Postdoctoral Scientist

Grade 7: Salary £28,983 – £35,646 p.a.

A post has become available for a Postdoctoral Scientist in the group of Dr Daniel Wilson. The group is principally engaged in the activities of the UKCRC Consortium Modernising Medical Microbiology (see The Times, 4 January 2010: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/science/article6974765.ece), an ambitious project with the goal of revolutionising approaches to tracing and tracking clinically important micro-organisms in near-to-real time using whole genome sequencing technologies. The aim is to elucidate the evolution and epidemiology of four medically important pathogens, namely Mycobacterium tuberculosis, Staphylococcus aureus, Clostridium difficile and norovirus. The project represents an unprecedented collaboration between The University of Oxford, the Health Protection Agency, the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute and the NHS.

Based at the Oxford Centre for Gene Function and the Wellcome Trust Centre for Human Genetics, you will be responsible for designing and implementing evolutionary and statistical analyses of whole genome pathogen population sequencing data. Large volumes of data will be arriving from the outset, and you can expect to be involved in both the bioinformatics processing of the raw sequence data, and the subsequent evolutionary analyses. The development of novel statistical tools for modelling pathogen evolution will be central to the project.

Candidates will be expected to have a PhD in a relevant discipline. Experience in one or more the following areas is essential: statistical inference, computationally intensive methods, population genetics theory, and a programming language such as C++. You will be able to work as part of a team as well as independently, without supervision and have good written, verbal communication and presentation skills, and a track record of publications. An understanding of DNA sequencing technologies and experience in mathematical or statistical modelling would be desirable. Applications are welcomed from highly capable candidates wishing to enter the field of genomics.

The post is available for up to two years in the first instance and is funded by the Wellcome Trust.

An application form and a job description are available from the Personnel Officer, Room 5800, Experimental Medicine Division, Nuffield Department of Clinical Medicine, John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford OX3 9DU (tel: 01865 220528; email: personnel@ndm.ox.ac.uk) or from the website at http://www.expmedndm.ox.ac.uk/. Please quote the reference HB-10-006-DW. The closing date for applications is Friday 2 April 2010.