Just a few years ago, most of us knew very little about our genes and their impact on our lives. In the last few decades, advances in molecular biology and the equipment available for research in this field have allowed the increasingly rapid sequencing of large portions of the genomes of several species. The human genome sequencing project generated data and this deluge of information necessitated the careful storage, organization and indexing of sequence information. This has led to the integration of biology and informatics, which is the creation, development, and operation of databases and other computing tools to collect, organize, and interpret data, thus leading to the recognition & strengthening of Bioinformatics. Sequence annotation ie. the elucidation and description of biologically relevant features in the sequence was only possible using various computational engines. The ever increasing biological information compounded by their complexity has also necessitated creation of a variety of databases to enable better understanding of networks and information propagation.

Bioinformatics Program provides professional expertise in the areas of Biotechnology, and Information Technology by providing competence in computational biology/bioinformatics through training in the areas of molecular biology, information technology, statistics and bioinformatics. This two years post graduate program has been designed specifically to meet the ever increasing industrial demand for Bioinformatics professionals with an industry-linked education. This post-graduate program is meant for graduates in relevant domains as well as industrial workers, entrepreneurs and scientific personnel engaged in teaching and research.

Molecular biology techniques which include PCR amplification, gene cloning, DNA sequencing and protein purification & chromatography etc. along with the theoretical inputs that are required to meaningfully design and conduct experiments are integral to the NIIT University curriculum. The major thrust is towards the integration of the theoretical knowledge with the hands-on practical experience.

Advanced topics in bioinformatics include the science behind various sequence analyses, pattern recognition, parallel computing, application of bioinformatics to drug design and discovery, database creation and management, data warehousing & mining and modeling of metabolic pathways, cheminformatics, and phylogenetic analysis. Software packages related to sequence analysis, modeling of biological structures and studying intermolecular interactions, structure activity relations etc. are available for hands-on experience and learning.