Research Associate

The University of Virginia department of Public Health Sciences seeks applicants for a Post Doctoral Research Associate. This position will join A computational biology research group in the Center for Public Heath Genomics at the University of Virginia led by Nathan Sheffield .

About the Lab : The Databio group ( http://www.databio.org ) is an interdisciplinary and collaborative computational biology research group located in the Center for Public Health Genomics at UVA . We are also affiliated with the Department of Biomedical Engineering , Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics , Department of Public Health Sciences , the School of Data Science , the Cancer Center , and the Child Health Research Center at UVA.

Our research is at the interface of computation and biology, drawing on techniques in computer science, data science, bioinformatics, and machine learning, and applying them to biological questions in cancer, epigenetics, single-cell analysis, development, and genomics. We collect both novel data and public data and make use of UVA’s high-performance cluster for computational approaches to biological questions.

Our biological questions are focused on understanding gene regulation and epigenetics in development and disease, such as cancer, atherosclerosis, and kidney disease. How does DNA encode regulatory networks that enable cellular differentiation? We rely on experimental data from sequencing-based epigenome experiments like ATAC-seq, bisulfite-seq, and ChIP-seq, and we use these data to study fundamental principles of regulatory DNA in human health.

We are building a team of intelligent, creative people who are interested in working together to accomplish great things. We collaborate extensively. We emphasize social coding, using GitHub to share code both within the group and so others can benefit from our work. We seek to write readable, reusable code and apply it to new biological questions. We challenge the norm in academic computational research of individual scientists writing isolated code, and instead push open, multi-author code development. If these topics excite you, please read more about our research interests , recent publications , and philosophy of open data .

Qualifications:

• PhD in bioinformatics, computer science, biomedical engineering, genomics, or related field by the start date of the appointment.
  
• Computational experience with linux command-line systems, R and/or Python, and git is preferred.
  
• Biological understanding in epigenomics or related field, as evidenced by first-author publications in high impact journals. Exceptional applicants from other fields who wish to transition to computational genomics will be considered.
  
• Willingness to contribute to team projects (such as building communal software) and demonstrated commitment to sharing software and data with the community.
  
• Experience with machine learning, especially natural language processing, is preferred but not required.
  

Applicants should be familiar with skills and training materials associated with this lab.

TO APPLY:

Please visit UVA job board: https://uva.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/UVAJobs and search for R0043132

Complete an application online and attach:

• Cover letter expressing your interest, qualifications, and how you would like to contribute to this project
• Resume/ CV
• Contact information for 3 references

*****Please combine all required application materials in the order listed above into one document and upload in the resume / cv box ***

For questions about the application process, please contact Rhiannon O’Coin, Senior Academic Recruiter, rmo2r@virginia.edu

The selected candidate will be required to complete a background check and health assessment per university policy.

COVID Vaccination Requirement and Guidelines

Please visitthe UVA COVID-19 Job Requirements and Guidelines webpageprior to applying for current information regarding vaccination requirementsandguidelines for employment at UVA.

The University of Virginia, i ncluding the UVA Health System which represents the UVA Medical Center, Schools of Medicine and Nursing, UVA Physician’s Group and the Claude Moore Health Sciences Library, are fundamentally committed to the diversity of our faculty and staff. We believe diversity is excellence expressing itself through every person's perspectives and lived experiences. We are equal opportunity and affirmative action employers. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, color, disability, gender identity or expression, marital status, national or ethnic origin, political affiliation, race, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, veteran status, and family medical or genetic information.