Biomedical Engineering B.S.B.E.

Entrance Requirements

College of Engineering students who have fully met the below admission requirements and are in good academic standing, may declare a major in Biomedical Engineering. Prior to being admitted to a department, a student may be permitted to take no more than two departmental engineering courses. Once admitted, the department may have continuation requirements which specify minimum performance standards in core engineering courses which must be met before further registration in the department is granted.

Limited Access

This major has additional admissions requirements as listed in this section.

The Biomedical Engineering major is limited access due to the following reasons: 1) limited space, equipment and other instructional facilities, including required laboratories; and 2) the program is of such a nature that in order to demonstrate potential for success in the program, applicants must attain a grade point average as

noted below.

First-Year Students:

Incoming first-year students may be directly invited into the Biomedical Engineering Major program if they are first admitted to the University of South Florida and meet the following criteria:

• Minimum SAT Math 710 or ACT Math 30
• Minimum High School Weighted GPA of 4.0 (as determined by USF Undergraduate Admissions)

First-year students who do not meet the above criteria may elect Pre-Biomedical Engineering (Pre-BME) as their major and work towards admission to the upper-division major, following the requirements listed below.

Sophomores:

Current USF students may elect Pre-Biomedical Engineering (Pre-BME) as their major and then must meet the following minimum requirements to be considered for admission to the upper-division program.

• Minimum cumulative 3.5 GPA for the prerequisite courses, as listed below (best attempt);*
• Minimum grade of C in each prerequisite course listed below;
• No more than two attempts allowed for the prerequisite courses listed below (withdrawals included);
• Completion of the first three semesters of the BME plan of study by the end of the third semester after matriculation to the University;
• Completed BME departmental online application.

*Only the best attempt in each prerequisite course as listed below, is considered for admission into the BME program.

During the fall semester of the sophomore year, pre-BME majors apply for admission to the upper-division BME major, which begins in the spring semester of the sophomore year.

Transfers: 

Transfer students must meet the following minimum requirements to be considered for admission into the BME program.

• Minimum 2.0 cumulative (overall) GPA;
• Minimum cumulative 3.5 GPA in the prerequisite courses listed below;
• Minimum grade of C in each prerequisite course listed below;
• No more than two attempts allowed for the prerequisite courses listed below (withdrawals included);
• Completed BME departmental online application.

Applicants who do not meet the minimum admission requirements as stated above will not be eligible for admission into the BME program. 

Transfer applications are referred to the department only after the USF Office of Admissions (including official transcripts) considers them complete. Applications are reviewed periodically and not on a rolling basis. The date of review may vary depending on the number of applications received.

Transfer applicants coming from out-of-state or private Florida institutions will be considered on a space available basis only.

Prerequisite Courses for Admission to the Upper-Division Major

• Calculus I (MAC 2311  or MAC 2281 )
• Calculus II (MAC 2312  or MAC 2282 )
• Calculus III (MAC 2313  or MAC 2283 )
• Differential Equations (MAP 2302  or EGN 3433 )
• Calculus-based Physics I with Lab (PHY 2048  and PHY 2048L )
• Calculus-based Physics II with Lab (PHY 2049  and PHY 2049L )
• General Chemistry I with Lab (CHM 2045  and CHM 2045L )
• General Chemistry II with Lab (CHM 2046  and CHM 2046L )
• Organic Chemistry I with Lab (CHM 2210  and CHM 2210L )

State Mandated Common Course Prerequisites

Students wishing to transfer to USF should complete an A.A. degree at a Florida College System institution. Some courses required for the major may also meet General Education requirements thereby transferring maximum hours to the university.

If a student wishes to transfer without an A.A. degree and has fewer than 60 semester hours of acceptable credit, the student must meet the university’s entering freshman requirements including ACT or SAT test scores, GPA, and course requirements.

Transfer students are also required to comply with the immunization, foreign language, and continuous enrollment policies of the university.

Students should complete the following prerequisite courses at the lower level prior to entering the university. If these courses are not taken at a Florida College System institution, they must be completed before the degree is granted.

Unless stated otherwise, a grade of C is the minimum acceptable grade in prerequisite courses.

Students qualify for direct entry to their intended department if they have completed the following courses at a Florida College System institution or University in the Florida State University System (SUS) and meet all other admissions requirements of the University and College.

The following are transferable courses from the Florida College System Institution that will be accepted in the Math/Science/Engineering areas:

Mathematics:

• (MAC X311 and MAC X312 and MAC X313) or (MAC X281 and MAC X282 and MAC X283) - 4 credit hours
• MAP X302 or MAP X305 or ECH X301 - 3 credit hours

Natural Sciences:

• CHM X045C or (CHM X045 and CHM X045L) or (CHM X095 and CHM X095L) or CHS X440C or (CHM X440 and CHM X440L) - 4 credit hours
• PHY X048C or [PHY X048 and (PHY X048L or PHY X064L) - 5 credit hours
• PHY X049C or [PHY X049 and (PHY X049L or PHY X064L) - 5 credit hours
• (CHM X046 and CHM X046L) or (CHM X096 and CHM X096L) or CHM X046C - 4 credit hours
• BSC X010C or [BSC X010 and (BSC X010L or BSC X044L)] - 4 credit hours
• CHM X210C or (CHM X210 and CHM X210L) - 4 credit hours

Total Major Hours: 111

Departmental Policies

In addition to the college’s graduation requirements, the department has the following policies:

1. Mandatory academic advising of students for each term.
2. Exit interviews as a graduation requirement.

GPA Requirements

Students must have and maintain a minimum 2.0 Math and Science GPA, 2.0 Engineering GPA, 2.0 Specialization GPA, 2.0 USF GPA, and 2.0 Overall GPA.

Grade Requirement

Unless otherwise stated, the minimum acceptable grade in BSNE required math, science, engineering and specialization courses is a C or higher (C- is insufficient).

Residency Requirement

Transfer students must complete a minimum number of approved specialization courses in the major at USF. The minimum number of USF specialization credit hours required is established by the respective academic department. In no case will this be less than 18 hours. Basic Engineering courses are not considered specialization courses. The University residency requirement must also be met.

A dual degree student must meet the requirements of each major and have a minimum of 18 approved specialization hours taken in the degree granting department beyond those specialization hours required for the first degree.

Research Opportunities

All undergraduate students in any degree program can participate in undergraduate research. There are a number of options to receive academic credit for a mentored research experience and to have the experience show on the official transcript. Students who wish to enroll in an undergraduate research course should consult with their academic advisor to understand how the credit will apply towards the degree requirements. If no credit is needed, students may be eligible to enroll in the 0-credit IDS 2912 , IDS 4914  or IDH 4910  courses. These courses will not impact degree credits or GPA but will show on an official transcript and document the experience. The Office of Undergraduate Research will assist students in understanding the various course options.

Advising Information

All incoming freshman and transfer students must meet with one of the college advisors in the Engineering Student Services (ESS).

Engineering Student Services

Office: Engineering Building III (ENC) 1302
Phone: (813) 974-2684
Email: eng-bme@usf.edu
Website

Biomedical Engineering Faculty

Chair and Director: Robert Frisina, Jr.; Professors: Robert Frisina, Jr., Huabei Jiang, George Spirou; Research Professor: Hao Yang; Instructors: Olukemi Akintewe, Souheil Zekri.

Plan of Study

Click here for Plan of Study. Once on this page, select the program from the available drop-down and then click ‘View Selected Plan.’