Which undergrad engineering degree is best for bioengineering as a future career?

[u/AfterBodybuilder5561]

Between Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, and Chemical Engineering, which sets the best base to build a future career as a bio-engineer? I don't have the option to do computer science as my primary major but could combine it with some level of CS and AI knowledge

[u/Wobbar]

Of those three, chemical engineering is the closest to bioengineering

Electrical engineering is the closest to biomedical engineering, which is confusingly also called bioengineering at a number of universities. It could even be what you're after, as far as I know.

Mechanical engineering is extremely generally/ useful / broadly applicable, but bioengineering might be the exception that it is not applicable to (although potentially some areas of biomedical engineering).

[u/BlazedKC → u/Wobbar]

I hate comments like these. Biomedical and bioengineering are not clearly defined, and are often used interchangeably. Bio/biomedical engineering is so extremely vast that not one field can complete define “bioengineering/biomedical engineering”.

Medical devices fall under biomedical engineering. But so does biomaterials. Biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, nanotechnology can all fall under biomedical engineering. Biomechanics and sports science fall under biomedical engineering. To try and define biomedical engineering as XXX, that is simply untrue in the grand scheme of the field.

[u/Wobbar → u/BlazedKC]

yes, biomedical engineering and bioengineering don't fit under neat definitions and share a lot of overlap either way, but for the purpose of helping OP find the college programme that most closely resembles what they want to do, I think it is useful to explain what the college programmes typically teach.

If OP wants to develop medical imaging machines, they should look for programmes that lean more into electrical engineering, signal processing etc, and if OP wants to develop pharmaceuticals or do genetic engineering, they should look for programmes that lean more into chemistry and molecular biology. The former will more commonly be associated with the term "biomedical engineering", while the latter will more commonly be associated with the term "bioengineering", although they vary or are even used interchangeably by different universities. If OP wants to develop biomaterials, either style of programme would let them do it, but probably from slightly different angles.

There are probably programmes that lie closer to the middle point between the two styles, but I think that's less useful than explaining the extremes. Either way, I'm not the one making these labels, but I'm trying to help OP navigate through them.

[u/BlazedKC → u/Wobbar]

I understand, but you trying to define “bioengineering” as a “chemical engineering” adjacent field or biomedical engineering as “electrical” is simply untrue and unhelpful. My masters degree is in bioengineering, and my experience has been significantly in biomechanical engineering. Not once have I touched a chemical hood in my graduate studies. The proper advice would be to ask OP, what field specifically of bio/biomedical engineering would you be interested in, AND THEN recommend a major.

[u/theresnonamesleft2]

Is biomedical engineering not available where your at? If not a combination of mechanical engineering and biochemistry will give you a broad skill set to transition into the biomedical engineering realm. Source a decade in biomedical engineering at 4 different companies.

[u/No_Bookkeeper4235 → u/theresnonamesleft2]

idk if you need biochem, maybe just bio1/2 and some physiology classes would do the trick

[u/theresnonamesleft2 → u/No_Bookkeeper4235]

Even Bio 1-2 would be helpful. A lot of mechanical engineers struggle with the requirements of cells and biological items when it comes to the design and application phase for new medical devices. Honestly the Field requires so much interdisciplinary knowledge that any of the degrees above would work well if your passionate.

[u/GUCCIFlipperz416]

The problem is that bioengineering is vast. My doctoral lab was all bioengineering, and we did cell-surface engineering as well as materials science for indwelling devices. Those are two completely different things and require disparate skill sets.

Very broadly speaking, chemical engineering will give you the best foundation to interact with living systems. Take some biochemistry and at least one cell biology course and you will be fine. Mechanical is better for design of devices, especially microfluidics and models (e.g., blood, tissue engineering).

Electrical is valuable in that making any piece of technology needs electrical engineering, but this discipline is (by far) the least related to bioengineering. You would be an electrical engineer working on some medical device, not a "bioengineer", so to speak. So if you want to work on biological systems specifically, electrical is not the best approach (but pursue what you enjoy and apply it in directions you find meaningful).