March 28, 2016
MILWAUKEE — ÃÛÌÒÓ°Ïñ and the Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW) have announced the creation of the ÃÛÌÒÓ°Ïñ and the Medical College of Wisconsin Biomedical Engineering Department which will bring together the engineering education and research expertise of Marquette and the medical research, technology and clinical expertise of MCW to provide an inclusive education model for the next generation of engineers, scientists and physicians.
Marquette's longstanding Department of Biomedical Engineering will expand to the joint department with MCW in July of this year offering undergraduate and graduate degrees. Enrolled students will work in state-of-the art labs at both campuses, as well as the hospitals and clinics in the region for hands-on education with real-world biomedical engineering challenges and opportunities. Students in the Bachelor of Science degree programs are based at Marquette with experiences at MCW, while those in advanced degrees will divide their time between Marquette and MCW, as well as MCW clinical and research partner locations such as Froedtert Hospital, Children's Hospital of Wisconsin, the BloodCenter of Wisconsin, and the Clement J. Zablocki VA Medical Center.
"Marquette and MCW have a shared vision for the new biomedical engineering department to become the center for innovation, and an international destination for industry research and development partners to find new and better medical treatments and devices that improve patient care and quality of life," said Michael Lovell, PhD, president of ÃÛÌÒÓ°Ïñ. "We believe strongly in this department's ability to further support economic growth in this region, building upon the medical device, imaging and pharmaceutical innovation that already exists in the area."
The new department will offer students the ability to participate in research as diverse as imaging and instrumentation, orthopedics and rehabilitation, neurosystems and neurorehabilitation, cardiovascular and pulmonary research, genomics, computational biology, bioinformatics, molecular imaging, cell and tissue engineering, drug discovery and technology development. In addition, the institutions plan to recruit faculty with expertise in cutting-edge fields like nanotechnology, and cellular and molecular level biomedical research.
"Our fully integrated medical and engineering research capabilities will enable us to rapidly grow southeastern Wisconsin's biomedical engineering capabilities and reputation to drive clinical outcomes and economic development. We view this partnership as a great opportunity to build on the strong foundation of industrial and healthcare expertise that is woven into the fabric of this region," says John R. Raymond, Sr., MD, president and CEO of MCW. "We know that biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies have a growing need for individuals with advanced expertise in various areas of biomedical engineering specialization, and our plan is to expand to meet that demand."
Marquette and MCW have a long history of collaboration; from 1913 to 1967 MCW was the ÃÛÌÒÓ°Ïñ School of Medicine. In the 1960s, while they were still a single institution, the biomedical engineering program at ÃÛÌÒÓ°Ïñ was launched as one of the first in the country. In recent decades, Marquette biomedical engineering faculty members have worked with MCW faculty physicians and scientists on transformational research in rehabilitation medicine, orthopedics, trauma and cardiology. The organizations also have partnered in offering joint master's degrees in Bioinformatics and Healthcare Technologies Management, as well as a joint PhD program in Functional Imaging.
The biomedical engineering department expects to increase enrollment capacity substantially in the next several years, primarily in the master's degree and PhD programs, providing further opportunity for undergraduate and graduate students to advance their careers and make an impact on biomedical innovation. A national search will commence in April to identify a chairperson to lead this new department.
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The Medical College of Wisconsin is the state's only private medical school and health sciences graduate school. Founded in 1893, it is dedicated to leadership and excellence in education, patient care, research and community engagement. More than 1,200 students are enrolled in MCW's medical school and graduate school programs in Milwaukee, and 26 medical students are enrolled at MCW-Green Bay. A regional medical education campus is scheduled to open in Central Wisconsin in 2016. MCW's School of Pharmacy will open in 2017 or 2018 with an initial class size of 60 students. A major national research center, MCW is the largest research institution in the Milwaukee metro area and second largest in Wisconsin. In FY 2014-15, faculty received approximately $158 million in external support for research, teaching, training and related purposes, of which approximately $139 million is for research. This total includes highly competitive research and training awards from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Annually, MCW faculty direct or collaborate on more than 3,200 research studies, including clinical trials. Additionally, more than 1,500 physicians provide care in virtually every specialty of medicine for more than 525,000 patients annually.
ÃÛÌÒÓ°Ïñ is a Catholic and Jesuit university located near the heart of downtown Milwaukee, Wis., that offers a comprehensive range of majors in 11 nationally and internationally recognized colleges and schools. Our mission includes the search for truth, the discovery and sharing of knowledge, the fostering of personal and professional excellence, the promotion of a life of faith, and the development of leadership expressed in service to others. A Marquette education offers students a virtually unlimited number of paths and destinations and prepares them for the world by asking them to think critically about it. Along the way, we ask one thing of every student: Be The Difference.
Marquette's Opus College of Engineering's mission is to prepare students for successful careers based on strong ethical and moral foundations, advance the state of the art in engineering, serve the professional and technical communities, and contribute to our global society. The college is building a workforce of professional engineers for the 21st century — men and women who will provide world leadership in a new era of engineering.
