u/ActivityNovel8682

Hi everyone,

I’m feeling really lost and honestly a bit overwhelmed right now, so I’d really appreciate any honest advice.

I studied Biomedical Engineering in my home country. The program I studied was not very programming-focused. When I compare my course syllabus with Canadian programs, it honestly looks closer to BMET than a typical BME degree here. But after graduation, I didn’t get much hands-on practical experience in electronics, troubleshooting, repair, or hospital equipment maintenance. In my country, there were not many real BMET/medical equipment repair jobs in hospitals, so I ended up working in medical equipment sales because that was the available path.

Later, I moved to Canada and completed an MBA. I tried to apply for sales/business roles here too, but sales in Canada feels very competitive, and my English is not fully fluent enough yet for strong sales positions. Deep down, I’ve always been more interested in BMET, hospital service, and Field Service Engineer roles.

The problem is that I don’t feel confident with practical electronics or hands-on repair skills. I’ve been applying for BMET and Field Service roles for a while, but I’m not getting results. I’m 35 now, and I feel like I still haven’t found my path. It’s honestly very stressful and discouraging.

Some people told me that if I really want to get into BMET in Canada, I may need to go back to college because Canadian employers often prefer candidates with local BMET/biomedical engineering technology training and co-op experience.

I recently applied to the Biomedical Engineering Technology program at Centennial College. The program has a work placement/co-op in the middle of the studies, but I’m still not sure if it will really help me get a job or not. After the placement, I would still need to return to school and finish the program. At my age, I’m wondering if going back to college is the right decision or if it’s too risky.

I feel very confused. I don’t know whether I should:

• keep applying for entry-level BMET/Field Service roles,
• go back to college for a Canadian BMET diploma,
• try to improve my hands-on electronics skills on my own,
• or choose another career path related to healthcare/medical devices.

Has anyone here entered BMET or Field Service in Canada later in life, especially with an international biomedical engineering background?

Do you think going back to college with co-op is worth it for someone in my situation?

I’d really appreciate any realistic advice, especially from BMETs, Field Service Engineers, biomedical engineering technologists, or anyone who has hired for these roles in Canada.

Thank you so much. I’m just trying to make the right decision and not waste more time.

Hi everyone,

I’m looking for some honest advice because I feel a bit lost about the best path forward.

I’m 35 years old and I studied Biomedical Engineering in my home country, but our program was very theory-heavy and we didn’t really get the kind of practical hospital training that BMET programs in Canada seem to have. Because of that, and because I don’t have hospital technical experience, I’m struggling to get into the field here.

Back home I worked more in medical consumables sales, not equipment repair or hospital maintenance. But honestly, BMET and Field Service work is what I really want to do in Canada. I’m very interested in troubleshooting, PMs, medical devices, and the technical side of healthcare equipment.

I’ve been thinking seriously about doing a BMET/Biomedical Engineering Technology fast-track program here because it includes hands-on labs and co-op experience.

My biggest concern is that at my age I feel like I can’t afford to make the wrong decision financially or career-wise.

So realistically speaking:

Do you think doing a Canadian BMET fast-track program would give someone like me a good chance of getting hired as a BMET or junior Field Service Engineer afterward?

Does the co-op usually help people enter the industry?

And do employers care more about Canadian hands-on experience than previous foreign experience?

I’d really appreciate honest advice from people already working in the field. Thanks a lot.

Hi everyone,

I studied Biomedical Engineering, but honestly most of our electronics courses were very theoretical and I never really got proper hands-on practice.

Now I’m trying to get into BMET / Field Service jobs in Canada, and I really want to learn practical electronics and troubleshooting, but I feel overwhelmed and kind of lost.

I bought an Arduino kit and started watching videos, but when I look at circuits or boards I honestly get intimidated and nervous 😅

Sometimes I look at a board and feel like I understand absolutely nothing.

The hardest part is I don’t even know WHAT I should learn or HOW deep I need to go for entry-level BMET/FSE jobs.

Like:

• Do I need advanced electronics?
• Do I need to understand every component on a board?
• How much troubleshooting is expected?
• Do I need to repair boards or just understand basics?

There are so many videos online that I end up getting more confused instead of learning. I watched some Khan Academy and random YouTube videos, but I still feel stuck.

I mainly want to learn practical things like:

• troubleshooting
• using a multimeter
• reading simple circuits
• power supplies
• PM/preventive maintenance
• basic medical equipment electronics

My goal is to become somewhat “interview ready” for entry-level BMET/FSE positions in around 2 months if possible. I can study seriously every day.

For people already working in BMET or field service:

• What should I actually focus on first?
• What level of electronics is enough to start?
• What topics are most important?
• What should I ignore for now?
• Any beginner-friendly resources that explain things simply?

Honestly, when I see boards and schematics sometimes I feel scared because everything looks complicated lol, but I genuinely want to learn and improve.

Would really appreciate any advice from people who started from zero or from a mostly theoretical background. Thanks!

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Hi everyone,

I have a background in biomedical engineering, but I don’t really have hands-on experience yet. I’m trying to get into a BMET or Field Service Engineer role and I want to focus on the right skills and courses from the beginning.

I’d really appreciate your advice on a few things:

• What practical skills should I learn first?
• Which electronics topics are actually important on the job?
• Are there any specific courses or certifications you recommend? (like CABT or anything else that helped you personally)
• Any online platforms or YouTube channels that are really useful for learning this stuff?

I’m willing to study seriously, I just want to make sure I’m not wasting time on things that aren’t useful in real jobs.

Thanks a lot 🙏

Hi everyone,

We are thinking about moving to Waterloo and would really appreciate your advice on the best neighborhoods for family living. We are looking for areas that are:

• Safe and nice to live in
• Green with parks/nature
• Close to shopping centers and daily amenities
• Good high schools nearby
• Family-friendly community

We are looking to rent a good 2-bedroom condo/apartment, but there are so many options and price differences that it’s a bit confusing.

I searched in Beechwood and Laurelwood, and they seem very nice, but prices are a little higher than our budget.

Our budget is around $2000/month including parking.

Could you please suggest neighborhoods or buildings that would fit this budget and lifestyle?

Thank you so much!

Hi everyone,

I want to start learning Arduino and basic electronics as a complete beginner through online tutorials and YouTube.

Amazon kits (like Elegoo) are a bit expensive for me, so I’m looking at cheaper kits on Temu.

My goals are to learn:

• Breadboard wiring
• LEDs, buttons, resistors
• Sensors (temperature, motion, ultrasonic, soil moisture, etc.)
• LCD / OLED displays
• Motors / servo / relay
• Basic Arduino coding
• Troubleshooting simple circuits

I want a kit that has good beginner parts, works reliably, and preferably includes some kind of guide/tutorial.

Would you recommend:

1. A small cheap starter kit + buy sensors later
2. A large all-in-one sensor kit
3. A specific Temu kit/brand you tried

Hello everyone,

I hope this post is okay here. I’m not asking for a diagnosis, and I understand only a doctor can properly evaluate me. I’m just trying to understand, from people’s experiences, how urinary symptoms usually present in the early stages of MSA.

I’m a 35-year-old woman, and for about two years I’ve had symptoms that come and go. It started after an illness-like episode with fever, nausea, loss of appetite, and burning pain in my left arm. Since then, different symptoms have appeared at different times, but many improve or disappear for weeks or months and then return.

The symptom that worries me the most is urinary/genital discomfort. I often feel a mild burning or uncomfortable sensation in the genital/bladder area, and sometimes I feel like I need to urinate more often. For example, I may use the bathroom and later feel the urge again, but I can still hold it. for some weeks this disapears completely again burning and discomfort appears.

I’ve had several urine tests and urine cultures, and they were normal. I also had a cystoscopy, which was normal. I’ve also had neurology visits, MRI, EMG/nerve testing, and blood work, and doctors told me they did not find anything serious.

Other symptoms I’ve had on and off include:

• occasional burning / pins-and-needles sensations in my right arm and left thigh
• burning in my palms around my menstrual cycle
• hives at times
• mild random twitching / jerks
• digestion that feels slower than before, and my bowels seem a bit slower than they used to be, although I still have a bowel movement every day

These symptoms fluctuate a lot.

My anxiety has become very strong because I’ve read that some people with MSA had urinary or bowel issues before diagnosis. Because of that, whenever symptoms return, I worry this could be an early sign.

For those with personal experience, did urinary symptoms in early MSA usually fluctuate like this with normal tests and periods of improvement, or were they more steadily progressive (retention, weak stream, incontinence, high residual urine, etc.)?

Again, I’m not asking for a diagnosis, only trying to understand the typical pattern and whether what I’m describing sounds similar or different.

Thank you very much for reading

Hi everyone, I’m really anxious and looking for honest opinions.

I’m a 34-year-old woman, and for the last 2 years I’ve been dealing with bladder and bowel symptoms that come and go. They are making me very worried about neurogenic bladder or even MSA.

My symptoms include:

• Mild burning after urination
• Sometimes inside vaginal burning as well
• Urinary frequency that comes and goes
• Sometimes I urinate, feel finished, but if I stay seated a little longer, a small amount comes out again
• Sometimes about an hour after urinating I feel the urge again, and a small or medium amount comes out
• For about a year in the past, I also had a pulsing / throbbing sensation around the bladder or urethra area, almost like a heartbeat
• Constipation sometimes
• Bowel noises / gurgling that also come and go
• Body twitching / muscle twitches, which increased my anxiety

Important note:

These bladder and bowel symptoms are not constant — they flare up, improve, and then return again over the last 2 years.

Tests so far:

• Urine cultures negative
• Urinalysis mostly normal, though sometimes trace blood was found
• Cystoscopy normal
• Other tests mostly normal

What scares me is that bladder + bowel + twitching symptoms sometimes happen around the same time, and I keep reading about neurogenic bladder and MSA online.

Does this sound like neurogenic bladder / early MSA, or more like pelvic floor dysfunction, overactive bladder, inflammation, hormonal issues, IBS, or anxiety?

I’m losing sleep over this.😭