Based upon the research output, the COMSATS Institute of Information Technology (CIIT) was recently ranked by the Higher Education Commission of Pakistan (HEC) among the top five universities of the country. The Department of Biosciences stands on the top of the list of departments of CIIT for the number of research grants and the amount of research funds its faculty members have won from local and international funding organizations including HEC and British Council. These research programs are run collaboratively with local and international research groups based in Australia, United Kingdom and the USA.
The department also holds the Pakistan National Node of the European Molecular Biology network (EMBnet) as well as is associated with the APBionet. These prestigious associations are significantly helpful in advancing the teaching and research programs in the area of Bioinformatics. Moreover, the departmental faculty has been instrumental in promoting Bioinformatics through organizing local and international workshops in the area of Bioinformatics and Biosciences in collaboration with COMSTECH.
The department boasts a highly qualified and experienced faculty. Among fourteen PhD faculty members seven are qualified from European and American Universities. The senior faculty of the department comprises of two professors, three foreign professors and ten Assistant Professors.
The Department of Biosciences provides well-equipped and well maintained facilities to support the research and academic programs in the areas of Biosciences and Bioinformatics both at MS and PhD levels.
The department also offers undergraduate programs in the areas of Biosciences and Bioinformatics seperately. The Bioinformatics program is particularly popular attracting students from across the country and occasionally from overseas.
The current research facilities in the department include cell and tissue culture, DNA sequencing, confocal and fluorescent microscopy, Plant disease diagnostics, proteomics, genetic studies, immunobiology and biotechnology and plant Biotechnology.
