Gerstner Scholars in Bioinformatics & Computational Biology

Application for the Gerstner Postdoctoral Scholars program in Bioinformatics and Computational Biology NOW AVAILABLE: Deadline December 5, 2022

Postdoctoral Fellowships in Bioinformatics and Computational Biology

The American Museum of Natural History seeks highly qualified applicants for a postdoctoral position for its Gerstner Postdoctoral Scholars program in Bioinformatics & Computational Biology.

Successful applicants will pursue independent and collaborative computational research in integrative studies of genomics, spatial bioinformatics, or biodiversity informatics alongside faculty and other researchers. This program encourages applications from scholars with research interests that may have broad implications for such themes as advancing our understanding of the evolution and diversity of species, the "tree of life", or comparative genomics. This 2022-23 application cycle also includes a special call for applicants who want to pursue museum-centered comparative biology research that also is relevant to human health or biomedicine, including but not limited to virology, epidemics, and public health; collections-based research to investigate the origin, spread, and/or comparative biology of emerging zoonotic pathogens, infectious diseases and their vectors, etc.

Gerstner Scholars in Bioinformatics & Computational Biology (GSB&CB) also will contribute to the design, development and implementation of new algorithms and other bioinformatics tools that address emerging big data issues and are customized for Museum research. In association with their professional development and contributions to the Museum, a portion of each Scholars’ efforts will include teaching and workshops (with the Richard Gilder Graduate School and Institute for Comparative Genomics) and assistance to Museum scientists and students with their bioinformatics and computational biology research through participation in the Museum’s Bioinformatics Core Team.

The initial appointment will be for one year, potentially renewable for up to one additional year based on performance, with a highly competitive salary ($81,969 annually) and generous benefits.

Requirements: Applicants must have a PhD in Biological Sciences, Bioinformatics, Computer Science, Molecular Biology, Genomics, or a related discipline, with experience in the bioinformatics of large biological data sets. Proficiency in scripting is required. Candidates should have documented skills in genome informatics and/or processing phenomic, transcriptomic, or phylogenomic datasets. Candidates should have extensive research experience with a solid publication record, ideally with some experience in phylogenetic methods, and strong interpersonal, writing and problem-solving skills.

Applicants are encouraged to contact potential research mentors/collaborators in advance to develop a research statement (see: RGGS Faculty List). Further information on this Gerstner Scholars program is at GSB&CB Program and Prior GSB&CB.

Applications and all required documents must be submitted by Monday December 5, 11:59pm, Eastern Standard Time.  To Apply, click here: https://sis.rggs.amnh.org/apply/

Required Documents:

1.   Cover Letter - indicating your interest, experience, and qualifications for the position

2.   Research Prospectus - provide a 150-word summary abstract AND a short (2-4 page) prospectus of the type of research project(s) and bioinformatics-computational biology tools you propose to develop during the postdoctoral appointment; specify potential research mentors you contacted, if relevant.

3.   CV and Names of References

4.   2 Academic Letters of Recommendation - letters of recommendation are required from people knowledgeable about your work (exclusive of AMNH curators).

5.   Publications - Files of up to five recent publications, or other documentation of relevant accomplishments in bioinformatics/computational biology.

For assistance with the application process, you may contact [email protected]

DUE DATE for all materials: December 5, 2022.

The American Museum of Natural History is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. The Museum does not discriminate with respect to employment, or admission or access to Museum facilities, programs or activities on the basis of race, creed, color, religion, age, disability, marital status, partnership status, gender, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, genetic information, pregnancy, alienage or citizenship status, current or former participation in the uniformed services, status as a veteran, or national or ethnic origin, or on account of any other basis prohibited by applicable City, State, or Federal law. Additional protections are afforded in employment based on arrest or conviction record, status as a victim of domestic violence, stalking and sex offenses, unemployment status, and credit history, in each case to the extent provided by law. The Museum’s Diversity Statement and Reasonable Accommodation procedures are available at: https://careers.amnh.org 

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Current Gerstner Scholars in Bioinformatics & Computational Biology

Dr. Daniel Hooper

Research Interests: Speciation, hybrid zones, adaptation, inversions, sex chromosomes, and mitonuclear coevolution

Ph.D.: University of Chicago, Evolutionary Biology, “Chromosome inversions and avian speciation”, 2017

Alumni Gerstner Scholars in Bioinformatics & Computational Biology

Dr. Kevin Deitz

Research Interests: Evolutionary and population genomics, speciation, vector biology

Ph.D.: Texas A&M University, Department of Entomology. " Population genomics, hybrid sterility, and gene expression in the Anopheles gambiae species complex". 2017

Dr. Victor Sojo

Research Interests: Origin of eukaryotes; origin of life; evolution of lipids and membrane proteins in archaea, bacteria and eukaryotes; bioinformatic and computational analyses of horizontal gene transfers across the three domains; unravelling the tree of life.

Ph.D.: University of London - University College London (UCL), Department of Genetics, Evolution and Environment;: "Membrane bioenergetics at major transitions in evolution". 2016

Dr. Marcelo Gehara

Research Interests: Population genetics; Bioinformatics; Molecular Ecology; Speciation; Comparative Phylogeography

Ph.D.: Technical University of Braunschweig, Germany; “Molecular Analyses of Neotropical Amphibians”. 2013

Dr. Chase Nelson

Research Interests: Bioinformatic, population genetic, and geographic information systems approaches for studying therapeutically relevant and theoretically informative evolutionary processes, chiefly utilizing within-host viral, cancer, and human immune allele data.

Ph.D.: University of South Carolina, Department of Biological Sciences; “Studying Within-Host Viral Evolution Using Pooled Next-Generation Sequencing Data”. 2016

Dr. Matthew Aardema

Research Interests: The relationship between selection efficacy, host range and effective population size in butterflies and bacteria.

Ph.D.: Princeton University, Dept. of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology; “Natural Selection in Lepidoptera Across Biological Scales”. 2015

Dr. Robert Harbert

Research Interests: Using spatial bioinformatics and primary biodiversity data to study plant community ecology, species distributions, and biogeography and paleoclimate of the American Southwest during and following the terminal Pleistocene glaciation.

Ph.D.: Cornell University, School of Integrated Plant Science, Section of Plant Biology; “The intersection of climate and niche: Likelihood estimation of modern and past climate using plant biodiversity”. 2016

Dr. Martine Zilversmit

Research Interests: Evolutionary biology, statistics, and bioinformatics to explore genome evolution in eukaryotes, using malaria parasites as a model.

 Ph.D.: Harvard University, Dept. of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology; “Recombination and Genome Evolution in Plasmodium falciparum”. 2007

 

 This Fellowship is made possible through the generous support of the Gerstner Family Foundation.