A  one-­‐year  postgraduate  diploma  programme  for  a  founda4on  in  bioinforma4cs:  a  case  study  in  Malaysia  

Mohammad  Asif  Khan  Director,  Centre  for  Bioinforma4cs  

(h@p://perdanauniversity.edu.my/pucbi/)  

•  Bioinformatics is a transformative science that is at the crux of interdisciplinary research, with a pivotal role in the growth of the biotechnology and pharmacuetical industries

•  The field of bioinformatics has grown tramendously in the past decade

•  Shortage in the supply of qualified bioinformaticians globally

Why  Bioinforma4cs?  

BSc   MSc  

UM  

Local  efforts  to  meet  the  demand  

Public  Ins4tutes  of  

Higher  Learning  

Private  Ins4tutes  of  

Higher  Learning  

UKM  

MMU  

UTM  

UNISEL  

UM  

PhD  

1  Yr  Pg.  Dip.  

MSc   2  Yrs  

PhD   5  Yrs  

Workshops/Seminar/Symposium/Forum/Conference  

Students  

Community  

Schema4c  of  the  proposed  programme  

Industry-­‐driven  Cer4ficates  (3-­‐6  Mths)  Short  courses  

Call for Admission OVERARCHING GOALS The over-arching goal of the programme is to empower bioscientists (students, researchers, and IT professionals supporting biologists) the ability to develop and/or apply innovative bioinformatics solutions to solve biological problems. PROGRAMME DETAILS Award Title: Postgraduate Diploma in Bioinformatics Mode / Duration of Study : Full-time (1 year) / Part-time (3 years) Credit Hours: 33 Academic Entry Requirements: Bachelor’s degree in Biology, Computer Science/IT or a related field with minimum CGPA of 3.00 or other equivalent qualifications approved by the Senate of Perdana University.

h@p://perdanauniversity.edu.my/pusps/programmes/  

Process,  procedures  and  mechanisms  for  curriculum  development  

1.  Needs  assessment     7.  Define  learning  outcomes  for  each  courses  and  the  corresponding  learning  topics    

2.  Review  of  needs  assessment     8.  Iden4fy  co-­‐curricular  opportuni4es    

3.  Defini4on  of  programme  vision,  mission,  specific  objec4ves,  and  learning  outcome.    

9.  Define  learning  methods    

4.  Defini4on  of  core  discipline  area     10.  Define  assessments    

5.  Defini4on  of    courses  for  the  core  disciplines    

11.  Review    

6.  Define  key  interdisciplinary  courses  that  link  the  disciplines    

Uniqueness of the programme

•  .

•  Programme designed in consultation with leading academic and industry experts in the field

•  Recognized by the Ministry of Higher Education (MOHE) and the Malaysian Qualification Agency (MQA), and endorsed by the Asia-Pacific Bioinformatics Network (APBioNET)

•  A one year programme to bridge the gap between local Bachelors and Masters programmes in Bioinformatics

•  Cross-disciplinary programme open to life science and computer science / IT graduates

•  Low student intake for quality education

Curriculum structure

Bioinforma4cs  Research  Miniproject  

Research proposal contributions by collaborators from •  Johns Hopkins University •  Broad Institute •  National University of Singapore •  Macquarie University •  Boston University •  Locally

•  UM •  MMU •  UKM •  MGI

•  ??

Part-time pathway

The Biological Data Deluge of Volume and Complexity

The Economist Feb/Mar 2010

Critical Need for Bioinformatics and Computational Biology expertise in the next generation of Biologists

20th C: Century of Physics and the Atom Bomb 21st C: Century of Biology and Biotechnology