Welcome message

Dear Colleagues and Friends,

The Erasmus program, launched in 1988, has profoundly shaped education in Europe, enriching the lives of over 9 million participants over its 30-year history. This milestone was celebrated in 2018 with various events, culminating in a plenary session at the European Parliament in Strasbourg.

Inspired by the Erasmus initiative, Professor Vassilis Proimos of the University of Patras (UPAT), Greece, envisioned the creation of a joint collaborative postgraduate program in Biomedical Engineering. This innovative program brought together European universities, fostering collaboration between educators and students from across Europe. The idea was met with enthusiastic support, marking the beginning of a remarkable 35-year journey. The University of Patras was entrusted with organizing the program, and in 1989, a call was issued for the first cohort of students, supported by Erasmus scholarships. The program officially began in the 1989–1990 academic year, and the first graduates earned their degrees in 1990—exactly 35 years ago.

Plans to organize a reunion for teachers, alumni, students, and associated staff were initiated in 2018, receiving widespread enthusiasm. Originally scheduled for May 2020 to coincide with the 30-year milestone, the event was unfortunately postponed due to the global COVID-19 pandemic.

Now, we are excited to announce that the time has come to bring this vision to life. It is with great joy that we invite you to join us in celebrating this landmark anniversary.
We are proud to present the Erasmus UPAT 35 Years Anniversary Reunion, and we warmly welcome all alumni, teachers, students, supporters, and associated staff to participate in making this a truly memorable event.

Additionally, this milestone year provides a unique opportunity to revive the tradition of the European Symposia on Biomedical Engineering (ESBME). First launched in 1998, these symposia were held every two years until 2010, bringing together Biomedical Engineering professionals and students from across Europe. The upcoming ESBME 2025 will focus on “Medical Technology and the Role of Education” and will be combined with the Erasmus UPAT 35 Years Anniversary Reunion.

We look forward to reuniting with all of you in Patras for this special celebration of innovation, collaboration, and shared history.

Warm regards,
Prof. Nicolas Pallikarakis
Chairman of the Event

A Short story of the Erasmus BME Program in Patras

The Erasmus Postgraduate Program on Biomedical Engineering was created in 1989 at the University of Patras as a joint effort of more than 20 EU Universities of the 12 member countries at that time. During his long travel the program is proud to achieve certain very important goals summarized in the following table.

Since 2015, a new Master Program in Biomedical Engineering that builds upon this long and successful tradition, was reestablished, by three departments of the Faculty of Engineering: Electrical & Computer Engineering, Computer Engineering & Informatics, and Mechanical Engineering & Aeronautics, and the School of Medicine of the University of Patras. This new MSc in BME is currently working on the re-establishment of a strong network of collaboration with other European Universities.

The importance of BME Education

Given the spectacular progress in Medical Technology during the last years and the even more critical role that this field is expected to play in the future, it becomes evident that BME education is of extreme importance. Biomedical engineers constantly have to face new requirements, demands and challenges. Therefore, BME study programs should keep pace with this impressive progress and provide students with all necessary knowledge and skills. 

In addition, great emphasis is placed on the harmonisation of BME study programs in order for students to have not only similar curricula but also the possibility to do part of their studies in a collaborating university abroad. During the last decade, the University of Patras, represented by the Postgraduate Programme on BME, coordinated two major EU research projects, CRH-BME and BME-ENA, which aimed to the harmonisation of BME study programs in Europe.

The Institute of Biomedical Technology (INBIT) reviewed the study programs in Biomedical Engineering. A complete database with more than 340 undergraduate and postgraduate BME study programs currently offered in Europe is available here: https://www.inbit.gr/en/bme_programs/.

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