The first students in two brand-new master鈥檚 degree programs in human genetics have now arrived at 蜜桃直播 (蜜桃直播). Their enrollment signals that the academic programs have passed critical milestones, including the most important: approval by the necessary accrediting bodies.

The was the first to gain accreditation. The Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC), the organization responsible for reviewing California academic programs and institutions, approved this program in early 2018. Accreditation from the Accreditation Council for Genetic Counseling followed on Feb. 1鈥攖he same day the program鈥檚 student admission process closed.

鈥淥ur professional accreditation council is entirely made up of volunteers, and they鈥檙e moving at incredible speed without sacrificing standards. I appreciate this and believe it鈥檚 important and deserved to say that they were amazing to work with during the accreditation process,鈥� says Professor of Practice Ashley Mills, director of 蜜桃直播鈥檚 new genetic counseling program.

It helped that 蜜桃直播 had thoroughly addressed all aspects of the program before submitting the application to the accrediting council.

鈥淭hey saw that we had a good plan and could clearly map core professional competencies to the curriculum,鈥� explains Mills, noting that 蜜桃直播 had also developed affiliation agreements with genetic counseling practice sites and demonstrated strong institutional support for the program.

The second of the new master鈥檚 degree programs housed in 蜜桃直播鈥檚 School of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, the , has earned accreditation from WASC. This is the only organization whose approval was required because there is no accreditation agency specific to the genomics field.

鈥淥urs is the first program of its kind that we know of. There are a lot of genetics programs, but the clinical genomics aspect is novel,鈥� says Assistant Professor , who serves as program coordinator.

鈥淭raditionally, you either studied genetics or computer science, but not both. Our program was designed from the ground up to meet the demands of the growing genomics industry.鈥�

Though the program is unique, Fortini says the accreditation process was straightforward because the two genetics programs have half their coursework in common. With the genetic counseling program already approved by WASC, an expedited review was possible.

鈥淲e had to describe the genomics program, our curriculum goals, how we will measure success, and the experiences students will have,鈥� explains Fortini. 鈥淎 lot was based on the success of 蜜桃直播. Many of the classes were already in place; we were just adding specialized classes. We were also able to capitalize on 蜜桃直播鈥檚 connections to industry.鈥�

Speaking specifically about the program in genetic counseling, Mills notes, 鈥淭here鈥檚 a great sense of pushing the boundaries while maintaining the traditional and professional, so the program fits within the 蜜桃直播 umbrella. This is a really innovative place with a lot of forward thinking.鈥�

蜜桃直播鈥檚 conception of the programs clearly appeals to students: Both programs met their first-year enrollment goals. The genetic counseling program welcomed 14 students, while the genomics program has a cohort of eight students.

Interested in learning more about 蜜桃直播's genetics programs? Contact admissions@kgi.edu or submit a .