Engineering is in Greta Boehm’s DNA. Along with teaching engineering and robotics classes at her high school in Madison, Boehm’s dad ran the school’s engineering club.
As a high schooler, Boehm learned how to use 3D printers with her classmates. One of the most memorable club projects was creating 3D prosthetic hands used by local children with birth defects.
“I realized then what a difference engineering could make in people’s lives,” Boehm said.
Learning and leading on campus
Biomedical engineering focuses on creating technology that solves problems in medicine, from creating glucose monitors, pacemakers or prosthetic limbs to designing MRI or CT machines. One of the first devices Boehm designed in a UWM course was a small handle someone can hold to measure how much their hand and wrist rotates — a helpful tool for physical therapists to diagnose conditions that affect mobility and measure progress over time.
On top of her coursework, Boehm works as a student ambassador for the College of Engineering and Applied Science, connecting with prospective students at on-campus events. She serves as vice president of the Society of Women Engineers on campus, too. The group, Boehm said, has given her opportunities to lead on campus, planning events to help the club grow. SWE has also empowered her to work confidently as a woman in a male-saturated field.
“I love hearing female engineers share their career paths, and how they’ve learned to speak up about ideas in rooms full of men,” she says.
Making an impact in the field
Whether learning about medical devices in lectures or building them on her own in labs, Boehm has grown passionate about helping people live with life-altering medical conditions, like she did with 3D prosthetics in high school. But she’s also interested in creating solutions that support the work of medical providers.
“People put so much trust in their doctors,” Boehm said. “Being able to give them tools to help them provide the best care feels like such a great impact.”
Over the Spring 2024 semester, she applied her skills in a local internship at A.O. Smith, assisting engineers with testing sensors for water heaters and boilers. While the job didn’t involve medical devices, Boehm said she gained important knowledge about the day-to-day work of an engineer — and plenty of experience with research and development that carries over into medical device work.
After graduation, Boehm is eager to use her biomedical engineering degree to make a difference in people’s lives. She accepted a position as a manufacturing engineer at Abbott Laboratories in Plymouth, Minnesota. “I’m excited that I’ll be working on technology that helps people,” she said.
