Genomic Sciences Training Program

GSTP Director:  David C. Schwartz, PhD

                        Kellett Professor of Chemistry & Genetics

GSTP Coordinator:     Louise Pape, PhD

GSTP Administrator:  Dena Clark

The Genomic Sciences Training Program at the University of Wisconsin-Madison aims to train the New Biologists, enabling them to gain strengths bridging multiple disciplines needed for an integrated approach to solving complex problems in genomics research. GSTP faculty trainers are in 14 different departments spanning physical, chemical, biological, and computational approaches. GSTP is supported by an institutional training grant from the National Human Genome Research Institute (T32HG002760).

The University of Wisconsin-Madison has built on its core of genomic scientists in recent years and developed the Genomic Sciences Training Program for both predoctoral and postdoctoral fellows covering broad aspects of investigations into genomic science. A cluster hiring initiative in Genomic Science was recently completed and brought together outstanding faculty from a span of disciplines. A new building dedicated to genomic science and genetics was completed summer 2004, designed to foster collaborations and to project a tangible presence on campus. This program is training the next generation of genomicists in multiple disciplines. These disciplines include chemistry, engineering, computer science, biostatistics, genetics, biochemistry, molecular medicine and molecular biology.

The genomic sciences are defining the "New Biology" for this century. A key feature of this New Biology (Schwartz, Nat'l. Acad. Press 2004) is the acquisition and interpretation of staggeringly large data sets (implying high-throughput) that are becoming increasingly multi-dimensional. A key challenge is to maintain clear biological focus on important problems in the face of increasingly complex experimental systems and the requirement for sophisticated means for their analysis (Collins et al., Nature 422: 835, 2003). Clearly, we have a paradigm shift in the way we think about biological problems and the way that we go about solving them. This thinking requires that universities must train the new biologists to operate within this new intellectual space.

Many of the GSTP faculty are innovators in creating new technologies for advancing genomic analysis as well as pioneers in probing complex biological problems on a genomic level. The University has strengths across many of its departments and is one of the top universities in the country. It ranks first in the U.S. among public universities in the amount of research and development funds received from all sources, and first in the U.S. among all universities in the amount of funds received from non-military sources. UW-Madison has one of the largest university biological research communities, with over 700 faculty, 1,500 academic staff, 700 postdoctoral fellows, 2,500 graduate students, and tens of thousands of undergraduates. It is known for interactive and communicative exchanges among many departments, laying the foundation for a nurturing yet challenging intellectual environment in which to develop and pursue a research career.