Biotechnology and Genomics

Overview

Biotechnology is a rapidly moving transformative technology that has applications in industries as diverse as healthcare, pharmaceutical development, agriculture, alternative energy, environmental monitoring and restoration, and nanotechnology.  In particular, biotechnology is now the predominant technology underpinning the development of new pharmaceuticals and medical diagnostics and treatments.  Genomics is the study of whole genomes (the entire genetic complement of an organism) and is focused on the structure and behavior of all the genes in an organism or ecosystem.  Genomics is an application of biotechnology that has developed in the last 10 years and places a particular emphasis on understanding how very large numbers of genes interact with each other and with their environment.  Genomics has been made possible by new and rapidly evolving developments in structural and analytical methods (e.g., ultra-high throughput DNA sequencing) along with the development of the computational approaches needed to handle large datasets.  Genomics is rapidly finding applications in industry (e.g., in developing personalized medicine, finding new drug targets or searching for novel industrial enzymes in exotic microflora). 

Careers

Students in the Biotechnology and Genomics program of Rutgers University may work as industry researchers, bioinformaticians, consultants and biotechnical scientists, as well as in other areas that involve more business skills. MBS Graduates in this concentration have found work with job titles such as, Analyst, Analytical Biochemist, Associate Biotech Scientist, Lab Researcher/Technician, Marketing Associate, Regulatory Affairs Associate, Venture Associate, and many others. The places where graduates work include pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and personal care companies, research labs, and others including, Bristol Myers Squibb, Chromocell Corporation, Celgene Corporation, Colgate-Palmolive, Genewiz Inc., Johnson & Johnson, Merck and Co., Zitter Health Insights,and many others.