DNA II: Analyzing your Genetic Genealogy Results

Learn what to do when you receive your DNA results back from the testing companies, how to make sense of DNA matches: are they newly found relatives or not that closely related? Find out about the tools available to help interpret the DNA results.

This course is taught through a series of four Zoom lectures with homework assignments and an online discussion group.

Course Outline

Review of Genetic Genealogy:

• Overview of tools at each website concentrating on shared matches function
• Using Leeds Analysis to group matches into clusters by family line
• Expand analysis to include chromosome browsers (where available)
• Explore chromosome painting tools and advanced cluster analysis
• Review ethnicity results, Y-DNA (paternal line) tools, mtDNA (maternal line) tools
• Understand the results of living in closed communities (endogamy) and how to adjust the match results for endogamous relationships

Skills you will learn

This discussion class will walk you through the steps to analyze the test results that you have received. We will concentrate on the basic autosomal test that shows relative matches going back 4-5 generations. We will also discuss the Y chromosome and mitochondrial testing that examines the paternal and maternal lines, respectively. We will concentrate on tools, such as Leeds Analysis, Chromosome Browsers, and DNA Painter to analyze your results. We will examine the role of endogamy (marrying within a local community) in determining DNA relationships.

Format

The main interaction will be through four Sunday Zoom sessions during the course. ZOOM Meetings are January 21 and 28 and February 4 and 11 (Sundays at 10 AM Pacific Time / 1 PM Eastern Time). This will be augmented with homework assignments and an online group discussion forum.

To best utilize this course, we suggest you have 8-10 hours per week to work on homework assignments and your research. After signing up, you will be asked to state your goals for the course and some of the objectives for the three week duration of class--research questions you would like to answer about your family.

Requirements

• DNA 1 class or equivalent experience with introductory DNA analysis -- please discuss with the instructor if unsure
• Comfortable with using computer software (not necessarily the DNA tools)

Tuition

The tuition for this course is $200.

Contact Information

For any questions, email the instructor at education@jewishgen.org.