Biomedical Engineer
Engineering
Build medical devices and technology that improve patient care.
Why it matters here: NIH, FDA, and biotech in Rockville and Gaithersburg.
Labor Market — DMV Region
Sourced from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS releases (DMV metro and nationwide) plus MD, VA, and D.C. workforce agencies.
Local cost of living is why DMV pay often differs from the national median.
- DMV & state figures: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — OEWS wage & employment estimates and Employment Projections, with OEWS area pay relatives for the Washington–Arlington–Alexandria metro, Maryland, D.C., and Northern Virginia · View source
- Occupation profiles & skills: O*NET OnLine (U.S. Department of Labor) · onetonline.org
All salary figures are published estimates for groups of workers, not offers or guarantees for any individual role.
Education & Career Pathways
Multiple ways to get here — pick the one that fits your life.
Career Progression
How you can grow — with expected salary at each step.
- Entry-level Biomedical EngineerLearning the role, supervised work, building core skills.$90,470
- Biomedical Engineer (experienced)Independent work, mentoring newer team members.$116,580
- Senior / Lead Biomedical EngineerOwning projects, specialization, higher responsibility.$148,240
- Manager or specialist trackSupervising a team or moving into a high-demand specialty.$177,888
Skills Required
What you'll actually do — and how you'll be judged.
Lab, office and hospital settings, weekday hours
Where you work
A device lab or R&D office, plus hospital visits to see clinicians actually use what you build.
Hours and schedule
Weekday hours, with pressure around design freezes and regulatory submissions.
Pace and pressure
Long regulated development cycles with heavy documentation at every stage.
Who you work with
You work with clinicians, quality and regulatory specialists, and manufacturing.
Physical demands
Mixed lab and desk work; gowning for clinical observation.
What people wear
Business casual, lab coat or scrubs as the setting requires.
Remote reality
Partly hybrid; lab and clinical work are in person.
Workplace culture: what's normal here
- Design history files are maintained meticulously because FDA review can revisit any decision.
- Watching real clinical use changes designs more than any requirements document.
- Risk analysis is a formal, recurring team exercise, not a one-time checkbox.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook — Work Environment, with regional detail for the DMV.
Official data behind this career
Federal statistics for DMV Region, translated into plain language.
Washington–Arlington–Alexandria, DC–VA–MD–WV metro area
Source: U.S. Census Bureau — ACS 2019–2023 5-year estimates (tables DP03, DP02, DP05)
- The DMV functions as one labor market: workers routinely cross state lines to get to work.
- The largest employment destinations are D.C., Fairfax County and Montgomery County.
Top places these workers go to work
Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis — BEA regional GDP and personal income, most recent published year
Private-sector payroll data from ADP. It is a supplemental near-real-time indicator and does not replace BLS government employment statistics.
Source: ADP National Employment Report — Most recent monthly ADP National Employment Report
- 1U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OOH, OEWS, Employment Projections, CES) — Primary source for occupation wages, outlook, projected openings, education and training.
- 2U.S. Census Bureau — American Community Survey — Primary source for income, educational attainment, labor force and demographic context by place.
- 3Census LEHD (LODES / OnTheMap) — Primary source for where workers live versus where they work, and local workforce flows.
- 4U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis — Primary source for regional GDP, industry contribution, compensation and personal income.
- 5ADP National Employment Report — Supplemental near-real-time private-sector employment and pay indicator. Not a replacement for BLS.
Figures describe groups of workers, not any one person. Where an official figure is not published for a category, this page says “Data unavailable for this category.” rather than estimating.
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