Perspectives of the Biomedical Engineering Program at UASLP after ten years - analysis and criticism

Annu Int Conf IEEE Eng Med Biol Soc. 2021 Nov:2021:7625-7628. doi: 10.1109/EMBC46164.2021.9630467.

Abstract

The Biomedical Engineering (BME) bachelor pro-gram of the Faculty of Sciences in Universidad Autónoma de San Luis Potosí (UASLP) was created in June of 2010, with the aim of training professionals with an integral perspective in the engineering field by considering a multidisciplinary approach to develop and apply technology in the areas of medicine and biology. After 10 years, our BME program has achieved national recognition. Despite of being an emerging program, this achievement has been obtained by the consolidation of our academic staff, the outstanding participation of our students in national and international academic events, and the historical graduation results. In our comprehensive evaluation, we report an overall terminal efficiency (completion rate) of 67% and a graduation rate of 47.2%, where these values are above the average for an engineering program in our institution. Additionally, the BME program provides students with solid skills and background to carry out research activities, which has resulted in a considerable number of alumni pursuing graduate studies or have already completed one. Our results show that 90% of our former students are working after graduation, but only 44% work in the field of biomedical engineering, since the regional labor market starts to saturate given the fact that, at present, students from six generations have completed our BME bachelor program. In this way, few graduates visualize the wide spectrum of job options where a biomedical engineer can impact, by their distinctive comprehensive and multidisciplinary training. Therefore, it is necessary to propose new curricular design strategies to provide our students with an academic training that allows them to enter a globalized world, where there is an even greater spectrum of engineering possibilities related to the fields of medicine and biology, in line with current trends.

MeSH terms

  • Bioengineering
  • Biomedical Engineering* / education
  • Humans
  • Students
  • Universities*