Bioengineering

13 courses (44 units) are required for the degree. To remain in good academic standing, an M.S. student must maintain a minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.0 and a minimum grade point average of 3.0 in the 200 series courses. Core and elective courses must be taken for a letter grade. By the end of the first quarter in residence, students design a course program in consultation with and approved by their faculty adviser.

For the capstone track, at least eleven courses must be from the 200-series, three of which must be Bioengineering 299. It is required that the students take one 495 course. One 100-series course may count towards the total course and unit requirement. No units of 500-series courses may be applied toward the minimum course requirement except for the field of medical imaging informatics where two units of Bioengineering 597A are required.

For the thesis track, at least ten of the 13 must be from the 200-series, three of which must be Bioengineering 299. It is required to have two 598 courses involving work on the thesis and one 495 course.

All Fields (except MII): Students in all fields except MII must select at least three courses from Group I: Core Bioengineering Courses, and at least six courses from Group II: Elective Courses. A course cannot be used to simultaneously satisfy Group I and Group II course requirements.

For Medical Imaging Informatics (MII): M.S. capstone students in Medical Imaging Informatics must take the nine Group I: Core Courses on General Concepts, at least three courses from Group II: Subfield Specific Courses, and at least one course from Group III: Ethics Courses.

Teaching Experience

Not required.

Field Experience

Not required.

Capstone Plan

The comprehensive examination is available in all fields. The requirements for fulfilling the comprehensive examination varies for each field. Specific details about the comprehensive examination process in each field are available from the graduate adviser. Students who fail the examination may repeat it once only, subject to the approval of the faculty examination committee. Students who fail the examination twice are not permitted to submit a thesis and are subject to academic disqualification.

Thesis Plan

Every master's degree thesis plan requires the completion of an approved thesis that demonstrates the student's ability to perform original, independent research.

New students who choose this plan are expected to submit the name of the thesis adviser to the graduate adviser by the end of their first quarter in residence. The thesis adviser serves as chair of the thesis committee.

A research thesis (eight units of Bioengineering 598) is to be written on a biomedical engineering topic approved by the thesis adviser. The thesis committee consists of the thesis adviser and two other qualified faculty members.

Time-to-Degree

The typical length of time for completion of the M.S. degree under the capstone plan is one year. The typical length of time for completion of the M.S. degree under the thesis plan is two years.

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Advising

Each department in the Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science has a graduate adviser. A current list of graduate advisers may be obtained from the Office of the Associate Dean for Academic and Student Affairs, 6426 Boelter Hall, Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science. This list is also available from the Department of Bioengineering.

Students are assigned a faculty adviser upon admission to the school. Advisers may be changed upon written request from the student. All HSSEAS faculty serve as advisers.

New students should arrange an appointment as early as possible with the faculty adviser to plan the proposed program of study toward the Ph.D. degree. Continuing students are required to confer with the adviser during the time of enrollment each quarter so that progress can be assessed and the study list approved.

Based on the quarterly transcripts, student records are reviewed at the end of each quarter by the departmental graduate adviser and Associate Dean for Academic and Student Affairs. Special attention is given if students were admitted provisionally or are on probation. If their progress is unsatisfactory, students are informed of this in writing by the Associate Dean for Academic and Student Affairs.

Students are strongly urged to consult with the departmental student office staff and/or the Office of Academic and Student Affairs regarding procedures, requirements and the implementation of policies. In particular, advice should be sought on advancement to candidacy, on the procedures for taking the Ph.D. written and oral examinations and on the use of the Filing Fee.

Major Fields or Subdisciplines

Biomedical instrumentation; imaging, informatics and systems engineering; molecular cellular tissue therapeutics. See Areas of Study under Master's Degree for descriptions of all fields.

Foreign Language Requirement

None.

Course Requirements

PhD students must complete Course Requirements as described under the Master's Degree. Students must maintain a minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.25. Core and elective courses must be taken for a letter grade. Please see the list of courses under the Master’s Degree Section.

PhD students in Medical Imaging Informatics must take all nine courses from Group I: Core Courses on General Concepts; at least six courses from Group II: Subfield Specific Courses, three each within two of the four concentrations; and at least one course from Group III: Ethics Courses.

Teaching Experience

A minimum of one quarter of teaching experience is required.

Written and Oral Qualifying Examinations

Academic Senate regulations require all doctoral students to complete and pass university written and oral qualifying examinations prior to doctoral advancement to candidacy. Also, under Senate regulations, the University Oral Qualifying Examination is open only to the student and appointed members of the doctoral committee. In addition to university requirements, some graduate programs have other pre-candidacy examination requirements. What follows in this section is how students are required to fulfill all of these requirements for this doctoral program.

All committee nominations and reconstitutions adhere to the Minimum Standards for Doctoral Committee Constitution.

To remain in good standing in the program, Ph.D. students are expected to take the University Oral Qualifying Examination within six academic quarters and two summer quarters (e.g. two years) following matriculation. The nature and content of the examination are at the discretion of the doctoral committee, but ordinarily include a broad inquiry into the student's preparation for research. The doctoral committee also reviews the prospectus of the dissertation, the written component of the qualifying examination, prior to the oral qualifying examination.

Advancement to Candidacy

Students are advanced to candidacy upon successful completion of the written and oral qualifying examinations.

Doctoral Dissertation

Every doctoral degree program requires the completion of an approved dissertation that demonstrates the student's ability to perform original, independent research and constitutes a distinct contribution to knowledge in the principal field of study.

Final Oral Examination (Defense of the Dissertation)

Required for all students in the program.

Time-to-Degree

Students are expected to receive their degree within six years (18 quarters) from admission into the program, and must be registered continuously or on approved leave of absence during this period. Students who do not register or take an official leave of absence lose their student status.

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Termination of Graduate Study and Appeal of Termination

University Policy

A student who fails to meet the above requirements may be recommended for termination of graduate study. A graduate student may be disqualified from continuing in the graduate program for a variety of reasons. The most common is failure to maintain the minimum cumulative grade point average (3.00) required by the Academic Senate to remain in good standing (some programs require a higher grade point average). Other examples include failure of examinations, lack of timely progress toward the degree and poor performance in core courses. Probationary students (those with cumulative grade point averages below 3.00) are subject to immediate dismissal upon the recommendation of their department. University guidelines governing termination of graduate students, including the appeal procedure, are outlined in Standards and Procedures for Graduate Study at UCLA.

Special Departmental or Program Policy

A recommendation for academic disqualification is reviewed by the school's Associate Dean for Academic and Student Affairs.

Master's

In addition to the standard reasons noted above, a student may be recommended for academic disqualification for

Doctoral

In addition to the standard reasons noted above, a student may be recommended for academic disqualification for

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