Bioinformatics & Computational Biology (PhD)

WPI’s PhD program in Bioinformatics and Computational Biology (BCB) will prepare you to become a new type of scientist who can model complex biological processes and analyze and interpret the staggering volume of biological data arising from endeavors such as the Human Genome Project.

Our program is truly interdisciplinary, enabling you to develop expertise across three key fields of study: Biology, Computer Science, and Mathematics. You will become well versed in all three as you work alongside our expert faculty researchers to create and apply the tools and algorithms necessary to predict, prevent, and cure disease, and to solve pressing environmental problems.

Graduate Admissions

Curriculum

You will work closely with a faculty advisor to plan an interdisciplinary course of study and research tailored to your background and interests. Through core courses, you will achieve a strong foundation in Biology, Computer Science, and Mathematics. You can also study advanced topics, including biovisualization, biomedical database mining, simulation in biology, and statistical methods in genetics and bioinformatics.

You will gain career-boosting experiences through a required teaching and mentoring component, professional skills seminar, and optional internship with an industry partner.

Graduate Catalog

Research

Our PhD students are immersed in ground-breaking research aimed at developing and utilizing quantitative techniques to tackle important biological problems, from understanding the causes of complex diseases to modeling pollinator-plant relationships in ecosystems.

You’ll have many opportunities to get involved in such cutting-edge research in collaboration with faculty and students from departments across campus. In the first year of your program, you will complete at least two research rotations before choosing a research advisor.

You’ll work alongside faculty and student researchers from across multiple disciplines in our state-of-the-art Life Sciences and Bioengineering Center at Gateway Park, where an open-plan lab format encourages collaboration. You will also have access to computational labs, including our groundbreaking Visualization and Image Science Laboratory.

RESEARCH & FACILITIES

Faculty Profiles

Carolina Ruiz

Associate Professor and Associate Department Head

Computer Science

Carolina Ruiz's research interests are in machine learning, artificial intelligence and data mining. Together with her graduate and undergraduate students, Dr. Ruiz has worked on numerous interdisciplinary research projects with clinicians from the University of Massachusetts Medical School on developing and using machine learning algorithms over clinical and behavioral patient data.

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Dmitry Korkin

Associate Professor

Computer Science

My research is interdisciplinary and spans the fields of bioinformatics of complex disease, computational genomics, systems biology, and biomedical data analytics. We bring expertise in machine learning, data mining and massive data analytics to study molecular mechanisms underlying genetic disorders, such as cancer, diabetes, and autism, and deadly infections, such as pandemic flu. Our approaches benefit from integrating Next Generation Sequencing, high-throughput interactomics, and structural biology data.

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Luis Vidali

Associate Professor

Biology & Biotechnology

I deeply enjoy teaching, in particular conveying the important roles played by plants. It is a great reward when my students realize that plants are more complex and interesting than they anticipated, and they want to learn more. I enjoy that students at WPI are open about thinking in new ways; this critical thinking is the result of intense project-based learning.

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Zheyang Wu

Associate Professor

Mathematical Sciences

Professor Wu's research interest lies in applying the power of statistical science to promote biomedical researches. In statistical genetics, he is developing novel statistical theory and methodology to analyze genome-wide association (GWA) data and deep (re)sequencing data to hunt new genetic factors for complex human diseases. In epigenetics, he is studying gene expression regulation mechanisms through chromatin interaction, and RNA silencing pathways in the developmental stages of germ-line cells.

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Getting Involved

PhD students are an integral part of the diverse and active campus life at WPI. You can balance your rigorous studies with activities ranging from performing arts to Graduate Student Government. You can also explore interests in areas like programming and biotechnology through our many science and technology clubs.

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Students organizing project tasks with sticky notes on a whiteboard

After Graduation

Our program will prepare you to become a leader in the bioinformatics and computational biology research and application. Our graduates find high demand for their unique interdisciplinary mindset within the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries, as well as in government and academia.

Career Outlook

Chemistry/Biochemistry Department

Affiliations:

Biology & Biotechnology

Computer Science