Bioinformatician

Hours per week: 37;
Project

Title:

Bioinformatician in Informatics Platform;
Duration: 36 months

The successful applicant will join a team of bioinformaticians and software engineers to engage in cutting-edge computational analysis of plant- and microbe research data. They will join research projects to conduct bioinformatics components as well as interact with researchers to provide guidance in bioinformatics. Besides project work, the successful applicant will also run courses in the JIC bioinformatics training program that aims to enable staff members and students to conduct their own computational analyses.

Key activities in the project work are primarily Sequence Analysis (Genomics/Transcriptomics), but also Image Analysis and Machine Learning/Artificial Intelligence. This role will act as a go-to person for bioinformatic support and work together with all scientific levels within the John Innes Centre. The support ranges from short discussions to major contributions to science projects.

The Support Bioinformatician will work on-site as part of the JIC Informatics Platform. They will interact regularly with science staff from across the institute, working with individual research groups as well as supporting the wider Institute’s Strategic Programs. In that context, the job holder will also collaborate with international scientists on a regular basis.

• 40% Work with JIC research groups on scientific projects, providing computational biology expertise throughout the project lifecycle, from grant writing through data analysis to manuscript preparation. This will include guidance on the use of tools and pipelines and interpretation of their results and, where necessary, carrying out analysis directly.
• 30% Train and mentor JIC staff and students in computational biology, through development and delivery of structured courses, as well as informal one-to-one training and peer-to-peer coaching.
• 15% Develop and maintain JIC’s computational infrastructure;
  Champion and maintain effective data management practises.
• 10% External and internal project acquisition and furthering bioinformatics capabilities at JIC.
• 5% As agreed with line manager, any other duties commensurate with the nature of the post.

Requirement and importance:
Undergraduate degree or equivalent in Biology, Physics, Mathematics, Computational Biology, or related discipline — Essential. PhD in Biology, Physics, Mathematics or a related discipline — Desirable.

Broad range of expertise in the management and computational analysis of biological data — Essential. Ability to understand the key features of biological problems — Essential. General problem solving skills — Essential. Command line shell skills — Essential. Programming skills in an interpreted or compiled language — Essential. Background in statistics — Desirable. Experience in analysis of high-throughput sequencing data — Essential.

Experience with bioinformatics methods, techniques and tools — Essential. Working in an HPC environment with associated tools (e.g. SLURM scheduler) — Desirable. Experience with version control systems such as Git and Git Hub — Desirable. Experience in plant genomics — Desirable. Experience with applying AI-based methods to biological problems — Desirable.

Ability to work independently, managing individual projects through to completion — Essential. Ability to interact effectively with scientists to discuss techniques and data, and to present technical concepts clearly — Essential. A positive, supportive working style, with enjoyment in helping others succeed — Essential. Enthusiastic and self-motivated — Essential. Excellent verbal and written communication skills — Essential. Good communication skills, both written and verbal — Essential.

Good interpersonal skills, with the ability to work effectively as part of a team, sharing knowledge and techniques and providing the ability to cover for others — Essential.

Attention to detail — Essential. Promotes…