Aligning Biomedical Engineering Education with Industry: Graduate Needs and Curricula in Australia

Biomedical engineering degrees have gained popularity in Australia however, there is a limited understanding through various research whether the biomedical engineering degrees offered in Australia are aligned with industry needs and if they are effectively preparing graduates for the workforce. This study aims to identify the current landscape of undergraduate biomedical engineering education in Australia and the alignment between the current curriculum and industry needs. The biomedical engineering curriculum was mapped across 11 institutions that currently offer the major. Three months of job searches were conducted to compare to the curriculum. During the jobs audit, 68 positions were identified as suitable for biomedical engineering graduates with limited experience. Most of the positions did not require a four-year biomedical engineering degree or could be completed by individuals without a biomedical engineering background. This indicates that a four-year biomedical engineering degree, in any stream (mechanical, electrical & chemical), does not currently fit the job market for biomedical engineers in Australia however, it does align with US and European requirements. Whilst the four-year biomedical engineering degrees do not align with the current job market, the degree is required to create a research pipeline within universities. To allow for the realignment of the curriculum with the current job market, it is recommended that institutions should start offering two-year technician degrees in biomedical engineering and place more emphasis on medical device servicing and maintenance, as well as networking and computer architecture, in the curriculum during the first two years of a four-year degree.