Assistant Professor of Practice Lawrence Technological University Livonia, Michigan, United States
Introduction: : Current models of biomedical engineering education are unsustainable in the wake of advances in artificial intelligence. Frontier AI tools fundamentally disrupt the pedagogical and economic foundations of an undergraduate biomedical engineering education. A radical series of reforms must take place or degree offerings in BME will likely cease to exist.
Materials and
Methods: : This paper analyzes: 1) How the capabilities of current AI tools disrupt the content, delivery, and assessment of core BME knowledge and skills. 2) How this disruption has upended the business model and purpose of an undergraduate BME education. 3) Potential alternatives which may supersede traditional undergraduate BME programs.
From this analysis, a novel curriculum framework is proposed. This novel framework is based on three elements: a) Engineering studio courses organized around design projects incorporating skill-building activities and hands-on prototyping. b) Course-based research experiences (CREs) conducting replication studies. c) Directed research overseen by faculty and graduate students conducting novel research.
Results, Conclusions, and Discussions:: This framework is robust to capabilities improvements in the current AI paradigm and offers a new value proposition for undergraduate students. By focusing on higher-level cognitive skills, this framework shifts instruction away from learning objectives in the first two levels of Bloom's Taxonomy. Adoption of this framework will afford undergraduate BME programs sustainability, differentiation, and enhanced research productivity in the wake of AI advancements. A pilot program for implementing this framework is outlined and discussed.
