Research Technician

A team of researchers led by Rameen Beroukhim and Simona Dalin seeks a research technician to develop and apply molecular biology techniques with the goal of understanding how improper double strand break (DSB) repair results in genomic rearrangements, particularly in cancer. These projects include developing new methods to assess patterns of rearrangements across the genome and to apply these methods to understand how different cancers differ in their mutational processes and resulting evolutionary trajectory.

We are looking for a person who will lead their projects, thinking independently and making original intellectual contributions. We welcome all levels of input from research technicians, including input on the conduct of experiments but also on new experiments to conduct and new questions to ask.

Research technicians in our laboratory regularly present their own work and contribute to the writing of papers and grant applications.

We view a research technician as a mentored training position, with a primary goal being the professional development of our technicians. Prior technicians have successfully pursued a variety of subsequent career directions including obtaining MDs, PhDs, MD-PhDs, and direct entry into industry.

The work will span a variety of efforts including extensive method development utilizing sophisticated molecular biology techniques, fluorescence and qPCR-based reporter systems, long-read DNA sequencing, and computational analyses of the resulting datasets.

Responsibilities include planning and conducting experiments, data analysis, and communicating results in talks and papers. Our group spans the Departments of Medical Oncology and Cancer Biology at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute at Harvard Medical School and the Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, with extensive collaborations across these institutions. The work we do requires a full-time presence on-site.

The ideal candidate will have prior wet lab research experience in molecular biology, biochemistry, or genomics. The candidate is required to have a B.S./B.A., preferably in the sciences related to biology, chemistry, physics, or computational methods.
The candidate must have excellent written & verbal communication skills, be detail-oriented in organizational skills, comfortable in a team environment, enthusiastic about scientific discovery, and highly self‑motivated. They must be a self‑starter with excellent problem‑solving and people skills.

A minimum two-year commitment is highly preferred.

Located in Boston and the surrounding communities, Dana‑Farber Cancer Institute is a leader in life‑changing breakthroughs in cancer research and patient care. We are united in our mission of conquering cancer, HIV/AIDS, and related diseases. We strive to create an inclusive, diverse, and equitable environment where we provide compassionate and comprehensive care to patients of all backgrounds, and design programs to promote public health particularly among high‑risk and underserved populations.

We conduct groundbreaking research that advances treatment, we educate tomorrow’s physicians/researchers, and we work with amazing partners, including other Harvard Medical School‑affiliated hospitals.

• Set up, adjust, calibrate, clean, maintain and troubleshoot equipment
• Clean, maintain and prepare supplies and work areas and may be responsible for ordering of supplies. Collaborates with Purchasing and may be responsible for negotiating with vendors
• Conduct standardized biological, microbiological or biochemical tests and laboratory analyses, including the collection of information and samples from organic substances, such as blood, drugs, and animals
• Isolate, identify and prepare specimens for examination
• Analyze experimental data and interpret results to write reports and summaries of findings, including grant preparation and presentations, and look for opportunities to co‑author publications. May be expected to participate in formal and information presentations of results to staff
• Participate in grant application process and manuscript preparation as required
• Maintains detailed notebook of all work‑related activities
• Monitors laboratory…