In 1924, approximately 100 years ago, the "Magnoscope" (an electric stethoscope) was developed through joint research by Professor Akira Sato of the Department of Pediatrics in the School of Medicine and Professor Heiichi Nukiyama of the Department of Electrical Engineering in the School of Engineering (who later became the first Director of the Research Institute of Electrical Communication). Starting with this invention, a tradition of collaboration between medicine and engineering has been passed down continuously at our university for generations.
The Graduate School of Biomedical Engineering at Tohoku University was established in April 2008 with the aim of conducting education and research in "Biomedical Engineering," a fusion field combining medicine, biology, and engineering. It is the youngest graduate school at our university and stands as the only graduate school dedicated solely to biomedical engineering in Japan. Based on the university’s principles of "Research First," "Open Doors," and "Practice-Oriented Research and Education," our mission is to contribute to the welfare and development of human society. We strive to achieve this by promoting world-class research, cultivating global leaders, innovating academic foundations, and fundamentally reforming medical care.
The goal of biomedical engineering research is to aid in the diagnosis and treatment of diseases and the maintenance of health—in other words, to contribute to the advancement of medicine. However, this does not merely imply the development of technology for medical purposes. Biomedical engineering research is, simultaneously, both engineering research and medical research. Therefore, researchers with diverse backgrounds in medicine and engineering work together in education and research at our graduate school. We accept students from a wide range of fields and have produced over 650 master's graduates and over 150 doctoral graduates to date.
Currently, the Graduate School comprises 11 divisions: "Biomedical Measurements and Diagnostics," "Biomedical Engineering for Diagnosis and Treatment," "Biomechanical Engineering," "Regenerative and Biomedical Engineering," "Biomedical Engineering for Health and Welfare," "Medical Device Innovation," "Biofluids Control System," "Artificial Organs," "Medical Materials," "Biomedical System Control Engineering," and "Biomedical Information Systems." In addition, we have established the Biomedical Engineering Cancer Research Center, the Medical Device Innovation Center, and two Co-creation Research Centers, expanding our research across a multitude of fields. Furthermore, our graduate curriculum offers three courses—"Basic Biomedical Engineering," "Applied Biomedical Engineering," and "Medical Device Innovation"—providing a broad range of education and research that spans from the elucidation of basic principles to design thinking and regulatory science aimed at social implementation.
In December 2024, Tohoku University was accredited and approved as the first "University for International Research Excellence." To meet the expectations accompanying this designation, our Graduate School is determined to redouble its efforts in promoting world-leading research and fostering talent. We sincerely ask for your continued support and guidance.
Dean, Graduate School of Biomedical Engineering
Tatsuo Yoshinobu
Biomedical engineering is an education and research discipline that seeks to bring innovation to the conventional fields of medicine and biology through an engineering perspective predicated on mathematics, physics and chemistry. Biomedical engineering marries engineering theory, knowledge and practical applications with basic knowledge and specialized technology from medicine and biology in order to further understand the mechanisms and functions of life and, in turn, to promote ongoing advancements in medicine, biology and engineering.
The Graduate School of Biomedical Engineering is dedicated to the pursuit of international-standard biomedical research in line with the tenets of Tohoku University: research first, an open-door policy, and an overriding emphasis on practice-oriented research and education. Research programs at the Graduate School equip graduates with the basic theory and applied expertise to become world-leading researchers and advanced engineers. Our mission is to contribute to social welfare and to improve human welfare by taking a new approach to the conventional foundations of this academic discipline and promoting fundamental innovation in the field of medicine.
Our aim is to educate researchers and engineers who have creativity, strong research skills, and expert knowledge in the integrated field of biomedical engineering. These researchers and engineers will pursue their own research and development to promote evolution and innovation in science for the improvement of medicine and social welfare in order to realize a truly affluent society.
Biomedical engineering is a new interdisciplinary field that bridges the gap between engineering and biomedicine and, by integrating them, aims for the evolution of both. This field develops not only by collaboration and expertise in medicine and engineering, but also by creation of new discipline. Therefore, in our graduate school of biomedical engineering, we teach in-depth knowledge and techniques of engineering and broad expertise in biomedicine to foster the discovery of new principles in biology and medical science and new technology for medical diagnosis and treatment.
| Dean, Graduate School of Biomedical Engineering | YOSHINOBU, Tatsuo |
| Member of Education and Research Council / Vice-Dean, Graduate School of Biomedical Engineering / Advisor to the Dean (Research and Compliance) | ISHIKAWA, Takuji |
| Advisor to the Dean (Education and Student Affairs ) | WATANABE, Takashi |
| Advisor to the Dean (Financial Affairs) | YABUKAMI, Shin |
| Advisor to the Dean (Future vision & Hospital Cooperation) | NIIZUMA, Kuniyasu |
| Advisor to the Dean (Gender Equality) | TANAKA, Mami |
| Advisor to the Dean (Public Relations) | TANAKA, Tetsu |
| Director, Biomedical Engineering Cancer Research Center | KODAMA, Tetsuya |
| Director, Medical Device Innovation Center | SAIJO, Yoshifumi |
