EDUCATION
The Master's degree is normally attained in two years and the students must obtain 120 ECTS credits. The curriculum consists of Major subject studies (40 ECTS), other studies (40 ECTS), and a Master's Thesis (40 ECTS).
Education is given in English, and the students learn to work together with associates from different countries and scientific backgrounds. Students will, for instance, attend intensive courses, have group assignments, work on web exercises, and participate in distance learning. Also training projects and seminars are arranged to acquire profound scientific knowledge and practical skills in bioinformatics.
The studies encompass core aspects of bioinformatics such as sequence analysis, biological databases, functional genomics, biological networks, and structural bioinformatics, but also related issues in computer science, statistics, and information technology as well as in biosciences, such as biochemistry, genetics, and molecular biology.
Students will be "bilingual" in terms of combined expertise in information technology and biosciences when finishing their Master's degree in bioinformatics, and therefore, students with a Bachelor's degree in computer science, biosciences, pharmacy, mathematics, statistics, physics, engineering, or related disciplines are eligible for admission.
Structure of the studies and detailed course descriptions are available in the Curriculum 2011-2012 (pdf) and in the Curriculum Guide 2011-2012 .
Several optional courses are arranged jointly between Turku and Tampere, and many courses are available locally. The students may choose courses to build up knowledge of biological sciences or methodological sciences. For instance, the bioinformatics students with technical background may choose the courses offered by Turku Centre for Computer Science (TUCS) for optional studies. The students can also choose the new Innovation and Entrepreneurship (I&E) –module (25 ECTS). The module is designed especially for students with technical background. I&E -module is based on long experience on entrepreneurship and innovation research-based teaching and development activities of the Turku School of Economics (TSE). For further information, see Nordic Master School in Innovative ICT (NMS iICT) and our Curriculum 2010-2011.
Career Prospects
The specific need for bioinformatics professionals will be amongst biological and medical research and development groups in the industrial sector as well as in educational institutions. The Master of Science degree in bioinformatics gives eligibility for scientific postgraduate studies in bioinformatics, and also in biosciences or in method sciences. This kind of multidisciplinary education opens up excellent employment opportunities.
Courses take place in the new Turku ICT building which hosts three universities and belongs to a larger campus that also includes the BioCity building in which all Turku biosciences research is concentrated.
