Jacklyn Bohman '05
Biomedical Engineer Intern,Milwaukee VA Medical Center
Position Description:
To support and advance patient care by applying engineering and managerial skills to health care technology. In the hospital, function as a technology manager for medical equipment systems - work on data processing systems for managing the medical equipment and coordinate service agreements and in-house operations. Supervise in-house maintenance staff as needed. Manage financial, budgetary, and service contracts. Ensure that the medical equipment is safe and effective by assessment of new technology, assuring regulatory compliance, investigation of incidents, and active participation in training/education of technical and medical personnel.
Necessary education or experience:
Bachelor and/or Masters degree in Biomedical Engineering or related field.
Key skills that are necessary to be successful in your position:
Ability to work with wide variety of people - technicians, physicians, engineers, etc. Organizational skills are used for scheduling maintenance and coordinating the installation of new products. Understanding how different medical technologies work and then determining if they are appropriate for the hospital and if they are up to code.
A description of your path to your current position:
After completing my B.S. degree at MSOE I attended Arizona State University and earned my M.S. degree in Bioengineering. My thesis project dealt with modeling smooth muscle contraction via actin polymerization and depolymerization. In my instance, my research project was not directly related to the job I accepted, but rather it was the skills I learned as a graduate student that were beneficial.
Any other advice?
When you are considering what type of job you would like after graduation determine what type of degree is needed. Some jobs only require a B.S. but others would like a Masters or PhD. Getting a PhD is a large commitment so be ready to work for at least 4 years - which is perfectly is fine if this is what you want, just know there are a lot of requirements to be done. Doing research and working independently can be a very rewarding experience. I initially was going for a PhD but do to a series of events I changed to a Masters degree. I felt at the time it was not beneficial for me to continue towards a PhD degree. Decide what it is you want to do and go for that.
On MSOE and Biomedical Engineering
Do you think a degree in BE is a good choice?
I think a degree in BE is a good choice if you think you want to be involved with both the medical and engineering side of things. BE gives you a broad background in a lot of engineering disciplines (ME, EE, CE) as well as the medical sides of things (including both anatomy and medical instruments/machines). The knowledge you gain about many engineering disciplines makes you a well rounded engineer.
Do you think MSOE is a good choice of colleges?
I think that MSOE is an excellent choice of college. Do realize though by attending it is a specialized program, there are not as many elective courses that you are required to take that are applicable for other types of schools and programs. This is advantageous in learning as much as possible about the field, but lends itself to a more rigorous program of study.
Why did you choose MSOE's BE program?
I was interested in math and science and considered becoming a doctor. My high school guidance counselor suggested engineering based upon my math and science interests and after looking at majors within this I chose BE. MSOE was a well respected, accredited school, and I knew others who had attended and spoke very highly of it. Also, I liked that I was not required to take a lot of elective courses, but rather took a more streamlined approach to learning my major of choice.
What did you like about MSOE?
I liked their small class sizes and that there were no teaching assistants - teachers taught all the classes you go directly to the teacher for questions and help. I enjoyed the abundance of hands-on labs that I participated in. It gives you a lot of experience past working problems out of a book. Being in labs allows you to learn how to solve problems and troubleshoot the lab that you are working on - and allows you to realize that not everything always works the way it says in the book.I also liked MSOE's location in downtown Milwaukee. You were able to experience what it was like to live in the city. If you had an apartment downtown it wasn't necessary to drive to school and since Milwaukee is not a very spread out city it was easy to walk to many events you wanted to attend. Milwaukee is an extremely diverse city and as a student you can experience a wide variety of events - many at reduced prices sponsored by MSOE.
What did you like about the BE program?
I liked that our senior project started freshman year. It gives you an idea about what it is like to be on a team for an extended period of time - which led to dealing with project changes, people leaving and adding to your team, and meeting project deadlines. As mentioned above, the small class sizes and labs were also well liked.
What did you like about the student activities and student life at MSOE?
I liked the large variety of activities that you could participate in at MSOE. Personally I was involved in sports (cross country and track), volunteering (Circle K, leading tours on campus and other campus events), professional societies (BMES and others), and free/reduced priced tickets MSOE had to offer on cultural events in the city (movies, concerts, plays, musicals, etc). There was always an opportunity to do something. The clubs and activities I was involved are only a small sampling and many more clubs have formed since I left. The diverse amount of activities offered allows you to experience so many things - both that MSOE has to offer and the surrounding city.
Now that you have graduated and are in the workforce, are
you happy with the education that you received in the BE program at MSOE?
I am extremely happy with my education. It thoroughly prepared me for what I needed to do in graduate school and helped to lead me to my current position at the VA hospital. | For information about MSOE's B.S. in Biomedical Engineering program, contact interim program director Dr. Charles Tritt at (414) 277-7421. |