BioInformatics National Certification Examination

University of Pune, on behalf of Department of Biotechnology, Government of India, will conduct the BINC . The objective of this examination is to certify bioinformatics professionals, trained formally as well as self-trained.

University of Pune has been identified as a nodal agency by the Department of Biotechnology, Govt. of India to coordinate this examination along with six centres namely, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi; Anna University, Chennai; West Bengal University of Technology, Kolkata; Institute of Bioinformatics & Applied Biotechnology, Bangalore; North-Eastern Hill University, Shillong and University of Hyderabad, Hyderabad.|

In the BINC 2008 examination 391 candidates appeared of which 12 candidates got certified and top 10 BINC qualifiers received cash award of Rs.10,000/-.

This year DBT has agreed to fund Research fellowships will be awarded to 15 BINC qualified Indian nationals to pursue Ph.D. in Indian Institutes/Universities. Note that the candidate must possess a postgraduate degree & meet the criteria of the institutes/universities in order to avail research fellowship. In addition, a cash prize of Rs. 10,000/- will be awarded to the top 10 BINC qualifiers.

Eligibility

Graduate in Science, Agriculture, Veterinary, Medicine, Pharmacy, Engineering & Technology are eligible to appear in the examination. They need not have any formal training viz., certificate, diploma or degree in Bioinformatics. Students in final year of Bachelor’s degree are also eligible to apply. International students are also eligible to apply.

Pattern of Examination

The examination consists of THREE papers.

Paper	Type	Date of Exam	No. of questions	Marks	Duration
Paper I	Objective	February 21, 2010 (Morning/Expected)	100	100	2 hours
Paper II	Short answers	February 22, 2010 (Morning/Expected)	15	150	3 hours
Paper III	Practicals	February 22, 2010 (Afternoon/Expected)	2	100	2 hours

The syllabus consists of four sections - Biology,Physical & Chemical Sciences,Information Technology and Bioinformatics.
Syllabus for Paper I - basic : (All four sections) [Sample Questions for Paper I (Objective type)]
Syllabus for Paper II - advanced : (All four sections)
Paper III will be computer based practical and will include questions on Bioinformatics.

Important points to note:

For Paper I there will be negative marking of 0.25 for every wrong answer.
Results of the Paper I will be announced on February 21, 2009 at the respective centres by 6:00PM.
Candidates securing 40% or above marks in Paper I ONLY will be eligible to appear for Paper II and III.
Candidates scoring overall 40% or above will be certified.