AddressAn excellent opportunity is available for a motivated and talented Senior Computational Scientist to join the Colonial Foundation Diagnostics Centre (CFDC), contributing to the development of new kinds of diagnostic pathology tests for a range of inflammatory diseases and conditions of ageing at Australia's pre-eminent biomedical research institute.
About the position
The role will involve the development of novel statistical and M/L-based models for processing, interpreting and analysing large scale proteomics cohort data and planned spatial omics datasets with linked clinical information related to ageing and disease. The one-of-a-kind dataset contains quantitative measurements of >2000 proteins for 12000 older adults. The dataset is also paired with hundreds of 10+ years of highly curated follow-up clinical and pathological variables. The appointee will be responsible for providing leadership to a growing CFDC's bioinformatics team.
The position will be based in CFDC, a joint initiative of the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute (WEHI) and the Royal Melbourne Hospital (RMH) that benefits from transformative multi-year support from the Colonial Foundation. The Centre aims to bring advanced discovery tools out of the research space and into the clinic, to drive new opportunities to improve patient care through next-generation diagnostics. It builds on the success of the Colonial Foundation Healthy Ageing Centre (2019-2024), which established a clinical platform for proteomics-led diagnostics, and leverages internationally leading technological capabilities in genomics, proteomics, imaging and computational biology (including AI/ML).
The successful candidate will work closely with a passionate team of scientists and clinical pathologists at CFDC, with members of WEHI's outstanding Bioinformatics Division and with other collaborators and consumers across WEHI, RMH and externally.
Selection Criteria
The successful candidate will have extensive experience in large scale omics data analysis and will be highly motivated to tackle complex problems in medical biology in an interdisciplinary environment.
Essential Knowledge and Skills:
- Active participation in collaborative research programs. Influential research outcomes and clear potential for notable future contributions. Emerging national peer-recognised profile
- Consistent record of funding to support own research and/or technology-based program etc, including, where appropriate, inclusion of team members. Managing finances in line with budget. A credible plan to fund own research and/or technology-based program for the following five years including a vision for contributions to Institute research funding programs beyond the individual research and/or technology-based program.
- Expertise in omics analysis, statistical model development and machine learning or artificial intelligence
- Prior experience in proteomic, genomic, transcriptomic or spatial-omics research
- Experience in analyzing large-scale human health data, particularly in context of ageing and disease
- Strong data analysis skills using unix, R/python and bioconductor software
- Ability to manage data security and integrity.
- Experience in providing leadership to a bioinformatics team
- Ability to work closely and effectively with scientists, bioinformaticians, and external collaborators from clinical and research settings.
Personal Qualities:
- Relevant PhD/Doctoral qualification and relevant postdoctoral experiences in a quantitative discipline such as bioinformactics, statistics, mathematics, computer science, physics, computational biology.
- Leadership skills in this area with proven strategic capabilities
- Capacity to perform under pressure, to meet time constraints and determine work priorities.
- Demonstrated excellent verbal and written communication skills.
- Highly motivated to work on improving medical biology.
- Highly effective people management within individual's team with emerging contributions within the Division (mentoring, participation in student candidature committees etc).
- Emerging professional contributions beyond own research and/or technology-based program
Terms of Appointment
The full-time position is available for a period of 2 years. Salary is a Senior Research Scientist (Level C1, $139,856). Up to 17% superannuation and very attractive salary packaging options are available.
General enquiries can be directed to A/Prof Andrew Webb ****@wehi.edu.au
A position description is available here.
How to Apply
Please apply by uploading your CV, cover letter and a document addressing the key selection criteria in pdf format.
Application Closing Date: 22 July 2024.
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WEHI is where the world's brightest minds collaborate and innovate to make discoveries that will help us to live healthier for longer. Our medical researchers have been serving the community for more than 100 years. We bring together people with different skills and experience who are committed to long-term discovery. Our teams of researchers are committed to solving the most complex health problems, making transformative discoveries for cancer, infectious and immune diseases, developmental disorders and healthy ageing.
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WEHI's commitment to diversity and inclusion
At WEHI we strive to foster a flexible working environment that encourages individual differences and promotes collaboration and creativity. We recognise that talent does not sit within a single identifiable group in our society and that WEHI's ability to shape contemporary scientific thinking and deliver leading professional services relies on a diversity of thought within our organisation. Our action to promote gender equality has been recognised with an Athena SWAN Bronze Award from Science in Australia Gender Equity (SAGE) and we offer a range of support for women researchers.
Our commitment to celebrating diversity and addressing inequities is further demonstrated through our Diversity and Inclusion Strategy, Gender Action Plan, Reconciliation Action Plan and our WE-Pride network for LGBTQIA+ staff and students. We actively encourage applications from, people with a disability, culturally, religiously and linguistically diverse people and people with diverse genders and sexualities. Should you require support during the recruitment process due to special needs or consideration, please contact the People and Culture team.
WEHI's commitment to Indigenous employment
WEHI is working to create a future where Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples will be engaged at the scientific frontier, making exciting discoveries and decisions about the future of health in this country, and part of a leading professional services workforce supporting the realisation of these discoveries. We are committed to creating a culturally safe workplace and offering career development and leadership opportunities to First Nations staff and students. We strongly encourage any Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples to apply.
