Mission Statement
The Department of Genetics and Genome Sciences is proud to offer a Master’s degree in Computational Genomic Medicine for motivated students who wish to prepare for conducting genomics research and/or clinical genomic analyses in academic, hospital, or industry settings. This program will address the growing gap between the rapid accumulation of genomics data and researchers' and clinicians’ ability to exploit these data effectively to improve human health. This non-thesis MS program will provide fundamental background knowledge in genetics and genomics and equally importantly, hands-on learning experience in genomics data management and analysis. Upon completion of the program, the graduates, well equipped with skills in bioinformatics and genomic data analytics, will enter the workforce in one of many fields in biomedical research, clinical care, and the public health arena.
Program Overview
The goal of the GGS Graduate Program is to train the next generation in the use of computational genomics to study important biomedical and clinical problems. We offer our students a highly interactive training environment, characterized by extensive collaboration among laboratories using a wide range of experimental approaches. Students pursuing their MS will be trained by an interdisciplinary community of researchers with primary appointments in 14 CWRU academic departments, and at the Cleveland Clinic (CC). Even the faculty located at CC are only a 5 min drive or 15 min walk away, enabling faculty and students to easily travel back and forth for seminars, meetings, and research collaborations. The interdisciplinary and collaborative features of the program are especially important, as the students have easy access to other research groups with common interests and wide-ranging expertise in modern computational genomic approaches.
Our mission is to provide a sophisticated and engaging curriculum which affords trainees the opportunity to achieve excellence while preparing for a productive science-focused career. During the training period, our students can expect to:
- acquire core scientific knowledge in medical genetics and biostatistics
- gain expertise in advanced computational genetics and genomics techniques
- develop critical thinking and analysis skills
- participate in activities to improve oral and written communication skills
- participate in a hands-on clinically focused computational research project
- participate in various professional development activities
These six training objectives are integrated throughout the training program, which includes rigorous graduate courses, journal clubs, a seminar program featuring student-invited outside speakers, a seminar program featuring student research presentations, and hands-on research in laboratories with active, well-funded programs.
We offer our trainees research opportunities in many areas of computational genomics with a strong clinical focus. Just a few of the research areas with a strong emphasis in the Department of GGS are listed below, although this list is by no means exhaustive:
- Cancer Genomics
- Neurogenetics
- Epigenetics
- Cystic Fibrosis
- Diabetes
- Chemical Genetics
- Gene Therapy
The diversity of approaches employed by the faculty provides trainees with both a wide range of exciting research projects to choose from, as well as exposure to ideas and approaches beyond their own research area. It is our conviction that the next generation of outstanding computational geneticists will require knowledge in many areas, so that whatever their specific area of interest, they can effectively and easily draw on strategies, perspectives and precedents from a wide range of research approaches.