Bioinformatician

The Archival Infrastructure and Technology (AIT) team is looking for an enthusiastic, highly motivated bioinformatician to join the Human Cell Atlas (HCA) project to help us integrate data generated by labs all over the world using cutting-edge single cell techniques

The HCA is using celluar resolution data as the basis for both understanding human health and understanding different disease mechanisms. So if you are interested in the Human Cell Atlas, or if you’d like to help us work towards developing comprehensive reference maps of all human cells, this job will be perfect for you! With the help of our collaborators, we are collecting data and building process to make data Findable, Accessible, Interoperable and Reproducible (FAIR), as part of the Data Coordination Platform (HCA-DCP) for the HCA community.

As a member of our team, you will have the chance to engage with our collaborators from the Broad Institute, the Chan Zuckerberg Institute, the University of California Santa ruz and Stanford University.

Your role
This position is a fantastic opportunity to gain hands-on experience, working on a high-profile project with major scientific impact in a world-leading bioinformatics institute.

We are looking for a bioinformatician with experience in handling biological data and biological requirements. You should have a biological background but you should also be able to find your way around a terminal. Experience with managing large scale biological data or using JSON schema to describe biological data would be desirable. Previous experience of working in a bioinformatics-focused environment would be beneficial.

You'll be helping us to describe all data collected from HCA scientists using well-structured, FAIR metadata that takes advantage of many pre-existing ontologies. This approach provides rich and consistent information so users can query the Atlas using many facets of a sample’s identity, such as tissue source and donor age, as well as project and experimental details. You will work directly with data contributors to ensure their data is well described and reusable by the scientific community.

We follow agile techniques in our approach to development, so if you’re the sort of person who likes to work in sprints, has worked with tools like Jira or Zenhub in the past to prioritise user requirements, then you’ll be a good fit for our team. All of our software and metadata schemas built and published using continuous integration and version control, so familiarity with GitHub is an advantage and you should be confident in making your outputs public for others to use.

You’ll be working within the AIT team at EBI alongside developers, and bioinformaticians. As well as our external collaborators, you can expect to interact with other groups at EMBL-EBI in order to improve contribution of data to the HCA-DCP.

You have
- Practical experience of data management
- Research Experience in Genomics and/or Bioinformatics
- Knowledge of common data formats, in particular, JSON and JSON schema
- Excellent interpersonal and communication skills and an ability to work as part of a team of people with a range of skills and a diversity of backgrounds.

You might also have
- Research experience in single-cell genomics
- Some familiarity with semantic technologies and use of ontologies for annotating metadata
- Experience in running bioinformatic training courses
- Experience of at least one programming language including Python and/or Java
- Experience of working in an agile development environment
- Interest in Cloud technologies
- We value people who demonstrate that they’re eager to learn about specific aspects to support our users’ requirements.

Why join us
At EMBL-EBI, we help scientists realise the potential of ‘big data’ in biology by enabling them to exploit complex information to make discoveries that benefit mankind. Working for EMBL-EBI gives you an opportunity to apply your skills and energy for the greater good. As part of the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), we are a non-profit, intergovernmental organisation funded by 22 member states and two associate member states. We are located on the Wellcome Genome Campus near Cambridge in the UK, and our 600 staff are engineers, technicians, scientists and other professionals from all over the world.

EMBL is an inclusive, equal opportunity employer offering attractive conditions and benefits appropriate to an international research organisation. The remuneration package comprises a competitive salary, a comprehensive pension scheme and health insurance, educational and other family related benefits where applicable, as well as financial support for relocation and installation. For more information about pay and benefits please visit our website.

We have an informal culture, international working environment and excellent professional development opportunities but one of the really amazing things about us is the concentration of technical and scientific expertise – something you probably won’t find anywhere else.

If you’ve ever visited the campus you’ll have experienced first-hand our friendly, collegial and supportive atmosphere, set in the beautiful Cambridgeshire countryside. Our staff also enjoy excellent sports facilities including a gym, a free shuttle bus, an on-site nursery, cafés and restaurant and a library.