Bioinformatics Research Scientist or Senior Computational Researcher

Bioinformatics Research Scientist or Senior Computational Researcher

Join to apply for the Bioinformatics Research Scientist or Senior Computational Researcher role at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital

Join an excellent team of researchers dedicated to coming closer to the mission of St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, that no child will die at the dawn of life. The Computational and Structural Biology Center (CSBC) in the Center of Excellence for Data-Driven Discovery (C3D) of the Department seeks a skilled and highly motivated Senior Bioinformatics Research Scientist. The CSBC is the collaborative interface of the C3D, working with St.

Jude researchers campus-wide to disseminate and implement the computational technological developments of the C3D.

As a Senior Computational Researcher (S18) or Bioinformatics Research Scientist (S19) in the CSBC, you will play a pivotal role in the ligand discovery team, led by Dr. Christoph Gorgulla. You will be the first team member in the CBSC focused on ligand discovery, joining a team of dedicated computational researchers with diverse expertise ranging from structural bioinformatics to machine learning and AI.

Your primary mission will be to work with other groups and researchers across St. Jude to implement our technologies to identify novel hit/lead compounds for the treatment of various diseases. You will work with them to optimize any results, working to obtain new tool compounds and drug candidates. Leveraging state-of-the-art computational methods, including structure‑based ultra‑large virtual screenings, (quantum and classical) free‑energy simulations, and machine‑learning techniques, you will contribute to groundbreaking research in the field.

The primary ligand discovery platform that we will be using is the Virtual Flow ultra‑large virtual screening platform. Collaboration is at the heart of this role, and you will closely collaborate with other computational and wet‑lab colleagues who validate and experimentally verify the predicted hit and lead compounds. By working together in a collaborative and intellectually stimulating environment, you will have the opportunity to contribute to a large number of ligand/drug discovery projects and make a lasting impact on the lives of children fighting cancer and other life‑threatening diseases.

The successful candidate will have the opportunity to lead collaborative projects, mentor junior scientists and students, and contribute to high‑impact publications.

• Independently perform basic and advanced level statistical analysis, algorithm implementation, programming from a variety of biotechnology platforms, and oversee quality check.
• Design and prepare materials and courses for training on various bioinformatics software and databases, computing, data mining, and analysis.
• Act as a liaison between end‑users, software developers, system designers, and different departments.
• Establish protocols or best practices for common research tasks and SOP, evaluate products and solutions to make recommendations, and integrate solutions.
• Lead the development, implementation, installation, and maintenance of databases; coordinate data collection, database implementation, and usage and any hardware and software related to database collection.
• Develop programs to assist in the analysis of data within the databases.
• Assist in planning, coordinating, and organizing projects across departments and delegate tasks based on priority, expertise, and capacity.
• Perform other duties as assigned to meet the goals and objectives of the department and institution.
• Maintain regular and predictable attendance.

• Bachelor's degree in bioinformatics, cheminformatics, statistics/computer science (with a background in biological sciences or chemistry) or related field.
• Master's degree or PhD preferred.

• Minimum Requirement:
  Bachelor's degree with 6+ years of relevant post‑degree work in bioinformatics, cheminformatics, statistics/computer science (with a background in biological sciences or chemistry).
• Experience Exception:
  Master's degree with 4+ years of relevant post‑degree…