Job description

Job summary

Applications are invited for a fully funded Research Associate in Computational Genomics in the UK Dementia Research Institute at Imperial, within the Neurogenomics Lab of Dr Nathan Skene, Department of Brain Sciences (https://www.imperial.ac.uk/people/n.skene). 

Dementia is the greatest health challenge of our century.

To date there is no way to prevent it or even slow its progression, and there is an urgent need to fill the knowledge gap in our basic understanding of the diseases that cause it.

The UK Dementia Research Institute (UK DRI) is the biggest UK initiative driving forward research to fill this gap.

We are a globally leading multidisciplinary research institute of 700 staff investigating the spectrum of neurodegenerative disorders causing dementia, with laboratory-based research groups located at Imperial College London, University College London, the University of Cambridge, Cardiff University, Edinburgh University, and King’s College London.

The research group of Dr Nathan Skene in the UK DRI at Imperial College London seeks to identify regulatory mechanisms which cause neurodegenerative disorders, along with the cell types in which they act, and determine whether inhibition or activation of the pathway is associated with increased disease risk.

Duties and responsibilities

• Analysis and visualisation for large scale ‘omics datasets


• Lead computational projects to interpret the results of human genetics studies


• Work collaboratively as part of a multidisciplinary research team


• Demonstrate an aptitude for an organised, methodical approach to your work

Essential requirements

• Hold a PhD in computational biology, mathematics, computing or information science or a closely related discipline, or equivalent research, industrial or commercial experience


• Strong programming skills in R, python or other coding languages (e.g., C++, Matlab)


• Ability to work with version control systems, i.e. Git and GitHub


• Ability to summarise complex data quickly  


• An interest in the mission and research of the UK DRI

*Candidates who have not yet been officially awarded their PhD will be appointed as a Research Assistant within the salary range £40,694 - £43,888 per annum.

Further information

This is a Full Time and Fixed Term role being offered initially for 1 year based at the White City Campus.

You will benefit from an active research (and social) environment in the Department of Brain Sciences, with additional research labs in the Burlington Danes Building on the nearby Hammersmith Campus.

Applicants are encouraged to contact Dr Nathan Skene (n.skene@imperial.ac.uk) for an informal discussion about the project and the role. 

For more information about the UK DRI at Imperial, please visit:

http://www.imperial.ac.uk/dementia-research-institute

For information about the Neurogenomics Lab, visit the Skene Group:

https://www.neurogenomics.co.uk/

The UK Dementia Research Institute

https://ukdri.ac.uk/

The College is currently trialling a Work Location Framework until early 2023.  Hybrid working may be considered for this role and the role holder may be expected to work 60% or more of their time onsite, with 40% the minimum time spent onsite.  The opportunity for hybrid working will be discussed at interview.

The College is a proud signatory to the San-Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA), which means that in hiring and promotion decisions, we evaluate applicants on the quality of their work, not the journal impact factor where it is published. For more information, see: https://www.imperial.ac.uk/research-and-innovation/about-imperial-research/research-evaluation/

The College believes that the use of animals in research is vital to improve human and animal health and welfare. Animals may only be used in research programmes where their use is shown to be necessary for developing new treatments and making medical advances. Imperial is committed to ensuring that, in cases where this research is deemed essential, all animals in the College’s care are treated with full respect, and that all staff involved with this work show due consideration at every level.

http://www.imperial.ac.uk/research-and-innovation/about-imperial-research/research-integrity/animal-research/ 

Documents

• JD - PDRA Computational Final.pdf