How to Become a Medical Device Software Engineer

A medical device software engineer writes the computer program that drives the operations of a medical device. The engineer's work creates the intelligence behind the functions of a medical product. Sometimes, the software becomes the eyes and ears of the doctors and nurses when a patient is closely monitored. The work of a medical device software engineer can improve hospital efficiency.

Things You'll Need

• Internet access
• Funds for four years of college

Instructions

Before College

1. Assess your education level and your strengths. A medical device software engineer combines the skills and knowledge of computer programming and engineering with knowledge of biology and medicine. So take as many advanced science and math course as possible in high school.

   A bachelors degree is the minimum, with many employers seeking -- and paying for -- higher degrees. Because this field operates within the boundaries of strict regulation from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), you need a temperament open to accurately following legal guidelines.

2. Study the website of the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology organization, abet.org, that provides a list of accredited engineering programs by specialty. Select the ones that offer software engineering or biomedical engineering undergraduate programs.

3. Seek a part-time or summer job with an organization in life sciences that will allow you to develop an understanding of the types of work that software engineers perform in medical companies.

In College

1. Take a portfolio of courses that include regulatory management, medical information technology and software programming in addition to the medical engineering classes.

2. Choose class assignments that explore the value of software-driven medical devices to demonstrate that you understand the range of parameters involved with the human body. Good areas to consider are software-assisted surgical tools or prosthesis controlled by software.

3. Plan your internships with companies in the industry of software development for medical devices or in related fields.

4. Participate in professional medical networking events, workshops and seminars and meet as many professionals as possible. Keep detailed notes on whom you met and their area of expertise.

Upon Graduation

1. Create a resume that describes the experiences that you built through class assignments and internships. Emphasize the ones related to software development for medical devices.

2. Inform the companies who gave you internships that you are seeking your first employment as a medical device software engineer.

3. Network with professors and professionals in the medical device industry and introduce yourself as a medical device software engineer eager to take on your first professional engagement. Solicit their help in making you aware of new job postings that may fit your career aspirations.

Tips & Warnings

• Training in patient safety strengthens a student's profile for a position in medical device software development.

• Volunteer work with hospitals raises the awareness of the value of this role in the medical engineering field.

• Working in the field of medical engineering means respecting very high requirements in patient safety. The software needs to be tested thoroughly to ensure that under no condition the device may injure the patient. This will lead to long validation cycles and heavy amount of documentation.

References

• Bureau of Labor Statistics: Computer Software Engineers
• Bureau of Labor Statistics: Biomedical Engineers
• ABET: Search Tool of Engineering Accredited College Programs
• FDA: General Principles of Software Validation
• IESE: Study on the State of Software Development in Medical Systems"; Christian Denger; Apr. 2007

Resources

• IEEE Computer Society: "A Survey of Software Engineering Techniques..."; R. Feldmann; 2007