical devices
  • Engage with clinical, veterinary, and entrepreneurial partners at cutting edge institutions along the Front Range such as CU Anschutz, Colorado State University for veterinary medicine and local companies, such as Allosource, Medtronic and Terumo, among others
  • Gain unique experience in translational and applied medicine

Coursework

Nine credit hours of graduate level coursework will be required to complete the certificate program with grades of at least a B in each course. A minimum GPA of 3.0 is required to remain in good academic standing.

Explores human physiological function from an engineering, specifically mechanical engineering, viewpoint. Provides an introduction to human anatomy and physiology with a focus on learning fundamental concepts and applying engineering (mass transfer,fluid dynamics, mechanics, modeling) analysis.

Covers the design of ultrasound and contrast agent systems for medical imaging and therapy, including the physics of mechanical wave propagation, transducers, acoustic lenses, pulse-echo imaging and cavitation dynamics. The course will include lectures on theory; a laboratory on wave propagation; and in-class team presentations on current primary literature in biomedical ultrasound.

Focuses on developing an understanding of the fundamental mechanical principles that govern the response of hard and soft biological tissue to mechanical loading. Specifically, covers mechanical behavior of biological materials/tissues, classical biomechanics problems in various tissues, the relationship between molecular, cellular and physiological processes and tissue biomechanics and critical analysis of related journal articles.

The main objective of this multidisciplinary course is to provide students with a broad survey of biomaterials and their use in medical devices for restoring or replacing the functions of injured, diseased, or aged human tissues and organs. The topics to be covered include: biomaterials evolution in the medical device industry, a broad introduction to the materials used in medicine and their chemical, physical, and biological properties, different properties of synthetic and biological materials, materials interaction with the human body, basic mechanisms of wound healing, biocompatibility issues, testing methods and techniques in accordance with standards and relevant regulations, biofunctionalities required for specific applications, as well as the state-of-the-art approaches for the development of new regenerative materials targeting cellular mechanisms.

Microfluidics deals with the behavior of fluids in small scale. It is a highly multidisciplinary field at the intersection of engineering, physics, chemistry, biology, medicine, nanotechnology, and biotechnology. This course is designed for a wide audience in Engineering and Science. It covers the fundamentals and fabrication of microfluidic devices, and their applications, particularly in Lab on a Chip. It includes lectures, team presentations, and possibly one laboratory on microfluidic devices. Mastery will enhance your understanding of Microfluidic technologies and their broad applications.

This course will provide an introduction to structure-property-function relationships in biological materials such as wood, bone, shells, spider silk, connective tissue, blood vessels and gecko feet. We will cover topics including but not limited to biosynthesis and assembly, biomineralization, hierarchical organization, adhesion and contact, functionally graded interfaces, and others. As part of this course, we will learn some fundamentals of tissue engineering, with relation to biomimetic design, and explore cutting edge methods in biofabrication. No prior knowledge of biology is required to take this course.

Graduate level course that deals with how mechanical forces modulate the morphological and structural fitness of biological tissues. Current molecular mechanisms by which cells convert mechanical stimulus into chemical activity and the literature supporting them will be discussed. Students will acquire an understanding and expertise from the analysis of primary literature and completion of a synthesis project. This course will serve as the focal point of discourse for doctoral students with research requiring an in-depth understanding of the interface of mechanics and molecular and cellular biology.

This class will provide a general overview of the fundamental concepts behind the mechanical behavior of soft matter. The term soft matter (which includes polymers, colloids, liquid crystals and surfactants, to name a few) is typically used to describe classes of materials whose structural unit is much larger than atoms, making their response more complex and often richer that of traditional solids. The objective of this class is to understand how chemical and mechanical forces between these small units yield macroscopic behaviors that one can observe in the everyday life. Key engineering applications will also be discussed.

This highly multidisciplinary course covers the fundamentals of microfluidics and their applications, including the design and fabrication of microfluidic devices, applications in biomedicine, and their basic working mechanisms. The course includes lectures, team presentations, and possibly one laboratory on microfluidic device.

Apply

Complete the mechanical engineering certificate application form to declare your biomedical engineering certificate. Once you have completed your certificate requirements, email megrad@colorado.edu.