Job Description

Position Type: Undergraduate Research Assistant

Department: Genetics and Genome Sciences, School of Medicine

Principal Investigator: Thomas LaFramboise, PhD

Time Commitment: Flexible; minimum 10 hours per week recommended, up to 20 hours

Compensation: $15/hour

About the Laboratory

Our laboratory is a computational cancer genomics research group in the CWRU School of Medicine. We use cutting-edge DNA sequencing technologies to study the molecular basis of cancer, with the goal of identifying the causes of malignancy, discovering biomarkers that predict patient outcomes and treatment response, and characterizing the genomic landscape of hematological and other cancers. Our work sits at the intersection of biology, medicine, computer science, and statistics — and we are looking for motivated undergraduate students to join our team.

About the Position

This is a hands-on research position in which you will contribute meaningfully to ongoing scientific projects from day one. You will work directly with real genomic data from cancer patients — including DNA sequence data generated from tumor samples — and will play an active role in the analysis, interpretation, and communication of findings. You will be mentored by the Principal Investigator and will work closely with a graduate student in the laboratory, gaining exposure to the full arc of the scientific research process.

This position is ideal for students interested in pursuing careers or graduate training in computational biology, bioinformatics, genomics, medicine, data science, or related fields.

Responsibilities

• Data analysis and scripting: Write and execute scripts in Python, R, and/or Unix/bash to process, analyze, and manage large-scale genomic datasets derived from cancer patient samples
• Data interpretation: Analyze and interpret results from computational pipelines, drawing biologically and clinically meaningful conclusions from complex datasets
• Data visualization: Create high-quality figures and visualizations that accurately and clearly summarize data characteristics and analytical findings for use in manuscripts and presentations
• Scientific writing: Participate in the drafting and revision of scientific manuscripts for submission to peer-reviewed journals
• Literature review: Regularly read and critically evaluate primary scientific literature to deepen your understanding of ongoing projects and the broader field of cancer genomics
• Collaboration: Work closely with a graduate student mentor, other laboratory members, and researchers in collaborating labs in a collaborative, supportive research environment
• Presentation: Present your work at laboratory meetings, and — as projects mature — at internal research symposia and external scientific conference

Current Research Projects

Undergraduate researchers in our laboratory may contribute to one or more of the following active projects, depending on their interests and skills:

• Drug response biomarker discovery: Mining large-scale genomic databases to identify DNA sequence features that predict patient response to specific cancer therapies, with the goal of enabling more precise, personalized treatment
• Viral involvement in malignancy: Investigating the role of viral sequences and viral-associated mutational patterns in the development and progression of cancer, using computational approaches to detect viral signatures in patient sequencing data
• Additional projects in mutational signature analysis, epigenomics, and cancer genomics may also be available

Opportunities

We are committed to the professional development of every member of our laboratory. Undergraduate researchers in our group have access to the following opportunities:

• Conference presentations: Outstanding work will be presented at research symposia and scientific conferences, giving you experience communicating science to expert audiences
• Manuscript authorship: Students who make substantial contributions to research projects will be included as authors on peer-reviewed publications — a significant distinction that strengthens applications to graduate and medical school
• Mentorship: You will receive dedicated mentorship from both graduate students and the PI, with guidance on career planning, graduate school applications, and scientific development
• Skill development: You will gain practical, marketable skills in bioinformatics, computational data analysis, scientific writing, and genomic medicine

Qualifications

• Current enrollment as an undergraduate student at CWRU
• Experience with programming in Python, R, or Unix/bash
• Coursework in biology, genetics, biochemistry, computer science, statistics, mathematics, or a related field
• Strong interest in cancer biology, genomics, computational biology, or data science
• Enthusiasm, curiosity, and a strong work ethic
• Ability to work both independently and collaboratively

Equal Employment Opportunity Statement

Case Western Reserve University is an equal opportunity employer. All applicants are protected under federal and state laws and university policy from discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national or ethnic origin, protected veteran status, disability, age and genetic information.

Reasonable Accommodation Statement:

Case Western Reserve University complies with the Americans with Disabilities Act regarding reasonable accommodations for applicants with disabilities. Applicants requiring a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process should contact the Office of Equity by phone at 216.368.3066 or by email at equity@case.edu Determinations as to granting reasonable accommodations for any applicant will be made on a case-by-case basis.