Career in Bioinformatics

I have an undergraduate degree in Life Science. I am interested in Bioinformatics but not sure what route to take. The most obvious step is taking a master's but it's quite expensive...

I am aware of the STP Clinical Bioinformatics Genomics program. Other than this option what can I do to become a bioinformatician?

Hi there 😊

Bioinformatics is a great field, with so many opportunities that are only growing! It’s also one of the best areas of science to be going into right now (in my very biased opinion) with the amount of computational biology that is being incorporated into every other field, as well as increasing demand for fast and effective biology demanded by governments (in response to COVID, GMOs, food regulations, climate change, and so much else). Again, I am biased (and help out on the bioinformatics course, so can be a good source of info about it!) but ask any biologist!

Masters can be expensive, but they can also be a very worthwhile investment into your career. Also, the ‘sticker’ price is not always what you pay; you can apply for multiple scholarships too.

The Cranfield Applied Bioinformatics course has several scholarships attached to it that you could apply for. These include the Brian Meredith Net Zero Scholarship, Environment and Agrifood International Excellence Scholarship, Environment and Agrifood Net Zero scholarships, Cranfield University GREAT Scholarships, British Council Scholarships for Women in STEM, The Cranfield Scholarship, Santander Scholarship, Commonwealth Scholarships for Developing Countries, and Chevening Scholarships.
To find what you are eligible for, you can use the Cranfield Funding Finder here:
http://search.cranfield.ac.uk/s/search.html?f.Funding+Theme|theme=Environment+and+Agrifood&query=&profile=_default&clive=cranfield-funding&collection=cranfield-meta&f.Tabs|cranfield-funding=Funding&_ga=2.261485572.889941390.1672617275-823192391.1643980778&_gac=1.157775304.1672429454.Cj0KCQiAtbqdBhDvARIsAGYnXBMBUAXkEV-Y0DiLZiyn5UlitpjVp5QcDy5A-fgOCQSw9mkcKhUuMWQaAg_3EALw_wcB
You can also visit the course page, and click ‘Fees and Funding’ in the top right, and there’s a list of both scholarships and places to find loans. I’ll link the course page here:
https://www.cranfield.ac.uk/courses/taught/applied-bioinformatics##

This bioinformatics course specifically has strong industry links, many of which past students have used to secure offers before graduation. Collaborators have included GlaxoSmithKline, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, Queen Mary University of London, Unilever, Sanofi Aventis, Rothamsted Research, The European Bioinformatics Institute, University of Athens, and Cambridge University.
The course content is informed by a group of world-renowned experts in a range of applied sciences including bioinformatics, ensuring that graduates are trained in the cutting edge of research techniques and are fully prepared for any job role.
In many cases, individual projects are in collaboration with industry partners, and students have even received job offers from those they did this work with!

As well as industry, the Cranfield course is known for it’s quality within the academic community too. The course has even won the prestigious BBSRC’s Master's Training Grant (MTG) award for the best course in life sciences! Previous students have gone on to jobs with many incredible institutions including The Sanger Institute, The European Bioinformatics Institute, Institut National du Cancer (France), Centro de Investigación Prínciple Felipe Ií (Spain), GlaxoSmithKline, PubGene, Tessella, UCB, the Wellcome Trust, Inpharmatica, Invitrogen, Oxford Gene Technology, and Cancer Research.

If you would like any more information about the course, Masters in general, or life at Cranfield, you can leave any questions here, or on the Cranfield TSR page here:
https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/forumdisplay.php?f=1398

Hope this helps with your decision!
Ciara
3rd year Agrifood PhD student
Cranfield Student Ambassador