Bioinformatics – (M.Sc.)

In recent years, there have been major scientific and technological breakthroughs in the genetic understanding of living organisms. examples include the announced complete sequencing of the genomes of living organisms (human beings, plants, animals, bacteria, ...) and an impressive revolution in hardware technology (such as e.g. micro-arrays, by which the genome of individual organisms can be investigated on a massive scale).

Therefore, there is a wide consensus that bio-informatics and bio-informaticians will play a prominent role in science and industry. There will be an exponentially growing interest in activities such as genetic sequence analysis, motif finding, functional genomics, detection and analysis of SNPs (single nucleotide polymorphisms), proteomics and protein engineering, target and drug discovery, high-throughput drug screening, datamining, genetic engineering in living organisms, medical diagnosis
systems, etc.

We define bio-informatics to be the science and technology of acquisition, storage, retrieval and analysis of information on biological structure and function. Bio-informatics is a meeting point of three fields, namely biology, information technology and mathematics. It goes without saying that this programme in bio-informatics will reflect this interdisciplinary character, both in the nature of the courses as of the teachers.

The aim of the programme is to train specialists in bio-informatics with the ability to link an understanding of biology with information technology, integrating techniques of analysis drawn from applied mathematics and statistics. The area of expertise lies in the design of new experiments in molecular biology and the interpretation of experiments already carried out.

By the end of the programme, the student will have acquired:

• a broad knowledge of biology, biotechnology, information technology, and a thorough foundation in applied mathematics and statistics;
• a thorough knowledge of the genetic structure and functioning of living systems;
• skill in the analysis of biological databases, an understanding of the algorithms used in processing large amounts of information;
• skill in collaborating with molecular biologists and computer scientists in designing and interpreting experiments characterized by complexity;
• extensive analytic and synthetic problem-solving capacities;
• sufficient academic training to be able to participate in scientific research;
• leadership and management capacities as a result of skills in communicating knowledge, social capacities and an understanding of the ethical, social and economic context;
• skill in appropriating new concepts, methodologies and results within the discipline and the ability to apply them in research or in a business context;
• the ability to critically view the bio-engineer's role in society.