Gregory Andrews started PhD programs at two other institutions before finding a home in UMass Chan Medical School’s Program in Bioinformatics and Computational Biology, one of the PhD programs offered by the Morningside Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences.

“Bioinformatics allows me to combine my interests in mathematics, computer science and biology. I love how fast paced the field is. You can have an idea and immediately try it,” Andrews said.

Andrews studies transcription factor binding with his mentor, Zhiping Weng, PhD, Li Weibo Chair in Biomedical Research, professor of biochemistry & molecular biotechnology and director of the Program in Bioinformatics & Integrative Biology, using deep learning, a state-of-the-art machine learning technology.

“Deep learning lies at the heart of everything from self-driving cars to facial recognition software,” said Andrews. “We use the same algorithms and models to identify and predict where transcription factors bind in the human genome, especially in a cell type specific fashion. We most recently applied deep learning to study the evolutionary conservation of transcription factor binding across 240 mammalian species.”

Andrews grew up in Taunton and earned his Bachelor of Science in chemistry and mathematics at Boston University. He worked in biotech for two years before pursuing his PhD.

“I am so happy I found UMass Chan Medical School. I feel that I am well prepared for any career avenue I may explore post-PhD,” Andrews said.

One of those avenues may be teaching at the college level.

“I'm passionate about teaching and helping others,” Andrews said. “I feel that bioinformatics is such a quickly evolving, multi-dimensional field and requires a unique education approach.”