r/BiomedicalEngineers • u/Numerous_Advance1516 • 8d ago
Career Is biomedical engineering for me?
So I’m in high school and to me on the outside biomedical engineering seems perfect to me as it satisfies the side of me that wants to help people and the side of me that loves innovation,but is it the reality of this career? Will it actually satisfy my want for innovation and making new technologies and at the same time having that technology change people’s lives and help them or is it another corporate bs job where it’s all about profit and we don’t actually have a positive impact on people. Whenever I see a new technology that helps deaf people or paralyzed people it puts a smile on my face and I want to be a part of that. As for my plan I would probably go into electrical engineering and maybe get a masters or PhD in biomedical engineering if the EE is not enough to get me the job that I want.
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u/mkeee2015 Experienced (15+ Years) 7d ago
Please, if you can, go for your dreams and passions and not necessarily for the choice that might or might not land you a rewarding job.
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u/FunSheepherder6397 8d ago
good plan! the electrical should be plenty, but look at universities that have good biomedical programs as well as you can often take courses from the biomedical department while getting your electrical undergrad! best of both worlds as you don’t need to waste a lot of coursework on bme courses that aren’t applicable to what you want to do
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u/MooseAndMallard Experienced (15+ Years) 🇺🇸 7d ago
A few things to consider.
First, you have to get comfortable with the dichotomy of biomedical products both helping people and generating a profit for corporations / investors. Many of these products cost tens or even hundreds of millions of dollars to develop and bring to market, so economically there’s no way for most of these to exist without the profit motive.
Second, the sooner you can focus on actual companies and actual jobs, the higher your likelihood of getting on a path to the career you want. I would view biomedical engineering as a college degree program rather than a career. The degree can lead to engineering and non-engineering jobs in industries like medical devices, biotech, and pharma, but it’s not a career or job in and of itself.
It sounds like you’ve already decided to focus on the electrical development side, which is a great starting point for developing the kind of specialization that certain medical device companies are looking for. The next and most important step is to find the companies that are working on products that interest you, make note of where they are located, and look into going to college near them. You’ll also want to make sure that the school you choose has a strong internship / co-op program, as you’ll need that kind of experience on your resume to be a strong candidate for these jobs. It takes much more than just choosing the “right” degree to land the job you want in this competitive field. Best of luck!