DESCRIPTION

The Bioinformatician/Ontologist will work within the Microarray Team at the EBI on the EU funded EMERALD project to develop an ontology of terms related to microarray data analysis and experiments. The successful applicant will report to the Curation Coordinator for the ArrayExpress database where the ontology will be applied. The ArrayExpress team is multi disciplinary and consists of approx. 20 Biologists, Curators, Software Developers, Ontologists and Computer Scientists who deliver the infrastructure and the data which together comprise one of the world’s largest microarray databases. The work will require communication and development work with members of the EMERALD consortium in the EU, the members of Microarray Gene Expression Data (MGED) and those developing relevant ontologies in this field e.g. the MGED ontology (MO) and the Functional Genomics Experimental Ontology (FUGO/OBI). The EBI has a strong track record in both ontology development and text mining and offers an excellent research and service environment in which ontologies can be applied.

REQUIREMENTS

The ideal applicant should hold a first degree in Biological Sciences, Computer Science or Bioinformatics and a PhD in Computer Science, Biology or Bioinformatics. The successful applicant is likely to have practical experience with ontology editors such as Protégé or DAG-Edit, an understanding of OWL and/or OBO formats, and competence in at least one programming language e.g. Perl/Java is preferred. Experience of microarray data analysis tools/methods would be advantageous. There will be some international travel and reporting to the European Commission as part of this venture. Good communication skills are required as this project has several members geographically spread in Europe and therefore the post holder will need to be proactive in communicating with both members and the wider community.

CONTRACT

An initial contract of 3 years will be offered to the successful candidate. This can be renewed, depending on circumstances at the time of review.

DUTY STATION

European Bioinformatics Institute (EBI)
Hinxton, near Cambridge, UK

URL: http://www.embl.org/ and http://www.ebi.ac.uk

HOW TO APPLY

EMBL is an inclusive, equal opportunity employer offering attractive conditions and benefits appropriate to an international research organisation.

To apply, please send a CV (including names and addresses of referees) and covering letter, by email, quoting ref. no. BIO/06/118 in the subject line, to: application[at]embl.de. Informal enquiries can be made to Helen Parkinson (parkinson[at]ebi.ac.uk).

Re-advertisement, previous applicants need not re-apply.