Research Field Guide

How to Get a Genetics Research Position

To get a Genetics research position, find professors who are actively publishing in Genetics, read what they actually work on, and email one of them a short, specific note. The work mixes in-person and computational tasks, so there is a way to help either on-site or remotely.

Below are 12 professors publishing in Genetics right now, what each is working on, and how to reach out. Every name and topic is pulled from real, recent publication data, not a generic list.

Genetics professors who are actively publishing

ProfessorInstitutionRecent research focus
Koichiro TamuraTokyo Metropolitan UniversityGenetic diversity and population structure
George Davey SmithUniversity of BristolGenetic Associations and Epidemiology
Mark J. DalyBroad InstituteGenetic Associations and Epidemiology
Stacey GabrielBroad InstituteGenetic Associations and Epidemiology
Richard DurbinUniversity of CambridgeGenetic diversity and population structure
Hermann BrennerGerman Cancer Research CenterGenetic Associations and Epidemiology
John P. A. IoannidisProtein Metrics (United States)Genetic Associations and Epidemiology
Gonçalo R. AbecasisRegeneron (United States)Genetic Associations and Epidemiology
Sudhir KumarWorld Healthal TrustGenetic diversity and population structure
Mark I. McCarthyCentre for Human GeneticsGenetic Associations and Epidemiology
Eric S. LanderBroad InstituteGenetic Associations and Epidemiology
Richard A. GibbsBaylor College of MedicineGenetic Associations and Epidemiology

Sourced from OpenAlex publication records. Click a name to see their full profile and recent papers.

What Genetics research involves

Genetics studies how traits and diseases are inherited and how genomes vary across people and populations. The active work includes genetic associations linking variants to disease and traits, and the study of genetic diversity and population structure. The field is genuinely mixed. One side is wet-lab: sequencing, genotyping, and CRISPR-based experiments done in person. The other is heavily computational: genome-wide association studies, statistical genetics, and population analysis that run entirely in code. That split is good for students, because there is a way in whether you prefer the bench or the keyboard. Read a professor's recent papers to see which side their lab leans toward before you write.

How to email a Genetics professor

Genetics labs come in two flavors, so match your offer to the one you are emailing. For a statistical or population-genetics lab, offer to help with data analysis and name your tools, like R, Python, PLINK, or experience with GWAS data. For a wet-lab genetics group, offer to be on-site to learn sequencing prep, genotyping, or CRISPR techniques, and stress your reliability. Either way, reference one recent paper, on an association study or population analysis, for example, and ask a specific question about the method or finding. Keep it short, skip the flattery, and make your first ask concrete and small.

Genetics overlaps with nearby fields. If you are casting a wider net, look at research positions in Molecular Biology, Computational Biology, Bioinformatics, and Cancer Biology.

Reach out with confidence

Find more Genetics professors and check your email.

Search by interest to surface more Genetics labs, read plain-English summaries of their work, and run your draft through the email checker before you hit send.

Find Genetics professorsCheck your email before you send

Questions students ask about Genetics research

Do I need programming skills for genetics research?

It depends on the lab. Statistical and population genetics require programming in R or Python and comfort with large datasets. Wet-lab genetics relies more on bench skills like sequencing prep and genotyping. Read recent papers to see which kind of lab you are contacting, then match your pitch.

Can genetics research be done remotely?

The computational side can. Statistical genetics, GWAS, and population analysis are code and data, so they travel well. Wet-lab genetics, sequencing, genotyping, and CRISPR work, needs you in person. Many labs do both, so ask which part you would contribute to.

What should I say when emailing a genetics professor?

Identify whether the lab is computational or wet-lab, then offer a matching skill: data analysis tools for the former, a willingness to learn bench techniques for the latter. Reference a specific recent paper and ask a focused question. A tailored, concrete email beats a generic one.

What is the difference between genetics and genomics?

Genetics usually focuses on individual genes and how traits are inherited; genomics studies whole genomes and large-scale variation at once. The line is blurry and many labs span both. For a research position, what matters more is whether the day-to-day work is wet-lab or computational.

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