The Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering is a department in the

Emory University School of Medicine The Emory University School of Medicine is the graduate medical school of Emory University and a component of Emory’s Robert W. Woodruff Health Sciences Center. Before it was established as the Emory School of Medicine in 1915, the school ...

Georgia Institute of Technology The Georgia Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Georgia Tech or, in the state of Georgia, as Tech or The Institute, is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia. Established in 1885, it is part of ...

College of Engineering Engineering education is the activity of teaching knowledge and principles to the professional practice of engineering. It includes an initial education ( bachelor's and/or master's degree), and any advanced education and specializations tha ...

, and

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College of Engineering dedicated to the study of and research in

biomedical engineering Biomedical engineering (BME) or medical engineering is the application of engineering principles and design concepts to medicine and biology for healthcare purposes (e.g., diagnostic or therapeutic). BME is also traditionally logical sciences ...

, and is named after the pioneering engineer and Georgia Tech alumnus

Wallace H. Coulter Wallace H. Coulter (February 17, 1913 – August 7, 1998) was an American electrical engineer, inventor, and businessman. The best known of his 85 patents is the Coulter principle, which provides a method for counting and sizing microscopic part ...

. The graduate program has consistently ranked 2nd in

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rankings, while the undergraduate program ranks 1st in

rankings.

History

Establishment

Georgia Tech The Georgia Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Georgia Tech or, in the state of Georgia, as Tech or The Institute, is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia. Established in 1885, it is part of ...

Provost and Vice President Michael E. Thomas and the

Emory Emory may refer to: Places * Emory, Texas, U.S. * Emory (crater), on the moon * Emory Peak, in Texas, U.S. * Emory River, in Tennessee, U.S. Education * Emory and Henry College, or simply Emory, in Emory, Virginia, U.S. * Emory University ...

Dean of Medicine Thomas J. Lawley established an Advisory Committee of Georgia Tech and Emory faculty to address new opportunities in biomedical engineering. The Committee met initially on June 2, 1997 and was charged to develop a set of recommendations for an innovative and unique Department of Biomedical Engineering that is joint with Georgia Tech and Emory and that will enable both institutions to maximize research and educational opportunities in fields of intersecting biomedical interest. The Committee was required to report to Drs. Thomas and Lawley no later than August 15, 1997. The following is a summary of the recommendations from the Committee:

Naming

Recognized as one of the most influential inventors of the twentieth century, Wallace Coulter studied electronics as a student at Georgia Tech in the early 1930s.

Recognition

The

National Academy of Engineering The National Academy of Engineering (NAE) is an American nonprofit, non-governmental organization. The National Academy of Engineering is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy ...

awarded three professors in this department, Wendy C. Newstetter, Joseph M. Le Doux, and Paul Benkeser, with the 2019 Bernard M. Gordon Prize for Innovation in Engineering and Technology Education. They were recognized for "fusing problem-driven engineering education with learning science principles to create a pioneering program that develops leaders in biomedical engineering.”

Student organizations

Several student organizations exist within the department. The first organization to be founded is
local chapter
of the

Biomedical Engineering Society BMES (the Biomedical Engineering Society) is the professional society for students, faculty, researcher and industry working in the broad area of biomedical engineering. BMES is the leading biomedical engineering society in the United States and was ...

. The organization's award-winning newsletter
The Pioneer
branched off and became its own chartered organization. Th
Biomedical Research and Opportunities Society
was founded in 2010 and went on to become Georgia Tech's "Best New Organization" for the academic year.

References

External links

*
BMES Chapter page
{{coord, 33.77849, -84.39682, type:edu_globe:earth_region:US-GA, display=title Georgia Tech colleges and schools Emory University colleges and schools Engineering universities and colleges in Georgia (U.S. state) University subdivisions in Georgia (U.S. state)