MSc Bioinformatics and Systems Biology

Year of entry: 2024

Overview

Degree awarded
Master of Science
Duration
12 months
Entry requirements

We require an honours degree (minimum Upper Second) or overseas equivalent in: 

  • biological sciences
  • medical sciences
  • physical sciences
  • computing sciences subject
  • mathematics

We require sufficient evidence of the relevant units taken. We may also consider exceptional applicants with a Lower Second who also have research experience or equivalent professional experience.

Full entry requirements

How to apply

Please apply via our online application form.

Due to the high demand for this course, we operate a staged admissions process (see below). We reserve the right to close applications at any stage if the course is full, so we recommend that you apply as early as possible.

Your application must be complete to be considered. For non-UK educated students, you need to provide evidence of English language ability for your application to be considered complete. We cannot provide a decision without this.

Applications with any missing supporting documents will only be given a decision in the stage during which the outstanding documents are received. For example, if you submit your application in stage 1 but your references are not received until stage 3, you will be considered as a stage 3 applicant.

We cannot prioritise any applications nor can we provide any decisions prior to the published stage deadlines as this is not fair to other applicants in each stage. If you require a decision by a particular date, such as, for a scholarship application, it is your responsibility to ensure your application is submitted and completed in enough time for you to receive your decision, in line with the decision deadlines below.

If we make you an offer, you will have 4 weeks to reply. Offers not replied to within 4 weeks will be withdrawn so that a place can be offered to another candidate.

  • Stage 1: Application completed by 8 Dec 2023; decision by 5 Feb 2024.
  • Stage 2: Application completed by 22 Mar 2024; decision by 29 Apr 2024.
  • Stage 3: Application completed by 31 May 2024; decision by 28 Jun 2024.
  • Stage 4: Application completed by 26 Jul 2024; decision by 30 Aug 2024.

Please note we give preference to applicants with grades above our minimum entry requirements.

Whilst we aim to give you a decision on your application by the deadline date, in some instances due to the competition for places and the volume of applications received, it may be necessary to roll your application forward to the next deadline date. If this is the case we will let you know after the initial deadline has passed.

Course options

Full-time Part-time Full-time distance learning Part-time distance learning
MSc Y N N N

Course overview

  • Gain extensive research experience and professional skills in the field of bioinformatics and systems biology.
  • Prepare for a career in industry or academic research.
  • Study at a university ranked 7th in the UK for Biological Sciences (QS World University Rankings 2023).

Open days

Come along to our open day webinar on master's in biosciences on Thursday 7 December 11am-12pm. Our postgraduate education leads will take you through the available courses in the School of Biological Sciences, how to apply and what it's like to study a master's at Manchester. In the final part of the webinar you will be able to ask any outstanding questions. Book your place here .

Fees

For entry in the academic year beginning September 2024, the tuition fees are as follows:

  • MSc (full-time)
    UK students (per annum): £14,000
    International, including EU, students (per annum): £33,000

Further information for EU students can be found on our dedicated EU page.

The fees quoted above will be fully inclusive for the course tuition, administration and computational costs during your studies.

All fees for entry will be subject to yearly review and incremental rises per annum are also likely over the duration of courses lasting more than a year for UK students (fees are typically fixed for International students for the course duration at the year of entry). For general fees information please visit: postgraduate fees. Always contact the department if you are unsure which fee applies to your qualification award and method of attendance.

Self-funded international applicants for this course will be required to pay a deposit of £1000 towards their tuition fees before a confirmation of acceptance for studies (CAS) is issued. This deposit will only be refunded if immigration permission is refused. We will notify you about how and when to make this payment.

Policy on additional costs

All students should normally be able to complete their programme of study without incurring additional study costs over and above the tuition fee for that programme. Any unavoidable additional compulsory costs totalling more than 1% of the annual home undergraduate fee per annum, regardless of whether the programme in question is undergraduate or postgraduate taught, will be made clear to you at the point of application. Further information can be found in the University's Policy on additional costs incurred by students on undergraduate and postgraduate taught programmes (PDF document, 91KB).

Scholarships/sponsorships

For the latest scholarship and bursary information please visit the fees and funding page.

Contact details

School/Faculty
Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health
Contact name
Postgraduate Admissions Office
Telephone
0161 529 4539
Email
Website
https://www.bmh.manchester.ac.uk/study/biosciences/masters/
School/Faculty
Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health

Courses in related subject areas

Use the links below to view lists of courses in related subject areas.

Entry requirements

Academic entry qualification overview

We require an honours degree (minimum Upper Second) or overseas equivalent in: 

  • biological sciences
  • medical sciences
  • physical sciences
  • computing sciences subject
  • mathematics

We require sufficient evidence of the relevant units taken. We may also consider exceptional applicants with a Lower Second who also have research experience or equivalent professional experience.

English language

International students must demonstrate English proficiency at the point of application through a secure and approved testing system.

We ask for English language proof if you are from non-majority English speaking countries (a list of majority English speaking countries, as defined by the UK Home Office, can be found here ).

Specifically, we require a minimum of:

  • IELTS: 6.5 overall with 6.5 or above in each component
  • TOEFL: 90 internet-based with 22 or above in each component

See further information about requirements for your country .

We may also accept evidence of a confirmed place on a University Pre-sessional English language course , if your current IELTS scores are: 

  • Minimum 6.0 overall (with 6.0 in each component) plus enrolment and attendance on the 6-week pre-sessional course (PS6)

  • Minimum 6.0 overall (with 5.5 in each component) plus enrolment and attendance on the 10-week pre-sessional course (PS10)

Please note, we must approve this before you apply for the English course.

English language test validity

Some English Language test results are only valid for two years. Your English Language test report must be valid on the start date of the course.

Other international entry requirements

We accept a range of qualifications from different countries. For more details see entry requirements from your country .

Application and selection

How to apply

Please apply via our online application form.

Due to the high demand for this course, we operate a staged admissions process (see below). We reserve the right to close applications at any stage if the course is full, so we recommend that you apply as early as possible.

Your application must be complete to be considered. For non-UK educated students, you need to provide evidence of English language ability for your application to be considered complete. We cannot provide a decision without this.

Applications with any missing supporting documents will only be given a decision in the stage during which the outstanding documents are received. For example, if you submit your application in stage 1 but your references are not received until stage 3, you will be considered as a stage 3 applicant.

We cannot prioritise any applications nor can we provide any decisions prior to the published stage deadlines as this is not fair to other applicants in each stage. If you require a decision by a particular date, such as, for a scholarship application, it is your responsibility to ensure your application is submitted and completed in enough time for you to receive your decision, in line with the decision deadlines below.

If we make you an offer, you will have 4 weeks to reply. Offers not replied to within 4 weeks will be withdrawn so that a place can be offered to another candidate.

  • Stage 1: Application completed by 8 Dec 2023; decision by 5 Feb 2024.
  • Stage 2: Application completed by 22 Mar 2024; decision by 29 Apr 2024.
  • Stage 3: Application completed by 31 May 2024; decision by 28 Jun 2024.
  • Stage 4: Application completed by 26 Jul 2024; decision by 30 Aug 2024.

Please note we give preference to applicants with grades above our minimum entry requirements.

Whilst we aim to give you a decision on your application by the deadline date, in some instances due to the competition for places and the volume of applications received, it may be necessary to roll your application forward to the next deadline date. If this is the case we will let you know after the initial deadline has passed.

Advice to applicants

We require the following documents before we can consider your application:

  • Transcript of your studies to date.
  • Degree certificate (if you have already graduated).
  • Personal statement or statement of purpose.
  • Curriculum vitae (CV).
  • Evidence of English language ability.
  • An academic reference. You will be required to provide the name and contact details of two referees during completion of the application form.

Your referees will be contacted directly and asked to provide a letter of reference. When providing referee details, you must ensure the email addresses are accurate and official, typically ending with an institutional domain. We do not accept references provided from a personal email address, eg Hotmail or Gmail.

If any of the supporting documents are not in English, you must also provide us with official or certified English translations.

If English is not your first language, we require proof of your English language ability. If you have already taken an English language qualification, please include your certificate with your application. We cannot provide an initial decision on an application without seeing some evidence of a good level of English language ability. If you do not provide this when you apply, your application will remain on hold until evidence is received. 

How your application is considered

We consider your full academic history including which undergraduate course units you have taken and the marks obtained. When application numbers are high, even if you have met our minimum entry requirements, we will take into account your marks in relevant undergraduate course units in our final decision making.

Overseas (non-UK) applicants

Self-funded international applicants for this course will be required to pay a deposit of £1,000 towards their tuition fees before a Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS) is issued. This deposit will only be refunded if immigration permission is refused. We will notify you about how and when to make this payment.

You cannot use your CAS to apply for a visa more than three months before the start date of your course. This means that if you intend to begin a course on 16th September 2024, we will not issue you with a CAS number before 16th June 2024.

Your CAS number is only valid for one student visa application.

Re-applications

If you applied in the previous year and your application was not successful you may apply again.

Your application will be considered against the standard course entry criteria for that year of entry. In your new application you should demonstrate how your application has improved. We may draw upon all information from your previous applications or any previous registrations at the University as a student when assessing your suitability for your chosen course.

Course details

Course description

Our MSc Bioinformatics and Systems Biology course looks at two concepts that complement each other and reflect the skills currently sought by employers in academia and industry.

Bioinformatics is changing as high throughput biological data collection becomes more systems-oriented, with employers seeking people who can work across both disciplines.

Enormous success has been achieved in bioinformatics, such as in defining homologous families of sequences at the DNA, RNA and protein levels. However, our appreciation of function is changing rapidly as experimental analysis scales up to cellular and organismal viewpoints.

At these levels, we are interested in the properties of a network of interacting components as a system, as well as the components themselves.

Our MSc reflects these exciting developments, providing an integrated programme taught by researchers at the forefront of fields spanning bioinformatics, genomics and systems biology.

You will gain theoretical and practical knowledge of methods to analyse and interpret the data generated by modern biology. This involves the appreciation of biochemistry and molecular biology, together with IT and computer science techniques that will prepare you for multidisciplinary careers in research.

PhD with integrated master's

If you're planning to undertake a PhD after your master's, our Integrated PhD programme will enable you to combine your postgraduate taught course with a related PhD project in biology, medicine or health.

You can also visit this page for examples of projects related to integrated master's courses.

Aims

This course aims to:

  • provide a biological background to the data types of genomics, proteomics and metabolomics;
  • develop the computational and analytical understanding and skills necessary for processing biological data;
  • demonstrate applications and worked examples in the fields of bioinformatics and systems biology, integrating with student involvement through project work.

Special features

Expert teaching

Learn from researchers at the forefront of fields spanning bioinformatics, genomics and systems biology.

Research experience

Develop your research skills in preparation for a career in the biosciences industry or academic research.

Teaching and learning

We use a range of teaching and learning methods, including lectures, practicals, group discussions and e-learning.

We provide experience of carrying out two substantive research projects, including the planning, execution and communication of original scientific research.

Find out more by visiting the postgraduate teaching and learning page.

Coursework and assessment

Research projects are assessed by written report, poster and oral presentations, and dry-lab performance. Taught units are assessed through both coursework and exams.

Course unit details

The taught part of the course runs from September to December and consists of 60 credits delivered from four 15-credit units:

  • Bioinformatics
  • Programming Skills 
  • Computational Approaches to Biology
  • Experimental Design and Statistics

You will undertake two research projects, each carrying 60 credits, in Semester 2 and the summer. 

Course unit list

The course unit details given below are subject to change, and are the latest example of the curriculum available on this course of study.

TitleCodeCredit ratingMandatory/optional
Programming Skills BIOL60201 15 Mandatory
Bioinformatics BIOL60791 15 Mandatory
Research Project 1-Bioinformatics BIOL61230 60 Mandatory
Research Project 2-Bioinformatics BIOL61280 60 Mandatory
Statistics & Experimental Design BIOL65161 15 Mandatory
Computational Approaches to Biology BIOL66021 15 Mandatory

What our students say

The most useful part was the feedback from my supervisor during the whole project, they provided me with prompt and precise insights to develop the experiment and the dissertation as well. In technical terms, programming skills in Python and mathematical models were the most useful topics I used.

In the project, ample time was given to specialise in a single topic. It was also great to be able to choose from a wide variety of topics when selecting a project.

I enjoyed the flexibility and in parts the ability to make my own goals.

(Anonymous student feedback)

Facilities

You will be able to access a range of facilities throughout the University.

Disability support

Practical support and advice for current students and applicants is available from the Disability Advisory and Support Service .

Careers

Career opportunities

Our graduates acquire a wide range of subject-specific and transferable skills and extensive research experience.

The combination of systems biology and bioinformatics addressed in this course reflects the current skills sought in academic and industrial (eg pharmaceutical) settings.

Around half of each class find PhD positions straight after the MSc, while others find positions in the biosciences, health data and IT industries, or build upon their training to enter careers in biology and IT.