Being a pre-med engineer can be confusing as most students do not know how they can use their degree in the medical career. It seems that almost all of the focus is given to promoting science majors as future doctors, while engineering schools have little information for its students with a medical interest. Sure, there is bioengineering, but degrees such as mechanical and electrical engineering also give skills that may be suited equaly if not better for future doctors, yet they are underrepresented.
The reality is that a great deal of technological progress is undergoing in the medical industry, and doctors with engineering backgrounds are needed more than ever to help bring technology to market. A great example of this is Dr. Anthony DiGioia who earned a bachelors in civil and masters in civil/biomedical engineering and continued on to Harvard Medical School. Doctor DiGioia used his engineering background and university contacts to link robotics and surgery by forming the Institute for Computer Assisted Orthopaedic Surgery. The work of this institute facilitates development of new surgical robotic technology. Some of the projects included the HipNav & KneeNav systems that allow for better positioning during hip/knee replacement procedures.
In technology development, the idea is everything. It is always possible to find bright minds to put things together, but it takes much more to develop the right idea. I believe that a combination of an engineering background along with a medical degree is exactly what is needed to push current medical technology in the right direction. Dr. DiGioia did it, and hopefully engineering schools will start educating their students about this new phase in technological advancement.
source: The Future of Surgery, Christopher Davis, Pittsburgh Business Times, Feb 8, 2002
Friday, July 20, 2007
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3 comments:
hey nice site.
i'm a bio engineering minoring in mechanical engineering and am applying to med school this year too. I think there's a lot that engineers can do in the medical field. At cornell, the president is affiliated with both biomedical engineering and weill cornell, and is encouraging collaborations between the two. I don't know how many engineers apply to medical school, or if med schools even have a preference for engineers, but i hope that this is a good sign that we're in demand. Good luck with your apps and interviews!
Hey, I'm a 4th year mechanical engineering student but I have always wanted to study in Med field, my adviser doesn't know much about pre-med and ME. I'm thinking about extending my major with pre-med so I might get a chance to apply to med school. What do you guys think? Doing my first 2 years in college, I have already taking the required course for pre-med studies but I was transferred to UMD and they won't allow incoming student to continue major in those 2 studies, so basically I have to pick a field.
In my school the primary program I was doing was Mechanical Engineering. On the side I was taking pre-med courses. So every semester I had 3-4 engineering courses and 1/2 pre-med courses. There is no need to pick b/w two majors. Pre-med is not really a major, its just courses that have to be taken in order to apply. As long as you're paying your tuition the University will not tell you "you can't take these courses".
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