| The field of genetics has been advancing at an accelerating rate. Population genetics, molecular genetics, and general genetic theory and associated biotechnology now impact on all major fields of biology, from neurobiology and physiology to ecology and conservation biology. The ease with which genetic technology can now be accessed has led to a fragmentation of the field, and a shortage of broadly educated geneticists who can assimilate and synthesise data from all fields. The Bachelor of Genetics degree offered through the Virtual Department of Genetics will give students a solid grounding in all aspects of the field, including the traditional areas of Mendelian Genetics, Population Genetics, Evolutionary Genetics, and more recent developments in Molecular Genetics, Medical Genetics and Bioinformatics. The ANU is particularly well placed to present this degree, with contributing geneticists from The School of Botany and Zoology, The School of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Biological Anthropology, the Research School of Biological Sciences, and The John Curtin School of Medical Research, as well as Genetic Counsellors from The Canberra Hospital. |