In terms of jobs, when I start working, I want to be in a job that does research and also building and development. I want to be part of a team that develops next-level prosthetic technology to be able to help people. But in terms of practical jobs, I want to start working at companies in their research or development department because I believe that that’s where I can learn and succeed the most. However, in the future, I plan to become a project manager and eventually become an owner of a company. I would like to start doing manual labor first in order to be familiar with the ins and outs of the business and eventually when I get into project management, I will be better able to manage the work and the workers in order to make the job process more efficient.

I would like to work in R&D department of any medical industry. Research is the place where you explore and get new ideas. You can put yourself in to the world of your own creations.Currently I feel that after working in medical industry for some years, I would like to shift myself to academia. So working in R&D would be really helpful for pursuing my future PhD program. And also, I feel that only if I work in industry for few years, I can perfectly guide the students according to their interest. I can say that I would like to go into both the fields and learn things.

Currently I am Working as a production engineering CO-OP at Getinge. While I am so grateful to be employeed and appreciate the industry related work it is far from what I want to do for the rest of my life. It is a lot of paperwork and plenty of reading and revising. Currently, still being an undergraduate I am happy to just be in the industry but my end goal is either research and development or going into sales. I recently started leaning towards sales because of my outgoing personality and desire to be around people.

As a hopeful medical student, I took this course because working on medical products is something I would love to do as a doctor. As a doctor, I would be in a position to provide valuable consulting expertise, but I would need to distinguish myself from the many other doctors in the employment market by bringing an understanding of medical device development, as well as general industry knowledge. Ideally, I would find myself rotating between working in industrial and clinical settings.

To answer your question regarding consulting: In order to be a "real" consultant, you need years of experience. Companies will usually reach out to you specifically for special projects that need to be done and will look for you to advise on how to complete it. I think the best path for doing consulting in engineering is to create your own consulting company at some point. There are business consulting firms also (The Big 4: Ernst & Young, Pricewaterhousecoopers, Deloitte, KPMG) where they focus mostly on financial consulting, however I do know they have done consulting for medical device companies in terms of project management and supply chain.

Don't get this confused with consulting that is done through a contracting company. That is completely different but they tend to call it consulting as well. They usually hire people to work on specific projects that companies need done and these companies reach out to them to find someone. Its usually an hourly rate and for a fixed term and without benefits. This is good way to get experience if you can't get an employee status in a company.
But essentially how it works:
-Medical Device Company reaches out to big consulting firm (Ex. Kelly Services / Adecco) and says we will give you $80,000 to find us a Biomedical Engineer
-The consulting firm post the job and says "We are looking for a Biomedical Engineering for a Medical Device Company and the hourly rate is ~$29/hr (roughly $60,000).
-Consulting firm keeps that $20,000 dollar difference
-You take the job but you are an employee of the consulting firm NOT the medical company. They sometimes stress that to you for legal reasons.

More importantly, what are the pros and cons of this:
Pros:
- Good way to get experience if you are struggling trying to get a job as an employee. The recruiters are usually more open to hiring people even if they don't fit the qualifications completely.
- Sometimes the the company will hire you as an employee after your contracting term is up.
- Hourly rate leads to working overtime. Overtime in the state of NJ pays 1.5 times more than the hourly rate. However, the contracting companies will fight your overtime hours.

Cons:
- No job security. Once the agreed term is over, they are allowed to let you go unless the company chooses to re-new your contract
- Most of the time, no benefits or decent benefits
- Sometimes the company you are consulting for doesn't allow contractors to use the perks of the company

Thats basically how it works.

I did not graduate yet, so I am not going to be that much of a help. However, I think you should try everything, either work in the industry or academia. Since you are still young you have time to explore all kinds of jobs before you actually decided on what you want to do. Try to spend a couple of years to discover what you like more, if you find yourself that you like research more then go with academia, if you find yourself in need of a good starting salary and a set schedule then go with industry. Other than that just make yourself open to any experience that will benefit you, and later on you might find a job position that consists of research and projects in the industry, that is if you like both fields.

I graduated from Electrical Engineering and currently I work in the medical imaging technology,(CAT scans,MRIs, nuclear cameras,...), I love this field.So, I decided to get my MS degree in BME.I find this class will be a great opportunity to learn more a bout medical device development. My goal is to keep working and learning to manage projects on my company.

I have been working as a Product Development Engineer for 2 years in the medical device industry. My team is focused on designing implants and instruments for spine surgery. Overall, I really enjoy my work. Although certain projects that I have worked on have not been so enjoyable, looking at the big picture, I am satisfied with my career thus far. In my role, we develop medical devices from start to finish. Here is just a high level overview of what my job entails. In the initial phase of the project We meet with surgeons in cadaver labs to get their input, and then our job is to create designs based on their input. That is definitely my favorite part of my job. I enjoy the challenge of creating a design that meets all the criteria and also does not violate any of the design constraints. Once the concepts are designed, we are responsible for working through Design for Manufacturing (DFM) and a ton of other design control documentation. This is where projects can become tedious and monotonous. However, it is also a very critical phase of the project to ensure a successful launch, and to ensure that the product you are going to launch is safe for the end user.

Although I have yet to work in industry, I would like to work as a design engineer. I can see how familiarity with FDA regulations can be a great asset/necessity for Design/R&D Engineers when designing as things such as material selection for a device or implant have mandates. However, I am looking forward to discovering and discussing further how FDA regulations shape the design process and prototyping.

SRG36 your position sounds like a blast. To the Product design engineers here, Is there anything in particular in your academics or otherwise that has been vital in preparing you for your present position?

Hello kak33,

I have been working as a Production and Purchasing Manager in Health Concepts since 3 years. We initially used to buy vitamins, supplements, proteins and health products from distributors and sell them on Amazon. The profit margins being so high, we decided to introduce our own brands though sales and profits were low initially but once they got recognition in market, sky was the only limit. So where do we buy these vitamins, supplements, proteins etc? Pharmaceutical companies. Large orders being placed since sales picked up. Due to competitive market profit margin became less. This triggered us to start our own facility that would satisfy our requirements, less expensive and good quality products. Starting a manufacturing unit was not a easy task. Getting the machines, labor, GMP facility, raw material suppliers and many more.
Although setting up manufacturing unit was not an easy task, me and my team of 15 members are everyday thriving to get the best out of our self to achieve our targets

Although I am currently not working, I do feel it is important explore both paths. This way you can have a better feel for which job suits your interests. Also, you will gain more experience, and become more knowledgeable in both areas. I hope through this course that I will get an understanding on what is required with medical device development. I plan to use the knowledge acquired through the course in helping me to determine the type of position I would want to work in. I do have more interest in working in industry than in academia, as it seems to be a better fit for me. However, I am open to trying out both fields to determine which one I enjoy more.

Academia and Industry have their own advantages and disadvantages. I have been working in academia (research at NJIT) from 6 months and also have previous industry experience for an year. In research field, to put our ideas, create and/or invent is time consuming and the result at the end would be promising. Also, a person can choose the difinitive path to achieve the goals and get results in academia. However, in industry it is given by your supervisor and it is the duty of the employee to deliver. Furthermore, in research, the results are sometimes not promising that leads to loss of credibility of the entire group. Research requires more patience to see the results where as in industry the impact can be seen sooner. Hence, in terms of improving career and growth, industry would be more better option than research.

I am currently interning in a startup that is working on Biometric systems for IAM ( identity & access management). As a person who is young in my professional career, I would like to share my insights as a research engineer in an industry and compare research in academia. No doubt that a career as a researcher in academia, he/she gets to meet pioneers in that field and get hands-on with cutting-edge technologies. Furthermore, in academia, he/she can focus on his/her topic/field in which he/she has an inclination. However, along with research study, he/she is expected to bring in money (grants), write proposals, figure out the logistics and face lot of politics (without including teaching courses). Such issues are not generally observed in a profession in an industry (politics sometimes maybe an issue). Also, there is flexibility in terms of job description and duties in an industry environment.

I believe that to translate a new discovery or an invention into a business model, mear technical knowledge or research skills are not enough. A cumulative effort from a group of individuals with different backgrounds and roles is generally an effective way to achieve it. Even Though the industry is fast-paced, recognition is based on merit. Furthermore, Many companies are investing a lot in its R&D wing to compete with others and to be a step ahead in their field. Hence, research jobs in MedTech industries and bio-pharma firms are lucrative and more satisfying.

I have had experience working in the industry for the past two summers as an intern at medical device company.I do not have the experience working the academia but from the video lecture and from hearing from my friends who have been doing research in biomedical engineering at NJIT, I believe I am more suited for industry. I like having a fast paced work space because it pushes me to work faster. Also when working in the industry, you get to meet and interact with people from different fields and allow for more networking opportunities.