Forum:Looking For Phd Program Focus On Genomics

Question

[Geparada]

Hi!

I'm a biochemistry student and doing my thesis on some NGS data analysis. I really get exited about the idea of take a PhD program in this area.

I have a strong formation on molecular biology and basic experience with bash and python scripting. I'm looking for a PhD program that can give me a solid background on bioinformatics but also a chance to apply this knowledge to study some interesting biology phenomena like development, non-coding RNA, splicing, cancer, etc ...

Do you now some PhD programs like that? Or a good way to find them?

I don't really care about where is the PhD, I'll do my best to follow my dreams.

Thanks for your time!

[Sudeep]

I would suggest nature jobs as a good resource to look through.

[Ying W]

many similar questions have been asked before: http://biostar.stackexchange.com/questions/11897/where-should-i-apply-to-graduate-school-for-bioinformatics/11908

[Geparada]

@ying w, thanks I didn't saw these.

Answer 1

[Obi Griffith]

I recommend the CIHR/MSFHR Bioinformatics Training Program. It is coordinated by the University of British Columbia (UBC) and Simon Fraser University (SFU). It currently has 23 faculty/mentors and 87 Associate Faculty who can (almost) all act as potential supervisors and has been around for 10 years. I believe this makes it one of the largest and best developed Bioinformatics programs in the world. They offer both Masters and PhDs. Students typically start with 3 or 4 hands-on research rotations in different labs of their choosing and then select a primary supervisor for completing a thesis-based Masters or PhD (with the majority taking the PhD route).

The program is very strongly aligned with the Genome Sciences Centre and BC Cancer Research Center with ~30 potential supervisors researching cancer/genomics. But, it also is strong in medical genetics, statistics, computer science and more. It sounds like your interests would be well-aligned with their philosophy of providing a strong bioinformatics foundation for application to real world problems. And, as a bonus you get to live in fabulous Vancouver, Canada. Consistently ranked one of the top cities in the world to live in. Don't be fooled by their slightly dated website. It really is an excellent program. http://bioinformatics.bcgsc.ca

Full disclosure: I was not a PhD student in the program but I know many former students who were and my PhD was supervised by the program director.

Answer 2

[Pasta]

Well, you got the PhD programme proposed by the Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics. I had my PhD with them, so let me know if you want any detail.

You can have an idea of the workshops here. No worries, they are all in English !

Answer 3

[Malachi Griffith]

How about the Bioinformatics Training Program in Vancouver, British Columbia. A 'Bioinformatics Training Program for Health Research'. A great program in one of the worlds most livable cities.

Answer 4

[SES]

Selecting the right graduate program is an important decision, and it is an extremely difficult one because there are so many possibilities. What I suggest is that you try to hone in on the topics that you are most interested in and then start searching for programs that are the leaders in that field (it will be clear if you look at publications, grants, and the number of successful PhDs that are being graduated). This will help you narrow the number of possibilities because there are a lot of good bioinformatics programs around the world, though each will have a slightly different focus.

You may also want to look at what skills are in high demand right now, and that could help you tailor your search: bioinformatics job announcements

The most important thing to remember, and the one that is usually overlooked, is that you will be starting a new life when you decide to enroll in a graduate program. Think about the things that make you happy and then ask if you could be happy living in a certain place. Quite often the highest paying positions are not on the top of the list of places you would choose to live. Good luck!

Answer 5

[Larry_Parnell]

You could look into the PhD offerings in the Friedman School of Nutrition Sciences and Policy at Tufts in Boston. Here you could work with certain labs in the area of nutrigenomics with application to cancer, cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes.

Answer 6

[Zev.Kronenberg]

We have a surprising amount of bioinformatics here at the U of Utah. The application (MB program) is free and the recruitment weekends are really fun! To brag for a minute:

We have a bioinformatics department

The creator and maintainer of The Sequence Ontology is here (Karen Eilbeck)

The guy who helped assemble the human genome (Mark Yandell) is here.

Maker and VAAST come from Utah.

Fantastic population geneticists are here (Allen Rogers, Lynn Jorde, Jon Seger)

There is soo many fantastic projects that need bioinformatics collaborators. I can't believe how many projects I can choose from.

1. Huntsman institue - tons of cancer sequencing
2. Human genetics - genetics of aging, fly genetics, viral evolution, ect.
3. Pathology, and so many more departments.
4. Over 120 professors that are in the MB program - you can rotate with any of them.

Come check us out! At the bare minium you would get a free ski vacation!1.2.