Who We Are
We are the UT Austin iGEM team!
Each year we participate in the International Genetically Engineered Machine (iGEM) competition. iGEM provides a unique opportunity for undergraduate students to perform research and gain career skills related to biotechnology.
iGEM is a biotechnology pentathlon!
What is iGEM? It's part synthetic biology research project, part robotics competition for biology, part entrepreneurial pitch contest, part design project, and part educational outreach program. Students are expected to explore their own project ideas, reflect on and explain how their proposed solution to a problem would benefit society, engage in outreach to stakeholders, and operate as a team to complete proof-of-principle research. After working in the lab on their research during the spring and summer, teams create a project website and give poster and video presentations in the fall at the iGEM Giant Jamboree that brings together 370+ teams from all over the world.
What We’re Fundraising For
The UT Austin iGEM team is fundraising so undergraduate students will have the opportunity to travel to present their project at the 2024 Grand Jamboree which will be held October 23–26 in Paris, France.
In 2022, the UT Austin iGEM team's Project ARROWE won a Best Foundational Advance award at the Grand Jamboree, and they placed in the top 10 undergraduate teams overall in the world (the only team from the US to do so). Unfortunately, they had to present their research and receive their award virtually on Zoom!
In 2023, we were able to send four students from the UT Austin iGEM team to Paris to present their Project ASSA-Cin. They were finalists for Best Agriculture, Best Parts Collection, and Best Sustainable Development Impact prizes!
Right now students in the iGEM Accelerated Research Initiative stream are brainstorming ideas and preparing for a new project.
We hope to support the full participation of our iGEM students in the World Jamboree again this year!
Explore Other Past UT Austin iGEM Projects...
Your Impact
Support UT Austin students who are developing innovative biotechnology solutions to societal problems and representing UT Austin on the world stage!
Attending the iGEM international conference to present our research in Paris was an unparalled experience; the feeling of realizing that you are part of this huge international community is wild. iGEM has truly been instrumental in my research experience at UT as an undergrad under the guidance of exceptional mentors.
–Krisha Chaudhari, 2023 UT iGEM team member
Going to this international competition and winning a big award like this, it shows that UT has a presence on the global stage and a presence in the up and coming field of synthetic biology.
–Alex MacAskill, 2019 UT iGEM team member
Under the guidance of some of the best faculty on campus and with all these talented students, iGEM gave the perfect opportunity for new scientists to blossom and discover what science truly can be.
–Bill Tang, 2021 UT iGEM team member