Staff Scientist

University of Chicago•Chicago, IL

1d•Onsite

About The Position

We are aiming to recruit a skilled Staff Scientist to the Translational Head and Neck Cancer Research group led by Drs. Evgeny Izumchenko and Nishant Agrawal. Our focus is on understanding the complex interplay between the genetic and epigenetic alterations in head and neck carcinogenesis and progression, and on exploiting this understanding for developing novel biomarkers for diagnosis and risk stratification as well as in identifying targets for therapeutic intervention. Drs. Izumchenko and Agrawal lab is an integral component of the translational head and neck cancer research program at the University of Chicago, working collaboratively with the team of investigators with complementary and integrated expertise including surgeons, clinical oncologists, pathologists and computational biologists. Our group members are known for their contributions to the advancement of groundbreaking research, pursuing a diverse range of basic, translational, and clinical research projects on head and neck cancer genetics, microbiome, bioengineering, stem cell renewal, and immunotolerance. The Staff Scientist will focus on dissecting tumor biology, identifying therapeutic targets, and developing clinically relevant biomarkers through analysis of bulk and single-cell sequencing data, spatial profiling, and multi-omic datasets. The position sits at the interface of computational biology and translational oncology, with strong integration into ongoing experimental and clinical programs.

Requirements

PhD in related field.
5-7 years of work experience in a related job discipline.

Nice To Haves

Experience with bioinformatics tools for sequencing data processing and analysis.
Expertise in cancer genomics and transcriptomics analysis.
Demonstrated experience with single-cell and/or spatial transcriptomics datasets.
Experience integrating multi-modal datasets (genomic, transcriptomic, clinical).
Experience in translational research or collaboration with clinical teams is strongly preferred.
Proficiency in programming languages such as R and Python.
Familiarity with cloud computing environments and workflow management systems (e.g., AWS, Terra, Nextflow, Snakemake).
Track record of peer-reviewed publications in high-impact journals.
Ability to work independently while contributing effectively in a collaborative, multidisciplinary environment.
Strong analytical thinking and problem-solving skills.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills.

Responsibilities

Lead computational analyses of bulk RNA-seq, single-cell RNA-seq, DNA sequencing, and spatial transcriptomics datasets.
Develop and implement reproducible pipelines for multi-omic data integration and interpretation.
Perform differential expression, pathway enrichment, and network-based analyses to identify drivers of tumor progression and therapeutic response.
Integrate molecular data with clinical annotations to support biomarker discovery and patient stratification.
Collaborate closely with experimental scientists to design studies and interpret results in biological context.
Contribute to manuscript preparation, grant writing, and presentation of findings.
Maintain high standards of data quality, documentation, and reproducibility.
Serves as a resource for collecting data and performing analysis.
Facilitates and promotes a research project by providing scientific or intellectual information.
Creates first drafts for scientific writing and publications, including protocols and grants.
Performs other related work as needed.