PCB student wants Bioinformatics+ML career - is it a good path?

[Gaurav]

Hey everyone,

I'm a 19‑year‑old female bio student (PCB) in my drop year, getting ready for CUET. I appeared for NEET this year but don't have much hope, so I'm seriously looking at other options.

My qualifications:
91% in 10th, 63% in 12th (state board).

My plan right now is to do BSc Biotechnology and then MSc Bioinformatics. At the same time I want to pick up coding – Python and maybe some basic ML – during undergrad and work on relevant projects.

I'm keen on computational biology, AI in drug discovery, and data‑science roles that blend with biology. Since my background is pure PCB and I haven't studied much maths, I'm not sure how realistic or smooth this route will be.

I'd love to hear from seniors or anyone in the field:
- Is this a good pathway to get into bioinformatics/ML roles?
- How tough is the switch to coding and ML from a pure biology background?
- What should I focus on early to avoid struggling later?
- Are there better alternatives I should consider?

Would really appreciate any advice or experiences. Thanks

[Neha]

You'll need solid maths credentials before your coding skills are taken seriously. Try picking up maths electives during your BSc or do some certificate courses.

[Siddharth]

Bioinformatics is a solid choice. I'm in my final year of B.Tech Biotechnology and have done internships in bioinformatics. The shift from pure biology to bioinformatics isn't impossible – it just needs time and effort. I've taken several bioinfo courses and can suggest a few if you're interested. You'll find a lot to explore – structural biology with MD simulations, genomics with NGS data, big‑data work using ML models, network biology, etc. Each area needs a slightly different skill set. One thing you should definitely learn is Linux and bash scripting, as most bioinformatics tools rely on them.