Master of Bioinformatics

Bioinformatics is an exciting and challenging multidisciplinary field that combines mathematical, statistical, computer science and information technology methods to solve life science-based problems. Advances in experimental technologies have produced huge amounts of data. Therefore, managing and extracting useful information from these sources are important if we are to discover new knowledge to advance our understanding of the living world. This is a task of a Bioinformatician. Universiti Malaya is the first university in Malaysia to offer Bioinformatics education at the postgraduate level. The Master of Bioinformatics program, offered since 2008, is designed to address the growing need for Bioinformatics expert with the essential skills needed in the Bioinformatics industry as well as advanced life science-based industries such as biotechnology and biomedical research. The Master of Bioinformatics programme is a 42-credit hour programme where students need to complete 12 courses including a research project, spanning over 2 full semesters and 1 special semester.

At the end of the study, students will develop the essential knowledge on programming principles and the techniques needed in the development of algorithms and software tools. They will also acquire a hands on learning experience on the methods of computational modelling, structural biology, and data analysis in various omics science including genomic sequencing, proteomics, and transcriptomics. In addition, students will be able to learn the essential concepts of biological data management including data science, advance databases, big data in Bioinformatics, information systems, biological network, as well as their applications in various fields and industries. The programme also prepares students for career advancement and further study at the PhD level.  Graduates of this program find careers in the broadest domain: in private (including biotechnology, pharmaceutical, medical and information science) and public (including academia). The expanding need for bioinformatics in biological and medical research ensures a large variety of job opportunities for Bioinformatician.