Design the Future of Health Care with NYU Tandon’s New Biomedical Engineering Major

Is BME Right for You?

NYU is a school for students with big goals, and Tandon’s new Biomedical Engineering major is built for those ready to do the hard work required to reach them. Make no mistake—this is a rigorous path designed for students who want to solve complex problems and push themselves. But the rewards are immense.

Reflecting on the ideal BME student, Associate Professor Rose Faghih says, “This program is for students who are excited to use engineering to improve human health. If you’re motivated to make a real impact and eager to explore the many ways you can do that, from medical devices and robotics to imaging, tissue engineering, or computational medicine, this degree opens the door to a range of career options and gives you the freedom to see where those interests can take you.”

While it takes dedication and hard work, BME offers unprecedented opportunities for driven students.

A Career-Ready Curriculum

Designing the program from the ground up allowed the department to reimagine what an undergraduate engineering degree should offer in today’s landscape.

“As I was designing the program, I tried to think about it this way: If I was starting college at 18 again, what would my dream program look like? What features would the ideal program have?” Faghih recalls.

The result is a curriculum featuring several distinct advantages for students. First, the major is extremely versatile, providing ample elective space so students can complete pre-health requirements for medical school or dental school admission without delaying their degree.

“This opens the path for students who are thinking of pursuing engineering now but may want to become a medical doctor in the future. Or for those who want to have an engineering degree just in case. It gives students a lot of options,” Faghih notes.

Additionally, BME graduates nationwide historically have lower pass rates on the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) exam required for professional certification. NYU’s program addresses this, intentionally reinforcing the skills necessary to succeed on the exam. Finally, the program prepares students for a shifting world. “We are in the age of AI. Basically, everything is changing,” Faghih emphasizes. To meet this moment, students study machine learning fundamentals while staying grounded in practical research and lab work. Additionally, they tap into Tandon’s powerful entrepreneurship ecosystem. In senior design courses, students can learn how to turn their ideas into commercial ventures and launch their own companies.

Connected Across NYU

Unlike programs that limit engineering to a lab, the BME major is built on direct access to NYU’s extensive medical and clinical networks.

“Our department, Biomedical Engineering, is the bridge between Tandon and Langone,” Faghih says, referencing NYU’s world-class medical center. Furthermore, that interdisciplinary access becomes especially valuable during senior design capstone projects.

“Tandon has all these other great engineering programs that dovetail with biomedical engineering, like electrical and mechanical,” Faghih explains. “They also have faculty who do high-impact biomedical research. But when it comes to senior design, they have not been health-focused. That changes with this new degree.”

BME senior design capstones focus strictly on health solutions, giving students a unique opportunity for interdisciplinary innovation. This course is designed such that undergraduates can be mentored by faculty, practitioners, and peers across the Grossman School of Medicine, the Rory Meyers College of Nursing, the College of Dentistry, and other programs.