Skip to main content
Department of Bioengineering

Healthcare Innovation and Design Minor

The Healthcare Innovation and Design minor addresses the need to educate and train next-generation leaders who will contribute to the efforts in the design and development of technologies and services that will revolutionize various areas of healthcare and medicine.

Two students use virtual reality in the BioInnovations and Design Lab

The minor is suitable for undergraduates in a wide variety of disciplines, and it empowers them with technical and interdisciplinary skills, as well as the ability to work in diverse teams in service of healthcare innovation and design. For more information, contact Dr. Prashanth Asuri.

Requirements for the Healthcare Innovation and Design Minor

The minor includes requirements in the areas of healthcare innovation, design thinking and entrepreneurship, and technical thematic areas relevant to healthcare. Students are also required to complete an experiential activity to put these concepts into practice, as well as participate in co-/extra-curricular activities to examine diverse areas of healthcare innovation through discussion and reflection. Multiple options are available for each of these requirements, affording students a great deal of flexibility in completing the minor.

Completion of the Healthcare Innovation and Design minor requires satisfying the requirements listed below:

Foundational Courses

a. Introduction to design thinking and innovation (4 units minimum):

Select one of the following options:

  • Option A: Four units from the courses listed below:
    • ENGR 110. Community-Based Engineering Design (3 units)
    • ENGR 166A/B. Introduction to Design Thinking I and II (1 each)
    • ENGR 171A/B. Opportunity Recognition I and II (1 each)
    • ENGR 172A/B. Applied Entrepreneurship I and II (1 each)
  • Option B: MGMT 164. Introduction to Entrepreneurship (5 units)

b. Introduction to Healthcare Innovation (4 units minimum):

  • BIOE 111. Introduction to Healthcare Innovation (4 units)

If the course is used towards the requirements of the minor, it may not be used to fulfill the requirement of other majors or minors.

Technical Elective Courses (8 units minimum)

Select two courses from one of the following topical themes: 

  • Biodevice design and engineering: BIOE 106, BIOE 163, BIOE 168, BIOE 174
  • Biomolecular and cellular sciences/engineering: BIOE 175, BIOE 176, BIOL 174, BIOL 175, BIOL 176, BIOL 177
  • Business, entrepreneurship, and management: ECON 154, MGMT 165, MGMT 177, MKTG 187, MKTG 191, PHSC/SOCI 172
  • Data science, analytics and engineering: BIOE 120, BIOE 177A&B, BIOE 180, BIOL 170, BIOL 178, CSCI 183, CSCI 184, COEN 140, COEN 166
  • Design and prototyping: COEN 168, ELEN 123 (also listed as COEN 123 and MECH 143), ELEN 131, MECH 144
  • Instrumentation and measurement: BIOE 161, BIOE 162, COEN 143, ELEN 115, ELEN 133, ELEN 134, ELEN 167
  • Neuroscience: BIOL 122, PSYC 165, PSYC 169
  • Public Health: PHSC 103, PHSC 150, PHSC 156
  • Strategic Communications and Marketing: COMM 100, COMM 114, COMM 124, COMM 151, COMM 160, COMM 161H, COMM 173, ENGL 100, ENGL 112, MKTG 179, MKTG 182

Courses used to fulfill the requirement of other majors or minors cannot be counted towards this requirement.

Experiential Activity (5 units minimum)

An academically supervised, experiential activity that challenges students to integrate knowledge and skills from diverse areas of study, and to collaborate and communicate as a team to conduct a project related to healthcare innovation, and practice iterative design, development, and validation of solutions.

Select one of the following options:

  • Option A: Relevant business, engineering or sciences senior capstone course (5-9 units, depending on the major) related to the design and development of a healthcare product or service.
  • Option B: Supervised laboratory, directed research, or practicum course (5 units minimum) related to the design and development of a healthcare product or service culminating in a written report, submitted paper, or thesis, and approved in advance by the minor program coordinator(s).
Co/Extracurricular Component

Participation in co-/extra-curricular activities to examine diverse areas of healthcare innovation through discussion and reflection.

Select one of the following options:

  • Option A: Attend at least four seminars in the Healthcare Innovation Seminars series and submit a brief reflection describing how the topics resonated with you personally and professionally.
  • Option B: Participate in two extra-curricular design challenges, ideathons, or hackathons related to healthcare approved in advance by the minor program coordinator(s).
  • Option C: Complete coursework from approved seminar courses listed below (1 unit minimum).
    • BIOE 100. Bioengineering Research Seminar
    • BIOL 101. Biology Research Seminar
    • LEAD 20. Exploring Health Care Vocations
    • NEUR 150. Neuroscience Research Seminar
Current Student Resources Apply Now

Contact Us

Chair: Prashanth Asuri
Department Manager: Kendra Gonzalez

Bioengineering
Santa Clara University
500 El Camino Real
Santa Clara, CA 95053

Sobrato Discovery, Bldg. 402

408-554-4874

Current Student Resources