Iowa State University

Why Apply at Iowa State -

A Powerpoint Summary and a Powerpoint on some BCB Research Projects

Financial Support

How to Apply to the BCB Program

Application Materials Needed

Application Specifics and Admission Decision Criteria

Academic Preparation

No Admission Restrictions

BCB Graduate Program Description

Recent News

Why Apply at Iowa State?

Leader in BCB Programs in the U.S.

Iowa State University has been recognized as one of the top Bioinformatics and Computational Biology PhD programs in the nation with the award of two Integrative Graduate Education and Research Training (IGERT) grants from the National Science Foundation. Only one other program in the nation has received two IGERT awards.

The Iowa State University Bioinformatics and Computational Biology (BCB) Program offers Ph.D. training at the intersections of Biological, Computing and Information Sciences. We are one of the first Bioinformatics and Computational Biology PhD programs in the United States. Our 90+ graduates work in the academic, industrial and public sectors.

Find out more about our BCB alumni here.

Interdisciplinary Research Opportunities

Iowa State University (ISU) has world-class research programs in Statistics, Bioinformatics, and Computational and Information Sciences and Engineering. An $18.5 million Engineering Research Center for Biorenewable Chemicals was recently funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF). Iowa State conducts major plant, animal and microbial genome research projects which are recognized internationally.

Students can participate in research efforts led by world-class, faculty who have interdisciplinary research programs funded by grants which totaled over $325 million for FY2012, including support from the NSF, NIH (National Institutes of Health), USDA (U.S. Department of Agriculture) and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).

Students in our program develop an independent approach to their studies through an interdisciplinary curriculum. More than 70 faculty members from 18 academic departments participate in our program. Students have the opportunity to conduct research in all major research areas of computational molecular biology, including genomics, structural genomics, functional genomics, and computational systems biology.

Students train in a highly interdisciplinary environment under faculty with expertise spanning both computational and life sciences, with access to some of the most modern experimental platforms.

Find out more about BCB Faculty members here.

Cutting-Edge Curriculum and Training Program

A state-of-the-art core curriculum is built on the foundation disciplines for BCB which include genetics, molecular biology, mathematics, computer science, statistics and physics. Students entering the BCB program are expected to have a strong undergraduate background in at least one of these disciplines and additional coursework in another.

Our cutting-edge sequence of core courses provides a strong foundation in algorithmic and statistical approaches in computational biology, structural genomics, computational functional genomics, and systems biology.

First-year students participate in research rotations in three labs to gain experience in both experimental and computational environ-ments. In the second year, students initiate their interdisciplinary thesis research with the guidance of faculty from the Biological, Computing and Information Sciences.

A description of prerequisite and background courses, as well as our curriculum and training program is located here.

Outstanding Computational Research Facilities

ISU has outstanding computational, information and life science research facilities that support collaborative research groups. A wide array of instrumentation facilities provide services to researchers in the life sciences, bioinformatics and computational biology, computer and information sciences, engineering, and complex adaptive systems.

A campus-wide network augments the computational research facilities of the Center for Bioinformatics and Biological Statistics; the Center for Integrated Animal Genomics, the Center for Computational Intelligence, Learning and Discovery; the Virtual Reality Applications Center; and the state-of-the-art immersive virtual reality facilities (C6).

Iowa State University provides faculty, staff and students with high performance computing facilities and technology for research purposes. High performance computing utilizes supercomputers and parallel processing for running advanced programs quickly and efficiently.

Additional computing facilities are available in the Scaleable Computing Lab, and the Artificial Intelligence, Database, and Distributed Computing Research Labs in the Computer Science Department and in the Statistical Lab of the Department of Statistics.

Find out more about BCB and Iowa State University resources here.

Excellent Funding and Support

All applicants admitted without special fellowships to our Graduate Program receive Graduate Assistantships with a yearly stipend of $22,000. All admitted students also receive complete tuition remission and paid health care benefits.

Special Fellowships are also sometimes available such as the Plant Sciences Institute (PSI) Fellowships and the USDA National Needs PhD Fellowships in: An Integrated Educational Approach (IDEA) Combined Computational and Genomics Education for Livestock. Both U.S. citizens and international students are eligible for PSI Fellowships. U.S. citizens or permanent residents, are eligible for the USDA Fellowships.

Fellowships from the National Science Foundation's IGERT (Integrative Graduate Education and Research Training) award are no longer available, but benefits from this NSF multi-million-dollar, multi-year grant to ISU will continue to be reflected in programs and activities which were established for students in the BCB Graduate program through it.

More information on student funding is located here.

More information on school and living costs is located here.

A Beautiful Campus, City, and State !

You will find a beautiful campus, city and state with many opportunities !

More information about Iowa State University, the city of Ames, and the State of Iowa can be found here.

Summer Internships at ISU

Iowa State University offers many exciting summer internship opportunities including:

• Women in Science and Engineering
• Research Experience in Molecular Biotechnology and Genomics
• Biological Materials and Processes, BioMaP
• Emerging Interface Technologies (SPIRE-EIT)

Application Deadline
January 15 is the deadline for application to the BCB Graduate Program at Iowa State University. All application materials are also due by this date. Waivers of this deadline may be possible.

Phd Degree Program
We strongly prefer to admit students directly into the Ph.D. program. Successful applicants to our M.S. degree program usually are those already at ISU pursuing a PhD in another discipline.

Fall Admission
Spring admission is permitted only in unusual circumstances. Fall semester is the recommended starting point for applicants to the Graduate Program. The coursework builds from the fall semester on. The program offers an extensive orientation program in the Fall semester only.

Application Fee Waiver Available
To receive a fee waiver, submit the on-line application and send all materials, specified below, directly to the BCB office. Your application will be reviewed by the BCB graduate program. If you receive an admission offer, and you accept our offer, we will pay for your application fee with Iowa State University's central Graduate Admissions office.   top

How do I Apply?
Apply on-line . (Please use Internet Explorer web browser for best performance rather than FireFox.)

OR download the Word application.

• 3 Recommendation letters with a Confidential Report form; (download this form as a Word or PDF file.)

(Please fill out and sign the top portion of the Confidential Report form, and give it to each of your recommenders. With the email address you provided for each of your recommenders in our on-line application, we will provide them with directions on how to send us their letters.)

• Photocopies of Transcripts (in English);
• Photocopy of GRE scores and TOEFL scores;
• Statement of professional goals;
• Resume;
• Statement of previous research experience and publications

Mailing address
All materials requested in the BCB application should be sent by January 15 directly to:

Bioinformatics and Computational Biology
2014 Molecular Biology Building
Iowa State University
Ames, IA 50011

Copies of TOEFL and GRE Acceptable for admissions process
For BCB's application review process, you may send copies. If you are made an offer of admission, and you plan to attend ISU, we must receive official reports of your TOEFL and GRE from ETS. Have ETS send those to Iowa State University's Graduate Admission Office.

• Institution Code = 6306 (for both GRE and TOEFL)
• GRE Program Code = 5101
• TOEFL Program Code = 99

Do you require a GRE Subject Test?
We recommend subject tests, but do not require them. We require that applicants take the General Graduate Record Examination.

Is the TSE required?
No. The TOEFL and the General Graduate Record Examination are required.

What does the statement of professional goals include?
What do you intend to do with a PhD in BCB? Why are you interested in our particular graduate program? Whose research in the BCB Program interests you? These are the kinds of questions one might like to address in this statement. top

• Previous academic training (courses taken, grades earned)
• Academic performance (cumulative GPA 3.3/4.0 or at least a "B+" average and rank in top quartile of your graduating class)
• Quality of schools attended
• Statement of professional goals
• Research experience and publications
• Letters of recommendation
• GRE Scores. The raw GRE scores of PhD applicants admitted typically have averaged 780 for the Quantitative portion, 580 for the Verbal portion and 4.0 in the Analytical Writing portion; TOEFL scores for admitted international applicants have averaged approximately 620 for the paper based and 260 for the computer based. GRE scores are reportable for 5 years until September 15 following the fifth anniversary of the test date.
• TOEFL scores (admitted applicants average over 620 paper-based or over 265 computer-based. Applicants who take the Internet TOEFL need to achieve a score of 79 or higher. The BCB Program typically admits students with internet TOEFL scores of 100 to 120.) The TOEFL requirement is waived only for international students who have earned a degree at a U.S. college or university.

It is important to be concise and precise in your admission materials to best represent your research abilities and interests. If you have published the results of your research in a scientific journal, be sure to highlight that information in your application materials.   top

Do I need to obtain a Master's degree before I can be admitted to this PhD graduate program?
No. An undergraduate degree from a four-year institution is sufficient to be admitted to our program. Three year undergraduate degree programs at some institutions may require additional coursework as a four-year degree is a University admission standard. Email BCB program staff to ask for more information if you have questions.

What academic background best prepares one for a graduate program in BCB at Iowa State University?
Successful applicants typically have an undergraduate degree in computer science, molecular biology, mathematics, statistics, physics or a closely related discipline. Strong computational, mathematical or statistical training is highly desirable. However, all exceptionally well-qualified applicants who present strong evidence of research potential will be considered for admission.

What specific courses help prepare students for the BCB program at Iowa State University?
Information on background preparation and course requirements for the PhD program in BCB at Iowa State University is located here.

Are there any restrictions on admission to your graduate program based on nationality?
No. The Graduate Program in BCB and Iowa State University admit qualified applicants to our programs regardless of nationality.

How many students are currently enrolled in your graduate program?
For Fall, 2012, our there are 53 students in our graduate program, with 17 from the U.S., 10 from China, 19 from India and 7 from other countries.   top

Program Description
Here is a one page summary of our program.

Graduate College Description of BCB
The Graduate College has an on-line brochure available for viewing. Go to this site , fill out the short survey and select Bioinformatics and Computational Biology to receive a brochure on BCB and Iowa State University.