Bioinformatics and Systems Biology

Place of Study: Russia
Outcome (diploma or credits): Master of Science (ITMO University)
Duration: 2 years, 120 credits
Language: English
Application Deadline: 09 August 2021
Admission Requirements: Bachelor's degree with excellent/good grades in Biological Science (or related fields) and basic knowledge of Mathematics and Programming, or Computer Science and basic knowledge of Biology; CV & motivation letter; the upper-intermediate level of English*
Tuition Fee: 251,000 rubles per year for Russian students; 271,000 rubles per year for international students

Discover more at the Program's Website!

Career Options

Bioinformatics experts in the fields of personalized medicine, the pharmaceutical industry, biotechnology, software development, and many others. Besides, graduates may continue their academic careers by entering the leading PhD programs in Systems Biology.

Program Description

Currently, computational methods are widely used in biology mostly due to the fact that research inevitably comes with Big Data. Thus, one needs to possess the skills to be able to work with large amounts of data and to interpret them correctly.

Our program trains a new generation of professionals capable of developing and applying bioinformatics methods to solve unconventional problems arising in fundamental and experimental biology. The students will gain an opportunity to complete the full path from high-throughput data to computational analysis and to testable hypotheses in several research areas.

The program has two specializations:

Data Analysis in Biology and Medicine: we teach students with biological and medical backgrounds the skills of programming, data processing and statistical analysis and their application in different fields of bioinformatics.
Algorithmic Bioinformatics: this specialization is designed for students with informatics, mathematics, and other technical backgrounds who want to apply their knowledge to bioinformatics. It also Includes advanced courses in statistics and algorithms, as well as introductory courses in molecular biology.

Benefits of the Program

the Program is conducted in collaboration with the Bioinformatics Institute in St. Petersburg and International Laboratory “Computer Technologies” at ITMO;
the students will work with some of the best computer science experts from ITMO and Biology specialists from all over the world;
the students have the opportunity to do their internships at major research institutions and laboratories, as well as work on projects under the supervision of world-class professors from Washington University in St. Louis, University of Nice-Sophia Antipolis, Broad Institute, Harvard Medical School, etc.

Content of the Program

1 Semester

Introduction to Bioinformatics - 3 credits
Data Processing and Analysis - 3 credits
Higher Mathematics (elective course) - 2 credits
Introduction to Linux (elective course) - 2 credits
Foreign Language in Professional Activity - 2 credits
Creative Technologies / High Tech Business Creation / Thinking - 4 credits
Research Work - 9 credits

Specialization 1. Data Analysis in Biology and Medicine

Statistics - 3 credits
Discrete Mathematics - 3 credits
Programming in Python - 3 credits

Specialization 2. Algorithmic Bioinformatics

Advanced Statistics - 3 credits
Molecular Biology - 3 credits
Algorithms and Data Structures - 3 credits

2 Semester

Systems Biology - 4 credits
Population and Medical Genetics - 4 credits
Scientific Python - 3 credits
Applied Statistics (elective course) - 2 credits
Applied Bioinformatics (elective course) - 2 credits
Foreign Language in Professional Activity - 2 credits
Applied Artificial Intelligence (online course) - 3 credits
High Performance Computing - 3 credits
Research Work - 9 credits

3 Semester

Structural Bioinformatics - 4 credits
Applied Bioinformatics (elective course) - 2 credits
Negotiations, Influence and Conflict Management / Emotional Intelligence / Internationalization of Research - 4 credits
Research Work - 6 credits
Research Internship - 6 credits

Specialization 1. Data analysis in Biology and Medicine

Metagenomics - 4 credits
Molecular Phylogenetics - 4 credits
Biotechnology - 4 credits

Specialization 2. Algorithmic Bioinformatics

Bioinformatics Algorithms - 4 credits
Optimization & Sampling - 4 credits
Advanced Machine Learning - 4 credits

4 Semester

Research Internship - 15 credits
Senior Internship - 9 credits
Thesis Defence - 6 credits

*The applicants are required to pass the entrance examination successfully.

The list of entrance examination questions

Student review

"First of all, IT's More than a University

and I found ITMO to be a young university in the sense that it’s still growing

and using new methods of education."

Sedreh Nassirnia, a student of the Bioinformatics and Systems Biology program

Want to know more? Read the full interview of Sedreh Nassirnia by ITMO.NEWS to learn more about the major and her experience.

How to apply?

To apply, please fill in the application form and follow our step-by-step application guide for more details.

Want to enroll at ITMO without entrance examinations or tuition fees? Learn more about our contests and competitions that will give you this amazing opportunity!

Contacts

ITMO International Admission Office, international@itmo.ru
Alexey Sergushichev, Head of the Program, alserg@itmo.ru
Lada Antonova, Program Coordinator, bioinf@itmo.ru

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