Master of Bioengineering | Global Medical Innovation

Our program teaches you an early stage medical device design perspective and shows you three different perspectives (lenses) that change how this process is applied. Students conduct observations in the Texas Medical Center (TMC), take a trip to the Rio Grande Valley (RGV) to understand a different patient population, and spend time in Costa Rica, Central America’s hub for medical device manufacturing.

Students begin their GMI program with a summer-long experience in Costa Rica. They conduct clinical observations in local environments with students from Costa Rican Universities led by Rice University Faculty. Identified needs are tackled in the Medical Innovation Bootcamp, taught by Rice University faculty, Costa Rican faculty , and representatives from the medical device industry. Students then spend the rest of the summer working for a medical technology company in Costa Rica, learning about the medical device industry from an emerging market perspective.

After returning to the United States for classes in the fall, the GMI curriculum puts students in charge of early- and late-stage projects. Through a series of project-based courses, GMI allows students to interact with clinicians, researchers, entrepreneurs, and innovators in the world’s largest medical center to validate and explore real-world clinical needs, and then innovate on those needs in multi-disciplinary teams.

We invite applications from a wide variety of students. Students in STEM programs who are interested in learning and gaining a global perspective on engineering medical solutions are strongly encouraged to apply. To learn more, you can join one of our bi-monthly info sessions to learn more or check our website’s requirements section.