Students in our MS in Genome Health Analysis program take part in courses offered by both NYU Langone’s Vilcek Institute Biomedical Sciences and Sarah Lawrence College’s Joan H. Mark Graduate Program in Human Genetics. The program, which culminates in a degree from NYU, is typically completed in two years and includes coursework, case-based skills labs, and a practicum for immersion in future work environments. With individualized coaching from faculty of both programs, students acquire competencies that can be successfully adapted to a variety of careers in personalized healthcare and genomic medicine.

Students also have opportunities to engage in interdisciplinary, collaborative learning with faculty and students at Sarah Lawrence College and NYU Grossman School of Medicine. All of these experiences help our graduates develop strong professional identities as change agents and valued members of interprofessional teams, which enables them to innovate new healthcare roles.

MS in Genome Health Analysis Curriculum

Our MS in Genome Health Analysis requires a minimum of 48 credits, including coursework and practical work experience. The program begins in the fall and spans four semesters. Details of the curriculum are as follows.

Fall 1

• Introduction to Programming and Biostatistics
• Human Genetics
• Healthcare Systems
• Evidence-Based Practice

Spring 1

• Genome Sequence Informatics
• Professional Identities
• Human Disease Genomics
• Clinical Risk Assessment

Fall 2

• Health Informatics
• Human Genome Variant Interpretation
• Skills Lab 1
• Practicum 1

Spring 2

• Translational Healthcare
• Emerging ‘Omics Technologies
• Skills Lab 2
• Practicum 2

Skills Lab

In this yearlong course, students utilize problem-based learning to integrate skills in variant curation, risk assessment, and interprofessional consultation. While interpreting a series of individual genomes in different clinical contexts, students develop familiarity with the perspectives of professionals providing care across a range of medical specialties, as well as the anatomy and physiology of associated organ systems. Cases become increasingly complex as students analyze data and facilitate interprofessional consultations more independently.

Practicum

Practicum enables students to experience different work environments where genomic data is utilized and analyze those environments for ways by which the genome health analyst would enhance provision of personalized healthcare. Each student identifies a mentor and setting that align with their interests and spends significant time observing and assessing how to best use their specialized skillset in that setting. All students present on their experiences to inform cross-context comparison of future work roles and prompt strategic thinking on how to integrate the genome health analyst into existing healthcare structures and services.