The fields of health and bioscience are constantly evolving and expanding.  Students in the MS in Computational Bioscience are on the leading edge of these dynamic industries.  By being part of Oregon Health & Science University the CSEE department is ideally positioned to provide an interdisciplinary education to Computational Bioscience students.  This degree will serve to produce students capable of meeting the burgeoning demands of today's biomedical industries.

What will you learn?
Students gain a foundation of learning in bioscience while applying computational technologies to emerging problems in this exciting field. 

The five foundational course areas listed below give CSEE students a firm grounding in a multi-disciplinary degree taught by a diverse international faculty with strong research experience.

1. Machine Learning and Adaptive Systems
2. Speech Language and Interactive Systems Technologies
3. Health and Bioscience
4. Programming
5. Business/management (optional)

The Computational Bioscience track is intended to encompass a number of different interests in the bioscience arena, and an open design allows students to customize their education in accordance with their particular computational bioscience area of focus.

1. Medical Informatics (the intersection of computer science, information science and health care).
2. Bioinformatics (using a combination of mathematics and sciences, to solve biological problems usually on the molecular level).
3. Computational Diagnostics (biomedical imaging and disease detection through voice analysis).
4. Biomedical Imaging (central to the diagnosis and treatment of nearly all diseases and is critical for drug development).

Real-world applications
Computational Bioscience is the natural bridge between high tech and healthcare.  In designing the computational bioscience track the CSEE department conducted an industry survey.  The findings indicate that not only are leading high tech companies are investing more in researching and developing health and bioscience technologies, but that requirements for engineers working on those technologies are evolving.  This track is designed to be at the forefront of those evolving technologies.

What Jobs are Available?
According to a recent survey by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), biomedical applications of computer science and electronic engineering are considered the area with the most job growth potential in the field.  Major companies including Intel and IBM have made substantial investments in healthcare over the past few years.  The bioscience industry is expanding both nationwide and regionally.  According to the Oregon Bioscience Association there are as many as 240 Bioscience companies in Oregon alone.  In 2008 Genentech, one of the leaders in the Bioscience industry plans to open a new facility in Hillsboro, Oregon.

Student Background
Because Computational Bioscience is fundamentally interdisciplinary, we encourage students with a wide range of backgrounds to apply, including students in computer science and electrical engineering, biology, neurology, physics, and mathematics.  However, completion of appropriate coursework in computation or mathematics is mandatory.

About the program
Full time students generally take only 12-15 months (4-5 terms) to complete a master’s degree.  The program can be completed in 2-4 years by students attending on a part-time basis.
Admissions applications are accepted all year round.

Faculty Research
Ongoing Computational Bioscience research projects include developing algorithms that detect subtle behavioral markers--in speech, language, or gait, for instance--and accurately diagnose neurological disorders like autism and cognitive decline.  In another research project, pattern recognition techniques are enabling an entirely new approach to immune-system research being conducted at OHSU's Casey Eye Institute.