Biomedical Engineering in Vermont

📊 Employment Overview

Vermont employs 38 biomedical engineering professionals, representing approximately 0.2% of the national workforce in this field. Vermont ranks #49 nationally for biomedical engineering employment.

💰 Salary Information

Biomedical Engineering professionals in Vermont earn competitive salaries across all experience levels, with an average annual salary of $92,000.

Note: Salaries are adjusted for cost of living and local market conditions. Data based on BLS statistics and industry surveys (2024-2025).

🎓 Schools Offering Biomedical Engineering

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🚀 Career Insights

Key information for biomedical engineering professionals in Vermont.

🏢 Industry Landscape & Top Employers

Vermont's biomedical engineering market is the nation's second-smallest by employment — 38 professionals sharing the bottom rankings with Alaska and North Dakota — yet occupies a position of genuine distinction within New England's broader biomedical ecosystem. Vermont's defining biomedical characteristics are its proximity to Boston and Montreal, the University of Vermont Medical Center's growing research programs, and an IBM semiconductor facility that creates precision electronics expertise with direct biomedical manufacturing crossover. Vermont's small size is both a constraint and a differentiator — engineers here play outsize institutional roles and operate within a professional community where everyone knows everyone.

Major Employers: University of Vermont Medical Center (UVMMC) — Vermont's only Level I Trauma Center and comprehensive academic medical center — is far and away the state's most significant biomedical engineering employer. Affiliated with the Larner College of Medicine at UVM, UVMMC combines the clinical engineering needs of a regional referral center with growing research programs in cancer, cardiovascular disease, and rural health. Central Vermont Medical Center (Berlin) and the Northwestern Medical Center (St. Albans) provide regional clinical engineering employment. On the commercial side, IBM's Essex Junction semiconductor facility — one of the most advanced chip fabrication facilities in the northeast US — has historically employed engineers whose precision manufacturing expertise directly applies to microelectronic medical device components. GlobalFoundries, which acquired IBM's Essex Junction fab, continues high-volume semiconductor manufacturing that creates engineering crossover opportunities. Cabot Medical and several precision instrument manufacturers in Vermont's Champlain Valley employ biomedical engineers in device manufacturing and quality roles.

Boston and Montreal Proximity: Vermont's most significant career asset is geographic — Burlington is approximately 3.5 hours from Boston and 1.5 hours from Montreal. Engineers based in Vermont can maintain positions with Boston-area device companies (holding Massachusetts salaries) while living in Vermont and benefiting from Vermont's dramatically lower housing costs in communities outside Burlington's immediate market. Montreal's growing biomedical sector — anchored by McGill University Health Centre and the Montreal Clinical Research Institute — also creates cross-border career opportunities for Vermont engineers with French-language competency or Canadian work authorization.

📈 Career Growth & Pathways

Vermont biomedical engineering careers are defined by UVMMC's institutional depth and the Boston/Montreal proximity dynamic that enables Vermont-resident engineers to access significantly larger markets without full relocation. The state rewards engineers who find meaning in small-community impact over career velocity.

• Entry-Level Engineer (0–2 years): $57,000–$70,000 — UVMMC clinical engineering associates and UVM research support are the primary entry points. University of Vermont's engineering programs feed directly into local employers. The small market means entry-level positions are relatively rare and competition from both UVM graduates and engineers relocating from larger markets can be significant.
• Mid-Level Engineer (3–7 years): $78,000–$98,000 — Clinical technology program management at UVMMC, research engineering at UVM's medical research programs, or engineering roles at Vermont precision manufacturers serving the medical device industry.
• Senior Engineer (8–14 years): $105,000–$133,000 — Clinical engineering directors at UVMMC, senior research engineers at UVM's Larner College of Medicine programs, or remote senior roles at Boston-area device companies.
• Director / Principal (15+ years): $135,000–$175,000 — UVMMC system technology executives, UVM research faculty, or principals at Vermont-based healthcare consulting firms serving the Northern New England market.

Remote Work as Vermont's Career Multiplier: Vermont's most powerful career strategy involves securing remote or hybrid positions with Boston-area device companies — earning Massachusetts-calibrated salaries while living in Vermont and accessing Vermont's dramatically lower housing costs, no sales tax, and extraordinary outdoor lifestyle. This strategy is increasingly viable as device companies maintain permanent remote engineering positions established during the pandemic, and Vermont's broadband infrastructure improvements support reliable remote work from communities that were previously isolated from this opportunity.

💰 Salary vs. Cost of Living

Vermont's $92,000 average biomedical engineering salary is near the national median — reflecting the Boston market's proximity influence and UVMMC's academic medical center premium — and benefits from Vermont's zero sales tax and relatively moderate (for New England) housing costs outside of Burlington's core.

Burlington Metro: Vermont's largest city and biomedical hub. Cost of living approximately 15–22% above the national average — elevated by the desirability of Burlington's quality of life and proximity to UVM. Median home prices of $380,000–$520,000 in Burlington's quality neighborhoods and suburbs (South Burlington, Williston, Shelburne) are meaningful but dramatically below comparable Boston suburbs. UVMMC and UVM engineers earning $90,000–$130,000 achieve reasonable purchasing power and genuine community access in a city that consistently ranks among America's most livable small cities.

Central and Southern Vermont: More affordable markets where central Vermont hospital positions pay $75,000–$100,000 against costs near or slightly above the national average. Median home prices of $280,000–$380,000 in communities like Montpelier, Barre, and Rutland create strong purchasing power for engineers who can access clinical positions or hold remote engineering roles. Vermont's rural communities offer farm properties, historic homes, and mountain access at price points unavailable anywhere else in New England.

State Income Tax: Vermont's income tax (graduated rates up to 8.75%) is among New England's higher rates and a meaningful financial consideration. Engineers relocating from New Hampshire (no income tax, just 90 minutes away) will notice the difference. Vermont's overall financial appeal is strongest for engineers holding remote positions with out-of-state employers whose salaries substantially exceed what Vermont's local market alone would support.

📜 Licensing & Professional Development

Engineering licensure in Vermont is administered by the Vermont Office of Professional Regulation. Vermont has a streamlined NCEES-aligned process. Vermont-New Hampshire dual licensure is practically universal for engineers practicing across northern New England, given the two states' geographic integration and complementary financial environments.

Vermont PE Licensure Path:

• FE Exam: Required. University of Vermont is Vermont's only significant engineering institution. Norwich University's engineering programs contribute additional graduates.
• 4 Years of Experience: Under PE supervision. Vermont's small engineering community may require working under PEs at out-of-state organizations in some specializations. Remote supervision arrangements are accepted.
• PE Exam: Full NCEES reciprocity. Vermont-New Hampshire-Maine multi-state licensure is common for Northern New England engineering consultants serving the regional healthcare market.

UVMMC Research Engineering Credentials: UVM's Larner College of Medicine research programs — particularly in cardiovascular disease, cancer, and rural health — provide research engineering environments where NIH-funded device research, IRB-compliant clinical protocols, and VUMC's teaching hospital context combine to create professional development comparable to larger academic medical centers.

📊 Job Market Outlook

Vermont's biomedical engineering market is small and will grow modestly in absolute terms, but the remote work revolution is meaningfully expanding the effective career opportunities accessible to Vermont-resident engineers beyond what local employment statistics capture.

UVMMC Research Growth: UVM's ongoing research investment — including expanding programs in precision medicine and rural health technology — is creating modest but real engineering employment growth at Vermont's flagship academic medical center. The Vermont Center on Behavior and Health and the UVM Cancer Center's growing clinical trial programs generate device-related research engineering demand.

Remote Work Dividend: Vermont has actively invested in broadband infrastructure expansion, enabling remote work from communities that were previously disconnected from high-speed internet. As more Vermont communities gain reliable broadband, the state's appeal as a remote engineering base expands — potentially drawing Boston-area device engineers who want Vermont's lifestyle while retaining Massachusetts-calibrated salaries.

5-Year Projection: Vermont biomedical engineering employment (as measured by BLS) is projected to grow 8–11% over five years. UVMMC research growth and remote work expansion will drive modest growth. Total employment could reach 42–43 by 2029, with the true engineering community being larger when remote workers are included.

🕐 Day in the Life

Biomedical engineering in Vermont is defined by UVMMC's academic medical culture, the extraordinary surrounding landscape, and a community character that is simultaneously progressive, neighborly, and deeply committed to quality of life over career intensity.

At UVMMC (Burlington): A typical day at Vermont's academic medical center might involve calibrating a cardiac imaging suite for the cardiology department's morning cath lab schedule, meeting with a UVM Larner College faculty member on device specifications for a rural health telemedicine study, and coordinating with Vermont's network of critical access hospitals on remote monitoring system upgrades. UVMMC's size — large enough for genuine clinical sophistication, small enough for everyone on the clinical engineering team to know each other and the nursing staff personally — creates a work environment that combines genuine professional challenge with the community warmth that is Vermont's defining social characteristic.

Lifestyle: Vermont's quality of life is among America's most distinctive and beloved. Stowe, Mad River Glen, Killington, and Jay Peak provide world-class skiing that New Englanders travel from Boston to access; Vermont residents live minutes from these mountains. Fall foliage of incomparable beauty draws visitors from across the eastern US; Vermont engineers experience it as part of their daily drive to work. Burlington's Church Street Marketplace, the Flynn Theater, and the Lake Champlain waterfront create an urban amenity set remarkable for a city of 45,000. Vermont's food culture — farm-to-table pioneered here, with extraordinary cheese, maple products, and craft beverages — creates a culinary richness that the state's modest population would not predict. Vermont's political and social culture rewards civic engagement and community investment in ways that many engineers relocating from more individualistic coastal markets find genuinely refreshing.

🔄 Compare with Other States

See how Vermont compares to other top states for biomedical engineering: