Should you get a PhD in Bioinformatics / Computational Biology / Data Science?
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- Опубликовано: 5 авг 2024
- Hi everyone! This is a video with some advice for people pursuing a career in bioinformatics, computational biology, or data science, who are thinking about going to grad school for these topics. I tried to include information I would have found useful when making the decision myself a couple years ago.
If anyone has any questions about this career field or grad school, please let me know in the comments and I will try to answer them!
Thanks for watching! 
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Pretty accurate. I started my Ph.D. in Bioinformatics in 1998, when it wasn't even a thing, and so decided to quit after a few years. Have had a lot of experience with premier organizations since then, and in my experience, some of the best bioinformaticians only had a bachelor's or even a masters in CS. Some did go on to get a Ph.D., but some chose not to. My firm observation is that there are WAY TOO MANY with a Ph.D. in Bioinformatics who are less than impressive these days. The reason is that they stopped learning, and the field is evolving very quickly. Or a lot of folks go through programs that are not quite rigorous. But the field is over-saturated. Salaries are nowhere as competitive as tech. This is only going to get worse. People REALLY need to weigh the option of giving away 6 - 10 years of their life for a Ph.D. if all they want out of it is a job, only to stop learning and go on a gliding path.
Yeah that's a good point!
Thank you! Great video!
Thanks for watching Pierce!
Very insightful thank you!
Thanks for watching Robert!
Thank you so much for the video! I do have a question/request regarding computational biology. I'm starting my master's in computational biology in September. I was initially drawn to the field due to the prospect of computationally modeling biochemical systems. I've heard of neuroinformatics before but I've never heard of cell bioinformatics, so I hope that you might provide some insight into this:
Is computationally modeling biochemical systems to better understand evolution something that is feasible/is being worked on in the current landscape of bioinformatics? I'm very drawn to the idea of simulating the evolution of neurons, or computationally modeling abiogenesis, or even using computational models to harness directed evolution for the purpose of drug design, for example.
Am I way off in thinking that computational biology might help answer these questions or provide some insight into these topics?
off to binge the rest of your videos...
Hey Abood, thanks for watching! I don't have much expertise in the specific areas you mentioned, but I searched around the internet a bit and found a super interesting article on computational modeling of chemical processes related to abiogenesis that you might be interested in:
phys.org/news/2018-12-life.html
Maybe you could try this type of research!
As for the neuron evolution topic, I know there's plenty of research being done on computational modeling of neurons (actually one of my coworkers in my lab is working on this topic). And of course there's a ton of research on the bioinformatics of evolution (using sequence analysis for phylogenetics, for example). But I haven't heard of any research on the specific topic of neuron evolution as it relates to biochemical systems within the neurons.
But it's certainly an interesting question, and even if nobody else is working on it, that shouldn't necessarily dissuade you from working on it! In fact, finding a cool topic that nobody has made progress on yet could actually be quite exciting, because it means there could be a lot of potential for original research on it.
And lastly, yes directed evolution for drug discovery is an exciting and popular topic, so I'm sure you could find some cool research to do on that involving computational modeling and simulation. Here's an example:
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7267738/
Anyway, good luck with your Master's program, and let me know if you have any more questions!
@@MikeSaintAntoine Thank you very much for your thoughtful reply!
How about MS Chemistry grad? I have work experiences but they are all related to environmental chemistry tho. Do you think I still have a chance or they'll consider me for PhD in Bioinformatics? BTW thanks for the video.
Yes, absolutely! It sounds like you're already in a good position to apply for a Bioinformatics PhD program. I'd recommend also learning the basics of computer programming too (probably Python or R are the best) if you don't already know it. But yes there's definitely a lot of overlap between the fields, especially if you were to specialize in something like biochemistry.
Hi Mike
Thank you very much for your videos. They are great and I value your efforts.
Could I have kind support if possible. I'm coming from wet lab research and interested in moving to knowledge network and systems biology (Mainly interested in knowledge network). Could you please kindly mentor me where should I start;
1. Any kind of course /curriculum you could recommend
2. What kind of programming languages I should learn
3. Any kind of tips for someone like me willing to self study.
Thanks for watching! Yes my main tip is to learn the basics of Python if you don't already know it (or if you don't want to learn Python, another good choice is R). Here's a tutorial series on the basics of Python programming:
ruclips.net/video/s3IvdkCq2_c/видео.html
Once you learn the basics of programming, that combined with your wet lab experience will put you in a good position to do bioinformatics research.
Another tip is to reach out to some professors and ask if they have any research projects you can help with. That will be a good way to get some experience.
Thanks for watching and let me know if you have any more questions! 🙂
@@MikeSaintAntoine Thanks a heap Mike. Greatly appreciated 🙏
Stay safe and blessed!!!
Would a person who got poor grades in undergrad be better off completing a Masters beforehand? I'm hoping that if a good reason was given for the poor grades, enough time had elapsed, and relevant experience had been gained in the elapsed time, the poor grades could be overlooked and the Masters could be avoided.
Great question! My advice is that it can't hurt to give it a shot and apply to some PhD programs. If they think that your grades aren't good enough, they might end up rejecting you from the PhD programming and admitting you to the Master's program instead. Can't hurt to try though.
Also, my overall impression is that undergrad grades aren't the most important thing for PhD program admissions. My undergrad grades weren't that great -- I had like a 3.08 or something, mostly because I was taking Arabic classes for my language and was terrible at it lol, so I was getting a C in an Arabic class every semester!
What's more important for PhD admissions is research experience. Do you have any experience working in a lab? Is there a PI you can ask for a recommendation letter? If not, this is something I would recommend. If you know Python, it's pretty easy to get some research experience by just emailing a bunch of local professors and asking if they need any programming help. I had some luck and was able to get a real paying job after college this way, but I think it would be worthwhile to do even unpaid in your free time, just to get the research experience and be able to work on a cool project.
Thanks for watching!
@@MikeSaintAntoine Thank you for the advice, I do know Python; I'll find some professors/researches to help with code
@@griff4515 No problem, good luck with everything and let me know if you have any more questions!
I am a foreign student passionate like you and planning to join a phd in computational biology with a background in computer engineering and biology in high schools(only). Can I email you? In fact, I want to be sure about getting a funding in good grad schools.
Hi Pankaj, very sorry about the late reply! Sure, please email me at mikest@udel.edu and I will be happy to give you some advice.
Can I go on Phd in Bioinformatics in USA after MS public health / Epidemiology (Moscow)?
That's a good question! Admissions requirements really depend on the specific program, but I think there's enough overlap between Epidemiology and Bioinformatics that you'd have a good chance. For example, I know a couple of students in my program who've worked on public health / epidemiology research as part of their Bioinformatics PhD. My suggestion would be to reach out to specific schools you're interested in and ask for advice!
Can this work for veterinary medicine to bioinformatics/comp bio?
Hello, I wish to pursue a PHD in computational and systems biology, will it be possible for me to get an industry job related to machine learning and artificial intelligence
Hi Jarahn! Good question -- yes I think that will be possible. My advice would be to try to join a lab specializing in those topics so that you can focus your research on them. Then that will give you the skills you need to get an industry job related to AI and machine learning (including both biology-related jobs as well as non-biology AI jobs).
Thanks for watching!
@@MikeSaintAntoine Thank you so much :)
Hello, I have just completed my masters in biotechnology (2020-2022). I am currently looking for PhD programs in bioinformatics in USA ( i live in India). Please can you provide me with guidance , what University should I apply to and all.
Hi Cheena! Congrats on completing your Masters. The only Bioinformatics program I'm very familiar with with the one I'm attending at University of Delaware. It's a fantastic program, with nice people, great professors, and a wide range of research topics to focus on. This is the website:
bioinformatics.udel.edu/
In my opinion it's the best bioinformatics program in the world! Of course I'm biased though 😬, and I'm sure other universities are also worth considering. These days, I think most major universities either have an entire bioinformatics department, or they at least have some professors in their biology or CS departments who are working on bioinformatics research (who you could potentially choose as your PhD advisor).
So there are really a lot of choices. One idea is to decide first what research topic you want to focus on, and then search for professors at any university focusing on that topic and contact them directly to ask if they're looking for PhD students.
Good luck with your search! Also if you have any more questions, or if you're considering applying to University of Delaware, feel free to email me at mikest@udel.edu and I can try to give more advice.
Thanks for watching! 🙂
@@MikeSaintAntoine Sir, thank you so much for replying and providing me with so much of information. I really appreciate it. And I would love to apply for PhD program at the University of Delaware. I will be contacting you soon, as I am eager for your advice and guidance.
Could you maybe introduce us to some biotech jobs ?
Yeah, that a good idea! I don't know too much about biotech jobs because all my research work has been in academia, but I'll try to make a video at least explaining some basic things about the field.
Thanks for watching!