Research Fellow

Join the cutting-edge HEA North South Research Programme eHealth Hub for cancer, a groundbreaking cross-border collaboration between Queen's University Belfast and the University of Limerick. This exciting two-year Postdoctoral Research Fellowship offers a unique opportunity to shape the future of cancer data infrastructure while advancing precision oncology research in NI and across Ireland.

Working within the prestigious Patrick G. Johnston Centre for Cancer Research, you'll be at the forefront of developing secure, interoperable Secure Data Research Environments (SDREs) that integrate clinical, genomic, imaging and digital pathology data for colorectal and other cancers. You'll collaborate with cloud and software engineering teams and the e-health hub team to implement OMOP/OHDSI-compliant pipelines, automate data processes, and enable all-island data federation.

This role presents an exceptional opportunity to develop frameworks that enable application of cutting-edge AI/ML methods to complex, multi-modal datasets, driving translational discoveries that could transform cancer treatment. You'll support teams leveraging state-of-the-art infrastructure to discover and validate novel biomarkers, identify targetable vulnerabilities, and contribute to next-generation precision medicine approaches.

With joint supervision from leading professors and embedded in interdisciplinary world-class facilities including the NI Biobank and Centre for Public Health, you'll have the opportunity to define your own research while contributing to high-impact publications and presenting at international conferences.

About the person:

The successful candidate must have, and your application should clearly demonstrate that you meet the following essential criteria:

• Hold or be about to obtain* a PhD (awarded / submitted*) in Bioinformatics, Data-Science or a closely related area such as computer Science, or mathematics * If PhD pending, it must be conferred less than 3 months after closing date.
• Significant, relevant research experience.
• Proven track-record analysing large-scale ‘omics and/or healthcare datasets, preferably in cancer genomics.
• Experience of advanced coding in Python or R plus Shell scripting; familiarity with an additional language (e.g. Perl, Java, C++).
• Experience of UNIX/Linux, Git and reproducible workflow frameworks (Nextflow, Snakemake, WDL/CWL).
• Experience of use of open-source bioinformatics packages for data processing (e.g. Bioconductor, scikit-bio, PyPI genomics packages).
• HPC and/or cloud computing experience (AWS, Azure, GCP) plus practical application of AI/ML or similar computational models/methods to clinical and/or genomic datasets.

To be successful at shortlisting stage, please ensure you clearly evidence in your application how you meet the essential and, where applicable, desirable criteria listed in the Candidate Information on our website.

This post is available until 31 August 2027. Fixed term contract posts are available for the stated period in the first instance but in particular circumstances may be renewed or made permanent subject to availability of funding.

What we offer:

Beyond a competitive salary, the University offers an attractive benefits package including a holiday entitlement of up to 8.4 weeks a year, pension schemes and development opportunities. We support staff wellbeing with flexible working options, work-life balance initiatives and support for physical and mental health. You can find more detail on all of this and more at https://www.qub.ac.uk/directorates/HumanResources/pay-reward-and-benefits/

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