Project Profile
Integrative Graduate Training in Bioinformatics and Functional Genomics
North Carolina State University
Abstract
This Integrative Graduate Education and Research Training (IGERT) award supports the establishment of a multidisciplinary graduate training program of education and research in bioinformatics and functional genomics. The program builds on four strategic initiatives: (1) A new Genomic Sciences graduate program, beginning fall 1999; (2) Genome Research Laboratory, Forest Biotechnology… more »
This Integrative Graduate Education and Research Training (IGERT) award supports the establishment of a multidisciplinary graduate training program of education and research in bioinformatics and functional genomics. The program builds on four strategic initiatives: (1) A new Genomic Sciences graduate program, beginning fall 1999; (2) Genome Research Laboratory, Forest Biotechnology Laboratory, Bioinformatics Research Center and Veterinary Medicine research tower, being completed 1999 through 2004; (3) Longstanding collaborations among researchers in statistics, animal sciences, plant genetics and forestry; and (4) Alliances with industrial partners in neighboring Research Triangle Park and on the University’s Centennial Campus.
As part of the new curriculum, 34 IGERT trainees will take a 15-credit common core of courses, followed by specialized offerings in functional genomics or bioinformatics. The academic program emphasizes NC State University’s unique strengths in agriculture, forestry, statistics and veterinary medicine. Trainees also will have industry internships, a joint journal club and a seminar series. Currently no national genomics center focuses on agriculture, biostatistics, veterinary medicine and forestry. NC State University is one of a very few institutions that can bring high caliber intellectual resources to bear in these areas. The program is designed to create a community of university and private investigators working together at the frontiers of genomic sciences research. New medicines, agricultural products, micro-scale technologies and methods of statistical modeling and analysis are among the expected results.
IGERT is an NSF-wide program intended to meet the challenges of educating Ph.D. scientists and engineers with the multidisciplinary backgrounds and the technical, professional, and personal skills needed for the career demands of the future. The program is intended to catalyze a cultural change in graduate education by establishing new, innovative models for graduate education and training in a fertile environment for collaborative research that transcends traditional disciplinary boundaries. In the third year of the program, awards are being made to nineteen institutions for programs that collectively span all areas of science and engineering supported by NSF. The intellectual foci of this specific award reside in the Directorates for Biological Sciences, Computer and Information Science and Engineering, Mathematical and Physical Sciences, and Education and Human Resources. « less
