Bridging the Gap in Genomics Education and Workforce | Biju Vithayathil | TEDxAGBSKochi
In this insightful session, Prof. Biju Vithayathil discussed the urgent need for skilled professionals in the rapidly growing field of biotechnology, particularly genomics. He emphasized how the significant drop in genome sequencing costs has led to advancements in personalized medicine and agriculture, such as disease-resistant crops. While differentiating between Genetics (the study of individual genes) and Genomics (the study of entire gene sets and their interactions), he pointed out the shortage of trained professionals in India. Despite the abundance of engineering seats, there is a stark contrast in medical education, which often lacks key skills necessary for genomics research, such as math, statistics, and programming. Prof. Biju also highlighted global industry leaders like Thermo Fisher, Illumina, and Agilent Technologies, underscoring the growing demand in the genomics sector. To address this gap, he proposed four key goals: early exposure to genomics careers, support for training from undergraduate to graduate levels, promotion of career development and research opportunities, and tracking progress toward workforce diversity. He concluded by calling for reform in education and training to prepare future generations for the evolving genomics landscape. Prof. Biju Vithayathil, an engineer with an MBA from IIM Bangalore, is the Director of Amity Global Business School, Kochi since 2009 and Adjunct Faculty at IIM Kozhikode. He brings rich industry experience, having served as Business Head at Reliance Retail, where he established Reliance Fresh in Kerala and led training and operations. His career spans roles at Crompton Greaves, Modi Xerox, BHEL, and FACT. Recognized for his contributions to professional education, he received the Rashtra Deepika Business Excellence Award in 2014, presented by CM Shri Oommen Chandy. His work bridges industry insight with academic excellence. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx
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