Master of Science in Plant Genomics

Minimum 50 % marks at Higher and Senior Secondary level (10^th & 12^th) and Minimum 50 % aggregate in Chemistry, Botany and Zoology or Chemistry, Microbiology and Biotechnology or Chemistry, Botany and Biotechnology or Chemistry, Zoology and Microbiology or Agriculture B.Sc. degree or Life Sciences with basic knowledge of Genetics.

Plant breeding has been practiced for thousands of years. However, advanced technologies such as next-generation sequencing (NGS), usage of JMP software in genome interrogations, genome editing using CRISPR, allele mining, multi-genic approach in growth and development are revolutionizing this practice. Hence, the breeder’s investments on the technologies based genetic crop improvement within limited timeline is appreciable. Companies like Bayer (Germany), Syngenta (Switzerland) and DuPont (US) depend on combinations of both molecular and conventional breeding to develop various crop seeds for novel traits. With the estimated market of plant breeding and CRISPR plants to grow and reach USD 14.6 billion by 2023, the public and private sectors are interested to fund towards the application and development part of high-throughput sequencing systems, marker-assisted breeding and genomic selection in the field to drive the program over the next five years. Our course is designed to support and upskill the students to work in the areas of agriculture, molecular breeding and healthcare sectors. Science graduates from Centurion meet industrial partners (Syngenta and Kaveri Seeds Co.) and research partners (NRRI and IIRR) expectations to be well-versed with advanced techniques involved in the field of crop improvement through genome-wide association studies.