Centre for Research Informatics Training
Quality Control in Sequencing Experiments
Event details
Sessions
- 27 November 2026 — 09:30 to 13:30 — Zoom
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About the course
Quality control is an essential component of sequencing experiments and can help identify potential problems early in the analysis process. This course introduces the common pitfalls of short-read sequencing studies and provides approaches for visualisation and quality assessment of sequencing data.
Participants will gain an understanding of Illumina sequencing and the quality control metrics that can be extracted from sequencing reads, including base quality scores. The course also covers how quality metrics vary across different library types and how to distinguish between expected and unexpected quality control results.
Participants will be introduced to key software tools for sequencing quality assessment, including FastQC, FastQ Screen, and MultiQC. The emphasis of the course is on understanding and interpreting quality reports rather than on running the software itself.
By the end of the course, participants should be able to critically assess sequencing quality reports and recognise potential issues in sequencing experiments.
Teaching is primarily hands-on, with short presentations, demonstrations, and practical exercises introducing the concepts and methods needed to assess sequencing data quality.
Intended audience
This course is suitable for:
- researchers and students who use sequencing as part of their work or research
- participants who want to understand how to assess the quality of sequencing data
- researchers seeking practical experience in interpreting sequencing quality reports
Prerequisites
Participants should have:
- a working knowledge of the UNIX command line
The following experience is recommended:
- a basic understanding of high-throughput sequencing technologies (watch this excellent iBiology video)
Course fees
All fees are per full training day.
| Category | Fee |
|---|---|
| Industry full charge | £130.00 |
| Academic / Government / charity concessionary | £65.00 |
| Cambridge University staff members / postdocs / visitors | £65.00 |
| Cambridge University registered students | Free |
| Cambridge University registered students non-attendance | £22.00 |
| Special events | Per event |
Payment options will be provided in booking confirmation emails sent after registration.
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