Research Fellow - Institute of Inflammation and Ageing

Position Details

Institute of Inflammation and Ageing

As this vacancy has limited funding the maximum salary that can be offered is Grade 7 salary £32,817

Grade 7

Full-Time FTC 01/06/2021 - 31/01/2023

Background

To create and contribute to the creation of knowledge by undertaking a specified range of activities within an established research programme and/or specific research project.

Summary of Role

The successful applicant will be responsible for developing the computational analysis for complex datasets generated from single-cell and spatial transcriptomics platforms in addition to spatial omics platforms to support the development of the tissue analysis pipelines from patient samples across inflammatory diseases and in the contexts of both discovery science and evolving novel approaches to clinical trial outcomes and design.

The successful applicant will join an enthusiastic team of scientists and academic clinicians, analysing datasets in an environment where there are ample opportunities to learn about the clinical aspects of IMID disease and link to related discovery research. The applicant will be expected to work in close collaboration with the Birmingham Genomics Centre (Prof Andrew Beggs), The Birmingham Inflammation and Advanced Cellular Therapies (I-ACT) team of the internationally recognised Cancer Research UK Clinical Trials Unit, the Kennedy Institute for Rheumatology Research in Oxford, Harvard and the Broad Institute in Boston. The successful applicant will have the opportunity to take on their own datasets, but will also have the opportunity to contribute to and collaborate on a large number of ongoing projects.

Main Responsibilities (as appropriate to the specific role and purpose)

• Develop research objectives and proposals for own or joint research, with assistance of a mentor if required
• Contribute to writing bids for research funding
• Analyse and interpret data
• Apply knowledge in a way which develops new intellectual understanding
• Disseminate research findings for publication, research seminars etc
• Supervise students on research related work and provide guidance to PhD students where appropriate to the discipline
• Contribute to developing new models, techniques and methods
• Undertake management/administration arising from research
• Contribute to Departmental/School research-related activities and research-related administration
• Contribute to enterprise, business development and/or public engagement activities of manifest benefit to the College and the University, often under supervision of a project leader
• Collect research data; this may be through a variety of research methods, such as scientific experimentation, literature reviews, and research interviews
• Present research outputs, including drafting academic publications or parts thereof, for example at seminars and as posters
• Provide guidance, as required, to support staff and any students who may be assisting with the research
• Deal with problems that may affect the achievement of research objectives and deadlines
• To perform scientific research, reviewing and refining working hypotheses, and developing and acquiring relevant skills.
• To analyse and interpret data, preparing and publishing your findings in peer-reviewed journals.
• To actively participate in the broader research team, working closely with clinical and experimental colleagues to share data and findings and help design experiments.
• To communicate results in regular meetings, by poster and oral presentations at scientific meetings, or via other suitable means.
• To write and maintain software pipelines and programs, adapting existing and developing new scientific methods for data analysis.
• To identify training needs and to follow an agreed strategy to meet them.
• To act as a source of information and advice to other members of the group, training and supervise graduate and undergraduate students as appropriate.
• To keep abreast of the relevant literature and methodological developments and to contribute ideas for new research projects.
• To maintain, curate and disseminate the single cell genomics data, submitting it to online databases such as e.g. the Human Cell Atlas data portal as appropriate.
• To manage own academic research and administrative activities. This involves small scale project management, to co-ordinate multiple aspects of work to meet deadlines.

Skills and Experience (as appropriate to the specific role and purpose)

• Degree-level training in cellular and molecular biology/immunology or equivalent experience.
• A PhD/DPhil (or near completion) in a discipline of direct relevant to computational single cell genomics research.
• High level analytical capability
• Ability to communicate complex information clearly
• Fluency in relevant models, techniques or methods and ability to contribute to developing new ones
• Ability to assess resource requirements and use resources effectively
• Understanding of and ability to contribute to broader management/administration processes
• A successful track record with the statistical analysis and interpretation of complex genomic data sets.
• A passion for problem-solving and research in the areas of genomics and single-cell biology that is grounded in expert-level knowledge or experience.
• Strong competence with the programming language Python and with the statistical language R.
• Highly motivated and able to use own initiative to solve problems.
• Excellent interpersonal skills, able to work independently and collaboratively.
• Excellent communication skills, both oral and written.
• Excellent organisational and project management skills, able to manage both time and records effectively.
• Good working knowledge of office software.
• Demonstrate an ability to follow departmental guidance in handling sensitive and
• personal information, including complying with current data protection legislation

Informal enquires to Dr Andrew Filer ( A.Filer@bham.ac.uk )

Further particulars can be found here

We value diversity at The University of Birmingham and welcome applications from all sections of the community '

Valuing excellence; sustaining investment