Robin W. Cotton BS, MS, PhD

Dr. Cotton is the Director of the Biomedical Forensic Sciences Program and teaches courses in Forensic DNA Analysis. She is an expert in the fields of DNA identification and analysis of biological evidence, whereby she has testified in over 200 cases – including numerous high profile cases – around the country. In October of 2006 Dr. Cotton joined the faculty at the Boston University School of Medicine to be the Director of the Biomedical Forensic Sciences Program.

Dr. Cotton comes to the University from the Orchid Cellmark Laboratories in Germantown, Maryland where she was the Laboratory Director. She received her Ph.D in Molecular Biology and Biochemistry from the University of California at Irvine and then she completed post-doctoral research with Dr. Roger Chalkley at the University of Iowa. Her Expertise include: Forensic DNA testing of evidence in criminal cases; DNA extraction methods and DNA separation via capillary electrophoresis; Interpretation of forensic DNA data when only small amounts are available.