Research Associate, Cell Biology & Anatomy

University of Calgary

Reporting to the Principal Investigator, we are seeking a Research Associate for the animal model deep phenotyping core for One Child Every Child, a Canada First Research Excellence Program based at the University of Calgary. This position involves generating, processing, and managing high-throughput phenomic data. The research associate will perform different tasks of varying degrees of complexity, including developing and running automated image processing pipelines, processing and analyzing imaging datasets, and curating large-scale phenomic databases with extensive metadata. A core objective for the Research Associate will be developing the back-end code for an online web application that can store, acquire, analyze, and aggregate phenomic data. This will require methodological innovation and close collaboration with the supervisor, other internal collaborators, and external collaborators. In addition, the Research Associate will be responsible for completing time-sensitive imaging informatic tasks for various grants. Participation in shared lab-related work, such as lab meetings, student and visitor training, meeting arrangements, and other teamwork activities, is expected.

One Child Every Child is a Parallel Paths project that has Indigenous and non-Indigenous Paths. While this position will not involve direct interaction with human participants or human subjects data, all members of the program will perform training on work with Indigenous people, communities and data. Experience with Indigenous community-based work is an asset for all members of the OCEC research team.

Summary of Key Responsibilities (job functions include but are not limited to):
-Develop, implement, and evaluate novel machine learning-based methods for real-time image processing and analysis
-Work collaboratively with team members to advance software development for largescale phenomics.
-Act as a resource for colleagues with less experience.
-Collect, standardize, and analyze imaging data to accomplish grant research aims
-Application of programming languages such as Python, Linux bash, R, and Git
-Develop back-end code for an online web application that can store, acquire, analyze, and aggregate phenomic data
-Curate and manage large-scale databases and ensure that standards are met
-Train other staff and students how to deploy technical workflows
-Act as a resource and in-scope supervisor for junior staff members and graduate students
-Apply concepts and methods from biomedicine, medical image analysis, machine learning, and data science to guide ongoing internal and external research collaborations with respect to large-scale phenomics databases
-As a subject matter expert, contribute to project planning and management, including requirements gathering, project scheduling, and risk management. May lead small projects with manageable risks and resource requirements.
-Provide weekly updates to supervisor and internal/external collaborators to ensure effective and timely completion of tasks
-Demonstrate strong communication, team and customer service skills, and an ability to exercise judgment within established guidelines

Qualifications / Requirements:
-Doctoral degree in Bioinformatics is required
-Minimum of 3-5 years of related technical experience within the fields of comparative biology, bioinformatics, phenotypic analyses, and craniofacial developmental biology is required
-Advanced education and experience in bioinformatics, RNAseq analyses, QTL and GWAS mapping, and quantitative genetics is required
-Advanced programming skills in imaging informatics and statistics using Bash, Python, R, and/or Julia is required
-Previous experience working with large-scale databases (e.g., SQL) and biomedical imaging data isrequired
-Previous experience working with compute clusters (e.g., Digital Research Alliance of Canada) is required
-Knowledge and experience working with mouse models, including husbandry, handling, and breeding is required
-Previous experience mentoring and/or teaching at the graduate or undergraduate level
-Excellent verbal and written communication skills
-Experience working and collaborating with international and diverse research groups
-Knowledge and/or experience in IT infrastructure (networking, data storage) is valuable
-Strong communication, team and customer service skills, and an ability to exercise judgment within established guidelines
-Knowledge of University core business systems is desirable

Application Deadline: May 15, 2024

All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however Canadians and permanent residents will be given priority. In this connection, at the time of your application, please answer the following question: are you a Canadian citizen or a permanent resident of Canada? (Yes/No).

We would like to thank all applicants in advance for submitting their resumes. Please note, only those
candidates chosen to continue on through the selection process will be contacted.

Additional Information
To Apply, please visit the University of Calgary’s career opportunities page: http://careers.ucalgary.ca Job Opening ID #31513

We would like to thank all applicants in advance for submitting their resumes. Please note, only those
candidates chosen to continue on through the selection process will be contacted.

This position is part of the AUPE bargaining unit, and falls under the Technical Job Family, Phase 3 (Salary range is $40.59 - $58.63 per hour).
Job Title Research Associate, Cell Biology & Anatomy
Job ID 31513

Business address: 2500 University Dr NW, Calgary AB T2N 1N4
Contact information: hrhire@ucalgary.ca, Re: Job Opening #31513