Oct. 1, 2004

VCU's School of Engineering receives accreditation for undergraduate biomedical engineering program

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By Anne Buckley

RICHMOND, Va. (Oct. 1, 2004) – Virginia Commonwealth University’s School of Engineering’s biomedical engineering program has earned national accreditation.

The Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology, a federation of professional and technical societies, recognized the undergraduate program at its annual meeting this summer, making it the only accredited biomedical engineering program in Virginia.

“Accreditation by ABET provides the premiere third-party evaluation of engineering programs in the United States,” said Robert J. Mattauch, Ph.D., dean of the School of Engineering. “This accreditation action validates the high quality and outstanding nature of our biomedical engineering program at VCU.”

VCU’s School of Engineering was established in 1995. Biomedical engineering was established in the fall of 1997. The school’s chemical, electrical and mechanical engineering and computer science programs were ABET accredited in their first year of eligibility. Programs become eligible for accreditation upon graduating the first class.

The School of Engineering, which has a faculty of 45 and enrolls approximately 1,200 students, offers bachelor’s degrees in electrical and computer engineering, mechanical, chemical and biomedical engineering, and computer science, as well as graduate degrees in engineering, biomedical engineering and in computer science.

VCU's biomedical engineering graduates report post-graduate activities that include acceptance into medical schools at VCU, Stanford University and the University of Virginia. Graduates also are employed by organizations like the National Institutes of Health, NSWC-Dahlgren, Commonwealth Biotechnologies and the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality.

ABET, Inc., the recognized accreditor for college and university programs in applied science, computing, engineering, and technology, is a federation of 30 professional and technical societies representing these fields. ABET currently accredits some 2,600 programs at over 550 colleges and universities nationwide.