Pigman College of Engineering

Engineering in Healthcare (Graduate Certificate)

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The purpose of the Engineering in Healthcare graduate certificate is to assist graduates of engineering and select science and mathematics undergraduate programs to extend their career into the healthcare field and allow them to formally explore biomedical engineering without committing to a master’s degree program. Benefits to those who successfully complete the Engineering in Healthcare graduate certificate include:

  • enhancement of the student's application to, and academic preparedness for, medical or dental school
  • near-term attainment of a recognized metric of academic achievement in a field utilizing one's undergraduate background
  • research experience in healthcare-related fields and potential co-authorship on peer-reviewed publications
  • new letters of recommendation from engineering, medical or dental faculty
  • demonstrate productive use of the “gap year” between completion of undergraduate studies and the commencement of medical or dental school
  • the option to apply most, if not all, of the course work completed in pursuit of this certificate towards a master’s degree in biomedical engineering in the event that medical or dental school is not an option

Who Should Enroll

Students should consider pursuing the Engineering in Healthcare certificate if they wish to:

  • achieve a “career-extension” into the healthcare field
  • improve their academic preparedness for medical or dental school by minimizing the educational gap between their undergraduate educational curriculum and medical or dental school curriculum
  • productively occupy the time between undergraduate studies and enrollment in medical or dental school
  • improve the number and quality of their letters of recommendation authored by UK biomedical engineering, medical or dental school faculty attributable to productive certificate-relevant student research done in conjunction with these faculty
  • experience the field of biomedical engineering without formally committing to the master’s program
  • facilitate the transition from traditional engineering, science or mathematics backgrounds into biomedical engineering
  • obtain a healthcare-related career alternative if medical or dental school admission is not an option
  • gain meaningful real-world biomedical research experience and a deeper understanding of the mechanism of healthcare knowledge creation and evaluation
  • explore a career in academic healthcare research

Application Requirements

  • Official transcript demonstrating successful completion (grade B or better) in each of two courses (minimum six credit-hours total) of college mathematics (consisting of differential and integral calculus)
  • Application Deadlines:
    • Spring: December 9
    • Summer: April 15
    • Fall: July 22

Applicants must meet the Graduate School admission requirements.


Contact

Dr. David Pienkowski

Director of Graduate Certificate

F. Joseph Halcomb III, M.D. Department of Biomedical Engineering

Pigman College of Engineering

522 Robotics and Manufacturing Building

Lexington, KY 40506-0108

(859) 257-8101