Everything you need to know about the bioinformatics course

Bioinformatics is a modern, interdisciplinary field of study that seeks to curate methods and online tools for understanding biological data, particularly in large and complex data sets. Bioinformatics is a concept that combines biology, physics, chemistry, computer science, mathematics, statistics, and information engineering. Following the 12th grade, candidates can pursue a bioinformatics course, including a Certificate in Bioinformatics, Advanced Diploma in Bioinformatics, PGD in Bioinformatics course, BTech or BSc Bioinformatics, and others. 

Passing class 12 in the science stream with Physics, Chemistry, Biology, and Mathematics as mandatory subjects from a recognized board with at least 50-55% marks is required for a general bioinformatics course.

Bioinformatics course overview

Bioinformatics is concerned with applying technology, engineering, and statistics to biological data processing. Bioinformatics is important because of its applications in genome profiling, genome sequencing, and gene and protein expression analysis.

A well-designed bioinformatics course will provide a comprehensive approach to developing modern medicines and new agricultural products. Following graduation, you will be tasked with working on the human, plant, animal, or bacterial genomes.

Levels offered in this course

Bioinformatics is a subject covered in various degrees and courses. Students can pursue undergraduate, postgraduate, and doctoral degrees in the field at various levels.

While an undergraduate degree in bioinformatics will be more comprehensive and general, focusing on the definition of bioinformatics, a postgraduate degree will allow you to specialize in one subfield. A doctoral degree allows you to conduct new research on a specific niche topic.

Top 11 bioinformatics universities

If you want to work in bioinformatics, choosing the right degree and school can help you upskill and get you where you want to go.

Listed below are the top ten universities in the world( according to QS Subject Ranking 2022), that offer the branch of Bioinformatics, along with the approximate tuition fees, subject rankings, country, and course names- 

University Name	Course Name	QS Subject Rankings 2022 for Lifesciences & Biological Sciences	Country situated	Approximate tuition fees
Harvard University	Master in Biomedical Informatics	1	United States	USD 56, 000
University of Cambridge	Master of Philosophy in Computational Biology	4	United Kingdom	GBP 46,550
Stanford University	MS in Biomedical Informatics	5	United States	USD 60,840
University of California– San Diego	Ph.D. in Bioinformatics and Systems Biology	15	United States	USD 49,900
University of California– Los Angeles	MSc in Bioinformatics	11	United States	USD 33,225
Yale University	Ph.D. in Computational Biology and Bioinformatics	13	United States	USD 40,000 (Funding provided)
Cornell University	Computational Biology Ph.D.	24	United States	USD20,800
University of California– San Francisco	Ph.D. in Bioinformatics	9	United States	USD 42,500(Funding provided)
Duke University	Ph.D. in Computational Biology and Bioinformatics	23	United States	USD 33,660 (Funding provided)
The University of Michigan– Ann Arbor	Master of Science in Bioinformatics	32	United States	USD 23,240
Freie Universität Berlin	MSc in Bioinformatics	–	Germany	None

Academic cycle-intakes and deadlines at different levels

Most of the world’s top universities will offer master’s and doctoral programs in bioinformatics in the fall or in September. Furthermore, certain program distinctions are based on whether or not a thesis is required. This course is offered at some universities during the winter semester, which begins in October.

The curriculum across all levels

The content and curriculum will differ depending on your study level.

For example, a master’s degree in bioinformatics typically includes an autonomous and fee-based capstone program.

On the contrary, most top universities support Ph.D. programs with teaching or research assistantships.

Job opportunities with salary 

If you want to work in bioinformatics, you’ll have to supervise laboratory information management systems, develop algorithms to support DNA, RNA, and protein sequencing, and curate data visualizations in reports or other biological web pages.

Other job roles will vary depending on the industry you choose. These include biological image analysis, satellite image analysis, and the development of a medication coat monitoring process.

In terms of pay, the years of experience you bring to the table and the work location will influence the final amount. The average salary for a bioinformatician is approximately USD 74,690.

Here are salaries for various posts for bioinformatics in the United States

• Postdoctoral Fellow in Bioinformatics -USD 60,910
• Biologist in Bioinformatics- USD 65,150
• Scientist in Bioinformatics- USD 97,550

Bioinformatics’ future applications

Bioinformatics has been used to analyze genome sequence data for many years. However, times are changing, and the importance of bioinformatics in various critical tasks will be realized in the future.

Some of these futuristic tasks include gene variation and expression studies, simulation environments, gene analysis and prediction, protein structure and function prediction, and detection of gene regulation networks.

Scope for bioinformatics course

Bioinformatics is a rapidly growing scientific field with promising career opportunities. Bioinformatics degree holders can work in the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, biomedical, research, and hospital sectors. Candidates can work in any industry that employs molecular biology and information technology. The demand for medical sciences is growing. It has steadily risen to become one of the highest-paid industries.

One can teach in private and public colleges and work in biomedical product manufacturing and scientific research institutes. Biotechnology research centers and biotechnology firms hire students with a background in bioinformatics for additional research.

Holders of a bioinformatics degree can work as ‘Bio-Informationists’ in leading IT companies. Candidates can pursue careers in computational chemistry, bio-analytics, database design and maintenance, proteomics, pharmacologists, informatics developers, pharmacology, and other fields.

As laboratories and foreign firms hire Bioinformatics candidates, there is a lot of scope and job opportunities abroad.

Key takeaways

• Bioinformatics is a modern, interdisciplinary study field that tries to curate methods and online tools for understanding and researching biological data, particularly made available in large and complex data sets.
• Bioinformatics deals with applying technology, engineering, and statistics to biological data processing. Bioinformatics applications are important due to their genome profiling, genome sequencing, and gene and protein expression analysis.
• To work in bioinformatics, you can supervise laboratory information management systems, develop algorithms to support DNA, RNA, and protein sequencing, and curate data visualizations in reports or other biological web pages.

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FAQs

Q1. Is bioinformatics hard to study?

Ans- It takes a lot of hard work to become a bioinformatician, but the effort is well worth it as it provides better career prospects and high income.

Q2. Does the bioinformatics course include a lot of math?

Ans- Every job in bioinformatics will necessitate a basic understanding of mathematics, particularly linear algebra, statistics, and data structures.

Bioinformatics is a math-heavy field because experts create, optimize, or use software to understand and organize biological data.

Q3. Does bioinformatics require coding?

Ans- Your ability to code is critical to the very foundation of bioinformatics.

More importantly, it depends on your ability to code effectively and learn the coding patterns that programmers have used for generations to build effective solutions.