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2020-2021

Bachelor of Science: Bioinformatics

VCU

Community college:
Associate of Science: Life Science (Richard Bland College of William and Mary)
Richard Bland College
Richard Bland College
Associate degree

Associate of Science: Life Science

Program description

The bioinformatics curriculum blends foundational courses in biology, math, chemistry and computer science with a core of hands-on, problem-solving bioinformatics courses.  It allows undergraduates an unusual opportunity to learn molecular biology by actually doing it--reading scientific papers, doing "wet-lab" experiments, creating bioinformatics programs, and designing individual and team research investigations.  The program includes the Life Sciences general education, specific training in the collateral coursework and bioinformatics core, and focused training in the chosen concentration.

Career opportunities

Our students learn how to use bioinformatics tools to solve scientific problems through project-based courses.  These experiences mimic what doing molecular/computational science is actually like and provide excellent training for technician-level  jobs (universities, institutes, biotech or IT industry), for training in graduate school or in the health professions.  Students interested in a health profession usually specialize in the Biological/Genomic Concentration.  Some students are interested in working close to the health system, while others are more interested in the programming/data analyst route.  The technical, analytical and communications skills practiced in the program can transfer to other occupations as well.  Students with the MS degree typically have greater opportunities than those with the Bachelor's degree, as the Masters allows the student to gain more relevant skills, content knowledge and project experience.

Bachelor-level job titles
  • Agricultural & Food Technician
  • Bioinformatics Technician
  • Biological Data Analyst
  • Biological Technician
  • Clinical Research Associate (CRA)
  • Computational Biologist
  • Computer Programmer
  • Genomic Data Scientist
  • Mathematical Technician
  • Operations Research Analyst
Graduate and professional level job titles
  • Biostatistician
  • College Professor
  • Microbiologist
  • Software Developer
Contact information

 

VCU Transfer Center

Telephone: (804) 827-1349

Email: transferinfo@vcu.edu

Transfer Advising Request

VCCS Transfer Planning Checklist


Office of Admissions

Telephone: (804) 828-1222 or (800) 841-3638

Email: ugrad@vcu.edu
Apply Here.

Guaranteed transfer admission requirements

Completion of associate degree
Minimum GPA of 2.5
All courses must be completed with a grade of "C" or better

Degree requirements in Bulletin
Plan of study in Bulletin
Requirements
Highest level of math required
  • MATH 151 or STAT 210
  • MATH 200
Science required
  • 5+ additional science courses
Foreign language requirements
  • Yes
Additional tuition/fees
GPA requirements (to progress/graduate in the major)
  • 2.0
VCU Major Maps

View VCU Major Map for Bioinformatics with concentration in Biological/Genomic Sciences; Computational Sciences; Quantitative/Statistical Sciences

Transfer major map
Visit majormaps.vcu.edu for the online version with links.
Sponsored by the Office of the Provost
Major map compass icon
2020-2021

Bachelor of Science: Bioinformatics

Richard Bland College of William and Mary (Associate of Science: Life Science)

MAXIMIZE COURSE AND DEGREE PLANNING GET CONNECTED WITH YOUR COMMUNITY DEVELOP CULTURAL AGILITY EXPLORE CAREERS AND DEVELOP ESSENTIAL SKILLS PREPARING FOR LIFE AFTER COLLEGE
Explore Year 1
  • Attend RBC Orientation.
  • Schedule an appointment with your Learner Mentor to discuss your degree and class plan.
  • Register for ESE 101 if you have not taken any college level classes.
  • Attend FAFSA Fridays to understand how you will fund your education. These events are available every Friday in October and February.
  • Use tutoring to get ahead.
  • Attend cultural events at RBC and/or VCU and celebrate diversity.
  • Attend VCU's annual Intercultural Festival or another community intercultural event.
  • Assess your preparation for a career by completing a Gap Analysis.
  • Familiarize yourself with the career services offered at RBC and VCU and explore career pathways on the VCU Career Services website.
  • Practice independent living skills (such as money management, self-care, time management, and personal responsibility).
  • Take advantage of free Financial Aid counseling.
Experience Year 2
  • Visit the VCU campus and attend a transfer admission session.
  • Attend a talk or other event sponsored by the VCU Bioinformatics Department.
  • Participate in the STEM Transitions: Transfer Success Program after you’re admitted to VCU.
  • Volunteer for service learning or community service projects.
  • Learn about short-term, semester and year-long study abroad options.
  • Continue learning a foreign language or make a plan for undertaking that study at VCU.
  • Attend VCU cultural events, including the monthly Global Café, VCU Diversity Scholars in Research week, or Bioinformatics department-related events
  • Find out about VCU REAL.
  • Attend Career & Internship Fairs at RBC or VCU to explore your interests.
  • Plan to complete at least two internships or job experiences before your senior year of college.
  • Conduct informational interviews or shadow someone in a field of career interest.
  • Using LinkedIn, connect to at least 10 people. Check out the VCU alumni page in My Network.
  • Consider who you would like to have serve as professional and academic references for future letters of recommendation.
  • Use the cost calculator to estimate your tuition/fees as an upperclassman at VCU.
  • Take advantage of free Financial Aid counseling.

Explore
MAXIMIZE COURSE AND DEGREE PLANNING
  • Attend RBC Orientation.
  • Schedule an appointment with your Learner Mentor to discuss your degree and class plan.
  • Register for ESE 101 if you have not taken any college level classes.
  • Attend FAFSA Fridays to understand how you will fund your education. These events are available every Friday in October and February.
  • Use tutoring to get ahead.
GET CONNECTED WITH YOUR COMMUNITY
DEVELOP CULTURAL AGILITY
  • Attend cultural events at RBC and/or VCU and celebrate diversity.
  • Attend VCU's annual Intercultural Festival or another community intercultural event.
EXPLORE CAREERS AND DEVELOP ESSENTIAL SKILLS
PREPARING FOR LIFE AFTER COLLEGE
  • Assess your preparation for a career by completing a Gap Analysis.
  • Familiarize yourself with the career services offered at RBC and VCU and explore career pathways on the VCU Career Services website.
  • Practice independent living skills (such as money management, self-care, time management, and personal responsibility).
  • Take advantage of free Financial Aid counseling.

Experience
MAXIMIZE COURSE AND DEGREE PLANNING
GET CONNECTED WITH YOUR COMMUNITY
  • Visit the VCU campus and attend a transfer admission session.
  • Attend a talk or other event sponsored by the VCU Bioinformatics Department.
  • Participate in the STEM Transitions: Transfer Success Program after you’re admitted to VCU.
  • Volunteer for service learning or community service projects.
DEVELOP CULTURAL AGILITY
  • Learn about short-term, semester and year-long study abroad options.
  • Continue learning a foreign language or make a plan for undertaking that study at VCU.
  • Attend VCU cultural events, including the monthly Global Café, VCU Diversity Scholars in Research week, or Bioinformatics department-related events
EXPLORE CAREERS AND DEVELOP ESSENTIAL SKILLS
  • Find out about VCU REAL.
  • Attend Career & Internship Fairs at RBC or VCU to explore your interests.
  • Plan to complete at least two internships or job experiences before your senior year of college.
PREPARING FOR LIFE AFTER COLLEGE
  • Conduct informational interviews or shadow someone in a field of career interest.
  • Using LinkedIn, connect to at least 10 people. Check out the VCU alumni page in My Network.
  • Consider who you would like to have serve as professional and academic references for future letters of recommendation.
  • Use the cost calculator to estimate your tuition/fees as an upperclassman at VCU.
  • Take advantage of free Financial Aid counseling.
Recommended courses
Major map compass icon
2020-2021

Bachelor of Science: Bioinformatics

Richard Bland College of William and Mary (Associate of Science: Life Science)

Richard Bland College of William and Mary courses
Course Title Equivalent course Credits Requirements
ENGL 101 Rhetoric and Research I Note: students with credit for AP English Language and Composition will only receive credit for UNIV 111 at VCU and should take ENGL 102 to fulfill the VCU composition requirement. UNIV 111-112 3 General education
ENGL 102 Rhetoric and Research II UNIV 200 3 General education
ENGL Core course in The Art and Language of Ideas (select 1): ENGL 203, 204, 205, 206,210, 211, 214, 215. ENGL 3 General education
Fine Arts Core course in The Language and History of the Fine Arts (select 1): ART 201, 202, 231, MUS 103, 123, THEA 201. VCU equivalent 3 General education
Human Experience SOC 201 General Sociology (or PSY 201-202 but both courses must be taken to receive credit for PSYC 101) VCU equivalent 3 General education
U.S. & World Cultures Core courses in U.S. and World Cultures (select 1): GEO 103, GOVT 201, 202, HIST 101, 102, 201, 202 VCU equivalent 3 General education
MATH 251 Calculus I MATH 200 4 Major
MATH 217 Statistics STAT 210 3 Major
BIO 151 + Lab Biological Science I + Lab BIOL/Z 151 4 Major
BIO 152 + Lab Biological Science II + Lab BIOL/Z 152 4 Major
CHEM 101 + Lab General Chemistry I + Lab CHEM/Z 101 4 Major
CHEM 102 + Lab General Chemistry II + Lab CHEM/Z 102 4 Major
CHEM 230 Organic Chemistry I CHEM/Z 301 4 Major
CHEM 231 Organic Chemistry II CHEM/Z 302 4 Major
CSCI 121 or 202 Computer proficiency test or CSCI 121 or 202 VCU equivalent 0 to 3 Elective
CSCI 221 Programming for Computer Science & Engineering Majors CMSC 255 4 Major
Electives No more than 2 credits of PE may be chosen 4 to 7 Elective
Richard Bland credits transferred to VCU 60
VCU courses
Course Title Credits Requirements
Bachelor of Science: Bioinformatics with a concentration in biological/genomic sciences
Foreign language through the 102 level (by course or placement). (This requirement can be fulfilled by means of completion of the 102-level of a language or waived if the student completed up through the third level of a foreign language in high school. Additionally, language waiver and placement testing options are available for native or heritage speakers of a non-english language.) 0 to 8 General education
PHYS 207 University Physics I 5 Major
BIOL 300 Cellular and Molecular Biology 3 Major
BNFO 201 Computing Skills and Concepts for Bioinformatics 3 Major
BNFO 300 Molecular Biology Through Discovery 3 Major
BNFO 301 Introduction to Bioinformatics 3 Major
BNFO 420 Applications in Bioinformatics 3 Major
STAT 314 or STAT 321 Applications of Statistics or Introduction to Statistical Computing 4 Major
BIOL/BNFO 540 Fundamentals of Molecular Genetics 3 Major
BIOL/BNFO 541 or BIOZ 476 Laboratory in Molecular Genetics or Molecular Capstone Laboratory 2 Major
CHEM 403 Biochemistry I 3 Major
Select 10 credits of concentration electives (see VCU advisor for course options) 10 Major
Open electives 10 to 18 Elective
Credits completed at VCU 60
Bachelor's degree total 120
Bachelor of Science: Bioinformatics with a concentration in computational sciences
Foreign language through the 102 level (by course or placement). (This requirement can be fulfilled by means of completion of the 102-level of a language or waived if the student completed up through the third level of a foreign language in high school. Additionally, language waiver and placement testing options are available for native or heritage speakers of a non-english language.) 0 to 8 General education
PHYS 207 University Physics I 5 Major
BIOL 300 Cellular and Molecular Biology 3 Major
BNFO 201 Computing Skills and Concepts for Bioinformatics 3 Major
BNFO 300 Molecular Biology Through Discovery 3 Major
BNFO 301 Introduction to Bioinformatics 3 Major
BNFO 420 Applications in Bioinformatics 3 Major
STAT 314 or STAT 321 Applications of Statistics or Introduction to Statistical Computing 4 Major
CMSC 256 Data Structures and Object-Oriented Programming 4 Major
CMSC 302 Introduction to Discrete Structures 3 Major
CMSC 355 Fundamentals of Software Engineering 3 Major
CMSC 401 Algorithm Analysis with Advanced Data Structures 3 Major
Select 9 credits of concentration electives (see VCU advisor for course options) 9 Major
Open electives 6 to 14 Elective
Credits completed at VCU 60
Bachelor's degree total 120
Bachelor of Science: Bioinformatics with a concentration in quantitative/statistical sciences
Foreign language through the 102 level (by course or placement). (This requirement can be fulfilled by means of completion of the 102-level of a language or waived if the student completed up through the third level of a foreign language in high school. Additionally, language waiver and placement testing options are available for native or heritage speakers of a non-english language.) 0 to 8 General education
PHYS 207 University Physics I 5 Major
BIOL 300 Cellular and Molecular Biology 3 Major
BNFO 201 Computing Skills and Concepts for Bioinformatics 3 Major
BNFO 300 Molecular Biology Through Discovery 3 Major
BNFO 301 Introduction to Bioinformatics 3 Major
BNFO 420 Applications in Bioinformatics 3 Major
STAT 314 Applications of Statistics 4 Major
MATH 201 Calculus with Analytic Geometry II 4 Major
MATH 307 Multivariate Calculus 4 Major
MATH 310 Linear Algebra 3 Major
STAT 321 Introduction to Statistical Computing 3 Major
Select 8 credits of concentration electives (see VCU advisor for course options) 8 Major
Open electives 6 to 14 Elective
Credits completed at VCU 60
Bachelor's degree total 120