Computational Biologist

Garvan Institute of Medical Research brings together world leading scientists and clinicians, collaborating locally and globally, to advance our understanding of disease, particularly cancer, autoimmunity and genetic disorders. Garvan is a global leader in fundamental biomedical research and its translation. Our mission is to make discoveries that will improve health for all.

The Garvan Data Science Platform (DSP) brings together computational experts working in computational biology, AI/ML, production bioinformatics, system administration, and software engineering. The Computational Biology group in DSP performs complex data analysis projects, combining computational skills with biological domain expertise. We work closely with collaborators at Garvan, across Australia and internationally, including commercial partners.

THE OPPORTUNITY

The Computational Biologist will collaborate with scientists and medical researchers on complex data analysis projects, including experimental design and planning, building workflows, data processing, statistical analysis, visualisation, interpretation, and manuscript writing. Example projects include data from single-cell genomics, spatial technologies, RNA- seq, whole-genome sequencing, and clinical biomarker data. This is a 2-year fixed-term full-time position with salary dependent on experience.

SNAPSHOT OF BENEFITS

• Generous salary packaging to save you income tax on your wages thereby boosting your monthly take home pay (max. $15,900 general expenses + $2,650 meals/accom)
• Ample opportunities for on-going training and development
• Stimulating, diverse and highly international research environment
• Flexible work arrangements e.g. start / finish times
• 18 weeks paid parental leave for both parents including paid superannuation
• A range of additional leave types to meet your personal needs including cultural leave, conference leave, community service and study leave
• Discounted Health Insurance
• Lifestyle discounts with our community partners

WHAT YOU WILL DO

The key responsibilities include:

• Contribute to computational analysis projects at Garvan, including liaising with collaborators, planning and executing analyses, identifying and helping to resolve issues, and selecting suitable computational approaches
• Analyse data with emphasis on biological interpretation, including data processing, quality control, unsupervised and supervised analyses, statistical modelling, visualisation
• Prepare figures for publication, contribute to manuscript writing
• Contribute to experimental design and planning
• Create and maintain modular and reusable workflows through use of container and workflow management technologies
• Adhere to and help develop best practices, including evaluation and benchmarking of existing methods
• Stay informed on advances in computational methods; build biological domain expertise relevant to the analysis projects
• Build and use agentic AI workflows on Garvan's enterprise platforms using tools such as Claude Science for analysis, and writing reusable bioinformatics Skills
• Present research at internal and external seminars and conferences
• Contribute to training programs through helping to run workshops, participating in code reviews, and supporting students and junior staff
• All staff are required to comply with Garvan’s workplace polices (as amended from time to time) and especially Garvan’s Work Health & Safety (WHS) Policy, including working in accordance with the WHS management system at all times, as safety is Garvan’s number one priority.

ABOUT YOU

The key skills and experience required include:

• PhD degree, completed or nearing completion, in a related area of science or engineering
• Sound statistical knowledge and programming skills
• Good knowledge of biology
• Analysis of high-throughput datasets, including quality control, unsupervised and supervised analyses, with emphasis on biological interpretation
• Experience analysing and interpreting -omics data such as single-cell genomics, spatial technologies, RNA-seq, whole-genome sequencing, clinical biomarker data
• Comfortable working with Unix and in an HPC environment
• Proficient in at least one scripting language (R, Python)
• Familiar with version control systems (particularly Git)
• Exposure to, or willingness to learn, software containers, workflow management systems, databases and cloud computing
• Proficient with the use of agentic AI tools for coding, familiarity with best practices around the use of generative AI
• Publications commensurate with career stage
• Strong written and verbal communication skills
• Ability to work across multiple projects and manage competing priorities
• Strong attention to detail - Maintain well-structured code and documentation that allows for reproducible work on complex datasets.
• Enthusiasm for learning new methods and working collaboratively to support computational analysis across the Garvan community

ABOUT GARVAN

Garvan Institute of Medical Research is an independent Medical Research Institute (MRI) in Sydney, delivering scientific and clinical impact on a global basis and in partnership with organisations that share our vision. We are proud to be one of Australia’s largest and most highly regarded MRI’s.

Our vision is global leadership in discoveries to impact and our enduring purpose is to impact human health, by harnessing information encoded in our genome.

We seek to see our world-class discovery research achieve life-changing impacts, not only for individual patients with rare diseases, but for the many thousands affected by complex, common disease.

Garvan promotes a diverse workplace and is committed to the principles of equity, diversity, inclusion and belonging. We are always looking for culture ‘add’, not culture ‘fit’ and are building diverse teams with great sets of complementary styles and skills to help deliver our important work effectively.

HOW TO APPLY

To apply for this position, please submit your application with a CV and cover letter as one document, stating why you are interested in this role. We are reviewing applications as they are received. If you think you’re the right person for this role, we’d love to hear how your capabilities, achievements and experience set you apart. Only applicants with full working rights in Australia are eligible to apply for this role.