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The Research Practicum/Internship in Bioinformatics and Computational Biology (BCB) is a planned, individualized, mentored, evaluated, experiential learning opportunity that serves as a bridge between academic training and post-training practice. The internship/practicum provides special opportunities for learning that are different from, supplementary to, and supportive of the academic components of the PhD program. The internship/practicum is open to both domestic and international students. The internship/practicum offers students an opportunity to:

  • Apply knowledge and skills learned in the classroom and dissertation laboratory in a real-world setting.
  • Understand the social, political, economic, and organizational context within which their specialty activities occur.
  • Contribute to the work and impact of an organization.
  • Aid in the solution of problems within their specialty.
  • Observe and learn from professionals in the field.
  • Explore areas of professional interest and develop career goals.
  • Gain feedback on professional skills and abilities.
  • Become acquainted with, and network with non-academic groups engaged in their specialty.

Internships/practica follow a general format that provides an opportunity to tailor the experience to the needs of the student and participating organization. Internships/practica are:

  • At least 160 hours long.
  • Mentored by a sponsoring organization professional and at least one UNC-Chapel Hill representative
  • Requires students to apply graduate-level skills & competencies acquired in the PhD program.
  • Involves experiences that allow students to have responsibility for results that are of value to a sponsoring organization. The number and types of experiences a student completes are left to the discretion of the sponsoring organization professional in recognition of the sponsoring organization’s needs, time constraints, and student interests and capabilities.
  • It provides students with opportunities to gain a wide perspective on the issues, concerns, and processes that occur in the real world.
  • Develops and enhances students’ professional skill sets.

The research practicum/internship is a course designed to expand classroom learning to include “hands-on” experience with an organization partner in any field related to research and development, clinical research, clinical trials, science literacy, science policy, or other science-related endeavors. The main aim of the course is to provide the students with a practical learning opportunity in a work environment that focuses on scientific knowledge generation. There are 1-9 credits available for this course depending on the time commitment with the sponsoring organization. These credits may be taken at one time or spread over semesters depending on worksite and student requirements. These internships may be of at least four types:

  1. On-site internships with for-profit, governmental, nonprofit, or academic organizations that have been identified by UNC.
  2. On-site internships with for-profit, governmental, nonprofit, or academic organizations that the student identifies.
  3. Virtual internships with organizations that UNC has identified and with which UNC has a standing relationship.
  4. Virtual internships, which the student identifies, must involve new meaningful work experiences that can be completed at a distance from the physical organization.

Program contact details

Course instructor: Will Valdar, Director of Bioinformatics and Computational Biology PhD curriculum.

Internship Program director: Dr. Patrick Brandt, Director of Career Development and Outreach, Office of Graduate Education.

FAQ

For questions about details of this practicum, please contact a member of the BCB administration. Answers will either be copied here or incorporated into the description of the course above.