Materials Science and Engineering (BS): Biomaterials Concentration
The Biomaterials concentration within the Materials Science and Engineering (MSE) degree offers students a focused and interdisciplinary education at the intersection of materials science, biology, and engineering. This concentration is designed to equip students with the knowledge and skills necessary to address challenges in the development and application of materials for medical, biological, and healthcare-related fields.听听
Admission
Students complete the standard set of engineering first-year courses, which include courses in the humanities, chemistry, mathematics, physics, and computing. Students may apply to join the Department of Materials Science and Engineering as degree-seeking students via the . Students can declare a biomaterials concentration during the CODA process or any subsequent semester once they join the MSE program.听
Curriculum
At NC State, Materials Science and Engineering students are trained to understand the complexities of all classes of material. Our curriculum begins with core courses in thermodynamics, kinetics, and structure, building a strong foundation before advancing to mechanical, thermal, electrical, magnetic, and optical properties.
Hands-on learning is a cornerstone of the program, with two laboratory courses that immerse students in analytical techniques to characterize materials at all scales and measure their properties. Our program covers cutting-edge technologies like nanomaterials, biomaterials, advanced functional materials, materials forensics, computational modeling, and AI-driven materials optimization.
As part of this concentration, students begin with foundational coursework in biology by taking either BIO 181 or BIO 183. The core of the concentration is MSE 485: Biomaterials, a specialized course that delves into the design, development, and application of materials used in medical devices, tissue engineering, drug delivery systems, and other biological applications. Students explore the properties of biocompatible materials, the principles of material selection for medical uses, and the methods for fabricating and testing biomaterials in clinical and laboratory settings. To further customize their education, students select three electives from a wide range of courses in materials processing, engineering, biology, and other related disciplines. This flexibility allows students to tailor their studies to align with their specific interests and career goals. For example, students interested in medical device development may choose courses in biomechanics or polymer science, while those focused on tissue engineering or biotechnology might select courses in cell biology or bioinformatics.听
In our two-semester capstone senior design project, students apply their knowledge to solve practical materials challenges with industry partners. Working in teams, you'll tackle hands-on problems and bridge classroom learning with real-world impact.
The Materials Science and Engineering program is accredited by the .
Accelerated Bachelor鈥檚/Master鈥檚 Program
The 听allows students听to earn a bachelor鈥檚 and a master鈥檚 degree in five years. Four graduate courses (12 credit hours) can be taken while still an undergraduate student and can be double-counted towards both the bachelor鈥檚 and master鈥檚 degrees.听
Contact Information
3002 Engineering Building 1 (EB1)
911 Partners Way, Raleigh NC 27695-7907
919.515.2377
Plan Requirements
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Math | ||
| 惭础听141 | Calculus I 1,2 | 4 |
| 惭础听241 | Calculus II 1,2 | 4 |
| 惭础听242 | Calculus III 3 | 4 |
| 惭础听341 | Applied Differential Equations I | 3 |
| 厂罢听370 | Probability and Statistics for Engineers | 3 |
| Sciences | ||
| 颁贬听101 &补尘辫;听颁贬听102 | Chemistry - A Molecular Science and General Chemistry Laboratory 1,2 | 4 |
| 颁贬听201 &补尘辫;听颁贬听202 | Chemistry - A Quantitative Science and Quantitative Chemistry Laboratory | 4 |
| 颁贬听220 | Introductory Organic Chemistry | 3 |
| 辞谤听颁贬听221 | Organic Chemistry I | |
| 颁贬听222 | Organic Chemistry I Lab | 1 |
| 笔驰听205 &补尘辫;听笔驰听206 | Physics for Engineers and Scientists I and Physics for Engineers and Scientists I Laboratory 1,2 | 4 |
| 笔驰听208 &补尘辫;听笔驰听209 | Physics for Engineers and Scientists II and Physics for Engineers and Scientists II Laboratory | 4 |
| Economics | ||
| 贰颁听205 | Fundamentals of Economics | 3 |
| 辞谤听贰颁听201 | Principles of Microeconomics | |
| 辞谤听础搁贰听201 | Introduction to Agricultural & Resource Economics | |
| Ethics Elective (verify requirement) | ||
| Required Courses | ||
| 惭厂贰听201 | Structure and Properties of Engineering Materials 2 | 3 |
| 惭厂贰听255 | Experimental Methods for Structural Analysis of Materials | 2 |
| 惭厂贰听260 | Mathematical Methods for Materials Engineers | 3 |
| 惭厂贰听270 | Materials Science and Engineering Seminar | 1 |
| 惭厂贰听300 | Structure of Materials at the Nanoscale | 3 |
| 惭厂贰听301 | Introduction to Thermodynamics of Materials | 3 |
| 惭厂贰听320 | Introduction to Defects in Solids | 3 |
| 惭厂贰听335 | Experimental Methods for Analysis of Material Properties | 2 |
| 惭厂贰听355 | Electrical, Magnetic and Optical Properties of Materials | 3 |
| 惭厂贰听360 | Kinetic Processes in Materials | 3 |
| 惭厂贰听370 | Microstructure of Inorganic Materials | 3 |
| 惭厂贰听380 | Microstructure of Organic Materials | 3 |
| 惭厂贰听420 | Mechanical Properties of Materials | 3 |
| 惭厂贰听423 | Introduction to Materials Engineering Design | 1 |
| 惭厂贰听470 | Materials Science and Engineering Senior Design Project | 3 |
| 惭厂贰听480 | Materials Forensics and Degradation | 3 |
| Biomaterials Concentration Courses | ||
| 叠滨翱听183 | Introductory Biology: Cellular and Molecular Biology | 4 |
| 惭厂贰听485 | Biomaterials | 3 |
| Biomaterials Electives (5 credit hour minimum) | 5 | |
| MSE Processing Elective听 | 3 | |
| Technical Writing | ||
| 贰狈骋听331 | Communication for Engineering and Technology | 3 |
| 辞谤听贰狈骋听333 | Communication for Science and Research | |
| Orientation Courses | ||
| 贰听101 | Introduction to Engineering & Problem Solving 1,3 | 1 |
| 贰听102 | Engineering in the 21st Century 3 | 2 |
| 贰听115 | Introduction to Computing Environments 1 | 1 |
| GEP Courses | ||
| 贰狈骋听101 | Academic Writing and Research 1,3 | 4 |
| GEP Humanities | 6 | |
| GEP Social Sciences | 3 | |
| GEP Health and Exercise Studies | 2 | |
| GEP Elective | 3 | |
| GEP Interdisciplinary Perspectives | 3 | |
| GEP Global Knowledge (verify requirement) | ||
| GEP Foundations of American Democracy (verify requirement) | ||
| World Language Proficiency (verify requirement) | ||
| Total Hours | 126 | |
- 1
College of Engineering CODA class
- 2
Grade of C or higher required
- 3
Grade of C- or higher required
Biomaterials Electives
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| 叠颁贬听351 | General Biochemistry | 3 |
| 叠颁贬听451 | Principles of Biochemistry | 4 |
| BEC 462/562/CHE听462/562 | Fundamentals of Bio-Nanotechnology | 3 |
| BEC 488/588/CHE听488/588 | Animal Cell Culture Engineering | 2 |
| 叠滨翱听414 | Cell Biology | 3 |
| 叠滨罢听410 | Manipulation of Recombinant DNA | 4 |
| BIT 466/566/PO听466/566 | Animal Cell Culture Techniques | 2 |
| BME 466/566/TE听466/566 | Polymeric Biomaterials Engineering | 3 |
| BME/TE 467 | Mechanics of Tissues & Implants Requirements | 3 |
| BME 483/583/BEC听483/583 | Tissue Engineering Technologies | 2 |
| 颁贬听223 &补尘辫;听颁贬听224 | Organic Chemistry II and Organic Chemistry II Lab | 4 |
| 惭厂贰听490 | Special Topics in Materials Science and Engineering (must be biomaterials related) | 1-4 |
| 惭厂贰听495 | Materials Engineering Projects (department approval required) | 3 |
| 惭罢听323 | Introduction to Theory and Practice of Medical Fiber and Yarn Formation | 3 |
| 惭罢听366 | Biotextile Product Development | 3 |
| 惭罢听432 | Evaluation of Biotextiles | 3 |
| MT/PCC 471 | Chemistry of Biopolymers | 3 |
| 笔厂贰听332 | Wood and Pulping Chemistry | 3 |
| PSE/CH 335 | Principles of Green Chemistry | 4 |
| 笔厂贰听425 | Bioenergy & Biomaterials Engineering | 3 |
| Other biomaterials electives (with departmental approval). Contact your MSE academic advisor for options. | ||
| 500-level courses (with departmental approval). Available to students who are admitted to an engineering ABM program OR have a minimum 3.5 overall GPA. | ||
MSE Processing Electives
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| MSE 440/540 | Processing of Metallic Materials | 3 |
| MSE 445/545 | Ceramic Processing | 3 |
| MSE 455/555 | Polymer Technology and Engineering | 3 |
| MSE 456/556 | Composite Materials | 3 |
| MSE 460/560 | Microelectronic Materials | 3 |
Ethics Electives
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| EED 414/514 | Ethics for Engineering Education | 3 |
| 滨顿厂听201 | Environmental Ethics | 3 |
| 笔贬滨听214 | Issues in Business Ethics | 3 |
| 笔贬滨听221 | Contemporary Moral Issues | 3 |
| 笔贬滨听227 | Data Ethics | 3 |
| PHI/STS 325 | Bio-Medical Ethics | 3 |
| 笔贬滨听375 | Ethics | 3 |
| 厂罢厂听302 | Contemporary Science, Technology and Human Values | 3 |
| 厂罢厂听304 | Ethical Dimensions of Progress | 3 |
Semester Sequence
This is a sample.
| First Year | ||
|---|---|---|
| Fall Semester | Hours | |
| 颁贬听101 &补尘辫;听颁贬听102 | Chemistry - A Molecular Science and General Chemistry Laboratory 1,2 | 4 |
| 贰狈骋听101 | Academic Writing and Research 1, 3 | 4 |
| 贰听102 | Engineering in the 21st Century 3 | 2 |
| 惭础听141 | Calculus I 1,2 | 4 |
| 贰颁听205 | Fundamentals of Economics or Principles of Microeconomics or Introduction to Agricultural & Resource Economics | 3 |
| 听 | Hours | 17 |
| Spring Semester | ||
| 颁贬听201 &补尘辫;听颁贬听202 | Chemistry - A Quantitative Science and Quantitative Chemistry Laboratory | 4 |
| 贰听101 | Introduction to Engineering & Problem Solving 1,3 | 1 |
| 贰听115 | Introduction to Computing Environments 1 | 1 |
| 惭础听241 | Calculus II 1,2 | 4 |
| 笔驰听205 &补尘辫;听笔驰听206 | Physics for Engineers and Scientists I and Physics for Engineers and Scientists I Laboratory 1,2 | 4 |
| GEP Health and Exercise Studies | 1 | |
| 听 | Hours | 15 |
| Second Year | ||
| Fall Semester | ||
| 惭厂贰听201 | Structure and Properties of Engineering Materials 2 | 3 |
| 叠滨翱听183 | Introductory Biology: Cellular and Molecular Biology | 4 |
| 惭础听242 | Calculus III 3 | 4 |
| 笔驰听208 &补尘辫;听笔驰听209 | Physics for Engineers and Scientists II and Physics for Engineers and Scientists II Laboratory | 4 |
| GEP Health and Exercise Studies | 1 | |
| 听 | Hours | 16 |
| Spring Semester | ||
| 惭厂贰听255 | Experimental Methods for Structural Analysis of Materials | 2 |
| 惭厂贰听260 | Mathematical Methods for Materials Engineers | 3 |
| 惭厂贰听270 | Materials Science and Engineering Seminar | 1 |
| 颁贬听220 or 颁贬听221 | Introductory Organic Chemistry or Organic Chemistry I | 3 |
| 颁贬听222 | Organic Chemistry I Lab | 1 |
| 惭础听341 | Applied Differential Equations I | 3 |
| GEP Requirement | 3 | |
| 听 | Hours | 16 |
| Third Year | ||
| Fall Semester | ||
| 惭厂贰听300 | Structure of Materials at the Nanoscale | 3 |
| 惭厂贰听301 | Introduction to Thermodynamics of Materials | 3 |
| 惭厂贰听320 | Introduction to Defects in Solids | 3 |
| 惭厂贰听335 | Experimental Methods for Analysis of Material Properties | 2 |
| GEP Requirement | 3 | |
| GEP Requirement | 3 | |
| 听 | Hours | 17 |
| Spring Semester | ||
| 惭厂贰听355 | Electrical, Magnetic and Optical Properties of Materials | 3 |
| 惭厂贰听360 | Kinetic Processes in Materials | 3 |
| 惭厂贰听370 | Microstructure of Inorganic Materials | 3 |
| 惭厂贰听380 | Microstructure of Organic Materials | 3 |
| 惭厂贰听485 | Biomaterials | 3 |
| 听 | Hours | 15 |
| Fourth Year | ||
| Fall Semester | ||
| 惭厂贰听420 | Mechanical Properties of Materials | 3 |
| 惭厂贰听423 | Introduction to Materials Engineering Design | 1 |
| 贰狈骋听331 or 贰狈骋听333 | Communication for Engineering and Technology or Communication for Science and Research | 3 |
| MSE Processing Elective | 3 | |
| Biomaterials Concentration Elective | 2-4 | |
| GEP Requirement | 3 | |
| 听 | Hours | 15 |
| Spring Semester | ||
| 惭厂贰听470 | Materials Science and Engineering Senior Design Project | 3 |
| 惭厂贰听480 | Materials Forensics and Degradation | 3 |
| 厂罢听370 | Probability and Statistics for Engineers | 3 |
| Biomaterials Concentration Elective | 2-4 | |
| Ethics Elective (GEP Requirement) | 3 | |
| 听 | Hours | 15 |
| 听 | Total Hours | 126 |
- 1
College of Engineering CODA class
- 2
Grade of C or higher required
- 3
Grade of C- or higher required
Career Opportunities
Earning a Bachelor of Science in MSE: Biomaterials Concentration offers graduates a wealth of exciting career opportunities across diverse industries. The interdisciplinary nature of an MSE education prepares individuals to work in roles that involve designing, developing, and optimizing materials that drive innovation and address societal needs. Here鈥檚 what you can expect:
Starting Salary: Graduates in MSE typically earn an average starting salary of $70,000 to $90,000 per year.
What can I do with a Biomaterials Concentration?听
The Biomaterials concentration is structured to provide a strong foundation for a variety of career paths. Graduates are prepared to enter industries such as medical devices, pharmaceuticals, or biotechnology, where they can contribute to the development of innovative materials and technologies that improve patient care and quality of life. Alternatively, students may choose to pursue advanced studies in graduate or professional programs, including materials science, bioengineering, or medicine, further expanding their expertise in this dynamic and impactful field.听
Common Industries
- Biomedical & Healthcare: Design biomaterials for prosthetics, medical devices, tissue engineering, and drug delivery systems.
- Pharmaceuticals & Biotechnology: Develop biocompatible materials for targeted drug delivery, diagnostics, and therapeutics.
- Aerospace & Defense: Engineer lightweight, high-performance materials for implants, protective gear, and space medicine applications.
- Energy & Sustainability: Create biopolymers and environmentally friendly materials for energy storage and renewable technologies.
- Regenerative Medicine: Innovate biomaterials for wound healing, stem cell therapy, and tissue scaffolding.
- Diagnostics & Biosensors: Develop materials for medical imaging, diagnostic devices, and lab-on-a-chip technologies.
- Consumer & Wearable Tech: Improve smart textiles, antimicrobial coatings, and biocompatible wearables.
- Environmental Engineering: Engineer biodegradable materials for sustainable packaging, water purification, and pollution control.
Career Titles
- Biomaterials Scientist: Conducting research to develop advanced biomaterials for medical applications.听
- Biomaterial Engineer: Developing and designing materials for medical devices, implants, and drug delivery systems.
- R&D Engineer/Scientist: Innovating biomaterials for drug delivery, diagnostics, and biotechnology.
- Regulatory Affairs Specialist: Ensuring biomaterials and devices meet regulatory standards and compliance.
- Clinical Research Scientist: Evaluating the performance and safety of biomaterial-based products.
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