Thank you to all who voted! According to the poll, the career path you wanted to see highlighted was Bioinformatics. The second runner up was Education and Outreach, so we will be highlighting that field next in the Career Options Series.
What is Bioinformatics?
The fields of bioinformatics and computational biology involve the development and application of tools to make biological discoveries. Bioinformatics is being introduced to high school students in biology classes. There are undergraduate, masters level and Ph.D. programs that train student in these fields. See the International Society for Computational Biology (ISCB) for examples of degree programs in bioinformatics and computational biology. In addition, some people enter the field as a biologists and some enter as computer scientists/engineers. According to ICSB, a solid background in both biology and computer science is extremely helpful.
Sample Job Titles
Data Analyst; Systems Analyst; Informatics Analyst; Software Developer; Biostatistician/Bioinformatician; Computational Biologist; Research Scientist; Bioinformatics/Staff Scientist; Gene Analyst; Research Assistant/Associate; Biologics Database; Programmer/Administrator; Computer Analyst/Programmer; Molecular Modeling Assistant; Software Engineer; Post-doctoral Fellow; Research Scientist; Senior Scientist/PI; Professor/Assistant Professor; UNIX/Linux Programmer; Computational Genomics Specialist; Bioinformatics Specialist
* Information compiled via an Indeed search in the Bethesda area
Sample Work Settings
University laboratory/faculty; Nonprofit Biomedical Research Institution; Pharmaceutical Company; Information Technology (IT) service provider; Biotechnology Company; Government Agencies; Government Contractor
Sample Employers
The Jackson Laboratory
Sanofi
Abbott Laboratories
Digicon
University of Nebraska Medical Center
Medical College of Wisconsin
New York Genome Center
University of Rochester
Leidos
Memorial Sloan Kettering
ACGT, Inc
OMNITEC Solutions, Inc
GenePeeks
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Craig Venter Institute
Department of Health and Human Services
National Human Genome Research Institute
Potential Topics/Areas of Specialty
- Sequence analysis
- Gene and protein expression
- Structural bioinformatics
- Network/systems biology
- Computer science
- Software development
- Database management/programming
Key Skills
-Computer programming knowledge – Python, Perl, Ruby, or R http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2791169/
-Basic knowledge of UNIX operating system http://journals.plos.org/ploscompbiol/article?id=10.1371/journal.pcbi.1000589
-Good communication skills
http://bioinfonecia.blogspot.com/2011/06/10-useful-bioinformatics-skills-to-have.html
-The ability to multitask
-A working knowledge of biology/genomics
-Data visualization skills
How to get started
• Internships e.g., Summer Internship at NIEHS, NCI, NHGRI
- Fellowships e.g., NIH Graduate Partnership Program
- Training e.g. NIH Library Courses http://nihlibrary.nih.gov/Services/Bioinformatics/Pages/bioclasstrain.aspx
- Additional coursework/education online (FAES, Coursera)
- Additional education/degrees (Master of Science in Bioinformatics)
Professional Organizations
International Society for Computational Biology
The American Medical Informatics Association
Additional Resources
The National Center for Biotechnology Information
National Human Genome Research Institute
American Association for the Advancement of Science
Biostars Message Board
****
OITE’s Career Options Series gives you a snapshot overview of different career paths. The goal of this series is to help you explore a variety of different options by connecting you to new resources. A large part of making a good career decision is done by gathering information about that field. We encourage you to follow up this online research by conducting informational interviews with individuals in each field.
