Job Description
The Wistar Institute has an opening for a Computational Biology Post-Doctoral Fellow to join the laboratory of Dr. Avi Srivastava. The Srivastava Lab is a hybrid computational-experimental group that develops and applies cutting-edge single-cell genomics technologies to address fundamental questions in RNA biology and cancer. Our work spans the full arc from novel method development, including microfluidics-free single-cell long-read RNA sequencing platforms, to biological discovery using multi-omics approaches at single-cell resolution.
We are seeking a computational methods developer, someone who builds tools, not only runs pipelines. In this role, you will develop the algorithms and software behind our single-cell long-read platform, including isoform-level quantification methods and multi-omics integration for disease-relevant single-cell data. You should be able to point to software, a method, or an algorithm you built that other people use. Familiarity with sequencing library prep and the molecular biology of the platform is a strong plus, and you will co-design the platform alongside our wet-lab team, but the core of this role is computational methods and software development. A wet-lab scientist looking to transition primarily into computational work is not the target for this position.
Required qualifications:
• Ph.D. (or equivalent) in computational biology, genomics, computer science, bioinformatics, or a related quantitative field.
• Demonstrated ability to build and release computational methods: a tool, package, pipeline, or algorithm that others have adopted, with source code you can show.
• Strong programming and software-engineering skills in Python and/or R in a Linux/command-line environment.
• Experience with single-cell and/or long-read sequencing data (Oxford Nanopore, PacBio) and their computational workflows.
• At least one first-author peer-reviewed publication.
Preferred:
• Hands-on familiarity with molecular biology and sequencing library preparation, enough to co-design wet-lab-facing methods.
• Experience with isoform-level transcriptomics, alternative splicing, or transcript quantification.
• High-performance and reproducible software practice (containers, version control, workflow managers).
The lab offers mentored training in single-cell and bulk multi-omics analysis, long-read sequencing technologies, novel microfluidics-free single-cell platform development, and cancer and RNA biology applications of single-cell methods.
In addition to applying online, interested applicants should e-mail their CV with publication list (published and in preparation), a cover letter detailing their research experience and interest in the lab, and three references to Dr. Avi Srivastava at asrivastava@wistar.org.
For more details on research and a list of publications, visit: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/?term=avi+srivastava
The Wistar Institute is in the University City area of Philadelphia, in the heart of the University of Pennsylvania campus. Wistar provides resources to its faculty and staff that enable them to conduct cutting-edge, collaborative research and to work in outstanding intellectual environments and state-of-the-art facilities.
We offer a competitive salary and an excellent benefits package.
For more information about The Wistar Institute, visit www.wistar.org.
It is the policy of the Institute to provide equal employment opportunities to all individuals regardless of race, citizenship, ethnicity, color, creed, religion, marital status, national origin, ancestry, sex, age, veteran status, mental or physical disability (including HIV and AIDS), pregnancy, caregiver status, domestic or sexual violence victim status, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, or on the basis of genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local law, with respect to all terms and conditions of employment.
