Use the following links to view information about each program.
The Department of Biological Sciences BS program in Bioinformatics represents a truly indisciplinary degree. The Bioinformatics curriculum was developed by faculty in the Departments of Biological Sciences, Chemistry, Computer Science, Mathematics and Statistics and Information Technology with the guidance of individuals in the bioinformatics and biotechnology industries throughout the country. This curriculum was designed with the needs of the prospective employer in mind, specifically for this challenging and rapidly changing field. Bioinformatics represents the wedding of biotechnology and the computing sciences. Bioinformaticists use compters to analyze, organize and visualize biological data in ways which increase our understanding of those data and lead to new discoveries.
The bioinformatics degree curriculum requires the completion of one cooperative education experience. This experience permits the student to witness the state-of-the-art in bioinformatics from a practical perspective. More than 65 organizations in industry, government and academia employ our students in short-term (10-12 weeks) full-time, paid positions. Co-op positions can be held during the summer and/or the regular academic year. No tuition is charged for any co-op participation. If a student elects to pursue a co-op during the regular academic year, he or she will take the same number of academic class terms, but may need to extend the date of graduation beyond the normal four years.
You can view a checklist of required courses here and a quarter by quarter spreadsheet of a "typical" 4 year course schedule here.
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MS in Bioinformatics
The objective of the RIT MS program in Bioinformatics is to provide students with the capability to enter the bioinformatics workforce and become leaders in the field.. This objective is being addressed through a curriculum designed to fulfill the needs of students who bring with them diverse educational and professional backgrounds. Individuals entering a MS program in Bioinformatics typically have degrees in Biology, Biotechnology, Chemistry, Statistics, Computer Science, Information Technology or a number of related fields. The MS program at RIT accommodates this diversity in two ways. There is a comprehensive bridge program for those students who need to supplement their education before entering the MS program. The MS program itself consists of two tracks, one for students with backgrounds in the life sciences and one for those with backgrounds in the computational sciences. Regardless of the track pursued, graduating students will be prepared to become professional bioinformaticists. You can learn more here.
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BS/MS in Bioinformatics
The existing BS program may be combined with the MS program in Bioinformatics, allowing undergraduate majors to acquire both degrees in as few as five years. Undergraduate students with an overall GPA of 3.2 and a GPA in their professional field of study of 3.4 may apply to the bioinformatics committee for entry before the completion of their third year of study. Students in the combined program will be required to take graduate level courses during their fourth year and complete an approved MS thesis during their final year of study. Those who select this program will complete the undergraduate degree requirements and 45 quarter credit hours toward the Bioinformatics MS degree.
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