Originally Posted by AvacadoLover

If I don't want to go to medical school or graduate school, is it still prudent to pursue a degree in Electrical and Biomedical Engineering?

Yes!

I think the electrical engineering program at McMaster is horrible when compared to other universities. Biomedical Engineers are introduced to a wide range of fields (biology, chemistry, electromagnetics, engineering), and therefore have more opportunities than electrical.

I know people biomedical engineering who ended up doing an internship in ASIC design and verification (Hardware Design). Since they do some software, you can also end up in software engineering or electronic engineering. You are able to take electives in last year, and do courses if you want to do something else.

Undergrad is all getting the background knowledge, and because of that I think the biomed program is amazing in that regard.

I would say go for it, it is a good program with lots of opportunities, not to mention more girl .

Come to think about it, spark is right. There is an M.Eng for biomedical, it is specifically for the people from the eng program. The M.A.Sc. for biomedical is open to people from other faculties as well.

Can you really base your decision on whether you like an engineering field based on high school courses. E.g. liking electrical engineering based on your experience on the "electricity" unit in high school physics? I've also had no programming experience, aside from REALLY REALLY basic from codeacademy, will I only know if I like electrical engineering after I finish first year of engineering?

Originally Posted by J.Clouseau

Can you really base your decision on whether you like an engineering field based on high school courses. E.g. liking electrical engineering based on your experience on the "electricity" unit in high school physics? I've also had no programming experience, aside from REALLY REALLY basic from codeacademy, will I only know if I like electrical engineering after I finish first year of engineering?

I don't think you should base your 2nd year eng program based on high school material. However, if you like "electricity" from high school and have a passion for circuits and stuff Like that and you realize after first year that you are still passionate about it, then go for it. Lots of people end up changing their mind after like a semester of engineering. I "loved" the electricity unit in high school, but i can't say the same about phys 1e03 :p Ohh and as i said earlier, phys 1e03 is not a great indication about ECE.

If you like electrical engineering, do some research about it on your own. Also, as i mentioned earlier, there is going to be an electrical engineering presentation later on in first year. You can ask profs and upper years and about the program.

I've been doing research on all the fields of engineering. I am a type of person who doesn't know what I like until I actually do it.. so I guess you can't really substitute research for actually being in class and doing the work. That's why I want to do a general first year engineering so I can expose myself to all the fields so I can see what I like. Btw, thanks for all your replies, it's been really helpful. ^.^

Right I forgot to mention that in the M.A.Sc program allows about 50% engineers and 50% science students. It pretty diverse and a lot more research based while the M.Eng is project based.

Also, I don't think that high school is a good indication of whether or not you're going to like any engineering program. People automatically assume that if they're not good at high school physics then they'll hate engineering, for example. Personally, I hated physics in high school (and also in first year) but I slightly enjoyed circuit analysis and the electromagnetics parts. I liked biology a lot more and I thought I had made the biggest mistake going into engineering and was so close to switching to science but I'm really glad I didn't. I'm actually enjoying the stuff I'm learning in electrical so far (never thought I'd ever say that lol) and I'm doing better than expected.

You'll get a feel for how things are in first year and there are plenty of people who change their minds during first year. I was planning on going into chemical and bioengineering since I liked chemistry in high school, but I soon realized that that is not a good indication of whether you'll actually like chemical engineering.

Sounds awesome. I am wondering about the dreaded "grade jump." On different forums, I've seen pessimists say how you'll be lucky to experience a 15-20% drop, more commonly more. For those who attend a high school where if you actually work for your grades (but not a super hard strict school, just an ordinary one), if you worked hard and high school and are willing to work hard in university, is it still possible to obtain good marks? Also, would these "good marks" be good enough to get into electrical & biomedical engineering as it is excluded in free choice and is based on first year marks.

Originally Posted by J.Clouseau

Sounds awesome. I am wondering about the dreaded "grade jump." On different forums, I've seen pessimists say how you'll be lucky to experience a 15-20% drop, more commonly more. For those who attend a high school where if you actually work for your grades (but not a super hard strict school, just an ordinary one), if you worked hard and high school and are willing to work hard in university, is it still possible to obtain good marks? Also, would these "good marks" be good enough to get into electrical & biomedical engineering as it is excluded in free choice and is based on first year marks.

Most people i know got lower in first year engineering than what they got in high school. However, it is possible to maintain 85+ in first year engineering but it's not going to be easy! Getting an 11-12 in first year is going to be a big challenge. First year eng is a new experience and some people have trouble adjusting to the new life and all that. If you manage your time very well in first year you should be fine. You should study hard and "smart"; know how to study.

About free choice, just work hard in first year and try not to drop/fail anything and you should be fine. If you fail/drop anything then you have to get slightly higher than people who finished first year with a full course load.

Well, everyone has a different experience in high school. I came from a really strict high school because I'd done an advanced program. To be honest, my high school grades were pretty bad, so I was well acquainted with getting not so good grades unlike some people who got really discouraged because they used to have 90's and they fell to a 60. I ended up getting similar grades to high school and sometimes I did better than high school.

The "grade jump" goes differently for everyone, but from what I saw there is usually a drop in grades, especially in engineering. In first year there is a lot of math and physics and you'll have the biggest course load out of all first years in all the other programs. This is why TIME MANAGEMENT is crucial. But at the same time don't worry too much because if you work hard then you can definitely get good grades. Also, remember that most of the other people with you aren't doing so well either.

As for biomedical, it is a fairly competitive stream, but the cutoff average changes every year. No one can tell you for sure what that grade is, but it is expected to be above a 7 (B-). I'd say to aim above an 8 (B) just to be safe. Just try your best and don't stress on the things you have no control over.

Okay thank you very much.

Would an undergrad degree in Mechanical engineering suffice for a graduate degree in biomedical engineering?

Yes . since it is multidisciplinary and new field so not everyone can do it in undergrad. but check the requirements for which program you want yourself.

This is the masc program which is more flexible as in who they let in ( ie 50% eng /50% science )

http://msbe.mcmaster.ca/graduate/entrance.html

Info on both Meng and masc

http://www.ece.mcmaster.ca/admission.htm

Cool thing , you can start your grad while in undergrad
http://www.ece.mcmaster.ca/admission.htm

Thanks for all the replies! I took grade 11 biology and I didn't really like it, not sure if I really want to do grade 12..