Computational Biologist

Dana-Farber Cancer Institute • Boston, MA

19h

About The Position

The Kadoch Laboratory at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Harvard Medical School, Broad Institute, and Howard Hughes Medical Institute is seeking a highly qualified individual who has recently obtained or is about to obtain a BA/BS degree to join our vibrant research team as a Computational Biologist focused on cancer biology, epigenetics, and chromatin regulation. Our lab uses multidisciplinary approaches including biochemistry, biophysics, structural biology, chemical biology, and functional genomics, epigenomics, and AI-based approaches to explore the mechanisms of chromatin remodeling complexes, which are among the most frequently mutated cellular entities in human cancers and other diseases. As such, our computationally centered projects in the lab are highly diverse and involve extensive genomics (i.e. analysis of diverse sequencing methods including DNA-sequencing, RNA-sequencing (RNA-seq), ATAC-seq, ChIP-seq, CUT&RUN, CUT&TAG, single-cell ATAC+RNA-seq, among other approaches), analysis of functional screening datasets (i.e. genome-wide as well as targeted CRISPR- and base editing-based screens for cell fitness or other cellular outcomes), 3D structural biology (i.e. use of Pymol, UCSF Chimera for structural analysis, mapping mutations, etc.), analysis and integration of mass-spectrometry proteomics datasets, and artificial intelligence/machine learning (AI/ML) and systems-biology-focused efforts (i.e. large genomics and proteomics dataset analysis and integration, Deep Mind Alphafold, Rosetta, other approaches). Our exciting collection of ongoing projects involve collaborations with laboratories across the Harvard and MIT research centers, hospitals in Boston and Cambridge, as well as with groups across the country and internationally. This is a unique opportunity with significant potential for the student to work directly with the PI as well as with senior postdoctoral fellows, graduate students and medical students. In addition to working as part of a team(s), the student will carry forward independent projects resulting in authorship on publications and opportunities to present work at local, national, and international meetings.

Requirements

• coding experience (i.e. in R, Python, or other languages) relevant to computational biology/bioinformatics
• familiarity with working in a Unix environment and use of SLURM or similar job scheduler (high performance computing and computing clusters)
• working knowledge of genomic technologies and bioinformatic processes and/or structural biology
• ability to both implement and develop new bioinformatic pipelines in shell scripts
• interest and proven abilities in data visualization (such as in ggplot2, matplotlib, D3.js etc.)
• proficiency in documenting research processes to ensure reproducibility (e.g., markdown syntax and Git/GitHub)
• experience in one or more of the following areas: computational biology/computer science, molecular biology, genetics and/or genomics, cell biology, and protein biochemistry and/or structural biology, through focused prior dry or wet lab research experience (i.e. 1-2 years in research laboratories with strong letters of recommendation) as well as undergraduate coursework
• Knowledge of UNIX/Linux
• Familiarity with scripting in Python and statistical programming using R
• Familiarity with principles of experimental design and the modern data analysis paradigms is required
• Able to discuss and present results, share ideas accurately and communicate them effectively, both in writing and verbally
• Strong interpersonal skills – ability to effectively interact with all levels of staff and external contacts
• Excellent analytical, organizational and time management skills
• The position requires a bachelor's degree in a STEM field, with a master's degree in bioinformatics, computational biology, statistics, biostatistics, computer science, or life sciences preferred
• Candidates need at least 1 year of experience with a bachelor's degree or no experience with a master's degree, with academic research or authorship in scientific publications potentially substituting for work experience

Responsibilities

• Uses existing tools to build data processing pipelines to convert raw data into formats compatible with conventional statistical analysis and visualization
• Performs routine analysis for which established tools exist and are considered reliable. Keep up with the computational biology literature to assure pipelines components are up to date
• Monitors, downloads, organize, and manages data from public data repositories or generated by collaborates. Evaluate published tools and updates pipeline as necessary.
• Drafts the computational biology sections of a manuscript; assists in writing the results section; checks manuscripts for numerical accuracy; prepares tables and figures
• Helps to formulate specific aims, explains options for experimental design, and develops data analysis plans
• Develops timelines and components for multiple routine projects; masters multi-tasking so that complex projects involving many interdisciplinary individuals move forward smoothly
• Offers peer-to-peer training for new statisticians in design, analysis, and presentation of results. It is expected that insight into career growth will be offered to more junior statisticians

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level