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Session 1109

Biomedical Engineering Senior Capstone Research at the University of Hartford

Michael Nowak, Donald Leone, Ronald Adrezin University of Hartford

Abstract:

Graduating biomedical engineers often work along side medical professionals with little engineering background and must be able to communicate technical issues clearly. With these issues in mind, we decided that all our students should have the experience of working in clinically-based research laboratories in the local area or near the students’ homes.

With the assistance of a faculty advisor, each student sought a laboratory in his/her area of interest. The research is structured as two course equivalents (100 hours each). “Biomedical Engineering Capstone Research I” was designed to immerse the student in a wide range of laboratory functions. “Biomedical Engineering Capstone Research II” is designed to give the student in-depth experience by functioning as an engineer on a project, either ongoing in the laboratory or being developed.

Grading of each course is via written and oral reports, as well as laboratory supervisor input. The first course requires the writing of a report on the experience, while the second requires a formal research paper in the style of journal articles.

The experience from these courses has been excellent for both the students and the program. Project areas have included: dental mechanics, computer modeling, wrist motion analysis, and gait analysis. These projects often led to professional meeting presentations and journal articles. The bulk of the supervisor reports have been excellent, and even led to funding for a master’s degree.

Another important outcome from this capstone research is a method of outcome assessment. Outcomes are of great importance for ABET 2000, and the concept of an external researcher reviewing a senior level student is very useful. The students are able to utilize their engineering education prior to graduation and assist in the “cutting-edge” of biomedical research. Feedback from the students and supervisors allows us to modify our course content to maintain currency in our curriculum.

1. Introduction:

As the undergraduate program in Biomedical Engineering was developed at the University of Hartford, a desire was expressed to present the students with the opportunity to understand the

“Proceedings of the 2001 American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conference & Exposition Copyright © 2001, American Society for Engineering Education”

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Adrezin, R., & Nowak, M., & Leone, D. (2001, June), Biomedical Engineering Senior Capstone Research At The University Of Hartford Paper presented at 2001 Annual Conference, Albuquerque, New Mexico. 10.18260/1-2--8957