Acknowledgement of Country
CSIRO acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the land, sea and waters, of the area that we live and work on across Australia. We acknowledge their continuing connection to their culture and pay our respects to their Elders past and present. View our vision towards reconciliation
The Opportunity
- Develop technologies for improved detection of biosecurity diseases
- Contribute to research and technology as part of the Host Response Team
- Join CSIRO - Australia's National Science and Innovation Agency!
CSIRO’s Health and Biosecurity (H&B) Business Unit is dedicated to conducting scientific research that develops products and services to address the complexity and interdependencies of human, animal and environmental health and biosecurity challenges to provide benefits to Australia and the world.
As the Data Scientist – Bioinformatics / Machine Learning, you will join a multidisciplinary team to develop technologies for improved detection of biosecurity diseases based on measuring the host response to infection. You will be central in developing a semi-automated data analysis pipeline for the identification of biomarkers for biosecurity diseases. You will expand and refine existing tools, as well as leveraging your creativity to develop additional analysis modules to address scientific questions.
The role will be part of the H&B Host Response team, which focuses on the study of host-pathogen interactions to develop improved diagnostics and therapeutics for infectious diseases. We are based at the CSIRO Australian Centre for Disease Preparedness (ACDP) in Geelong, Victoria.
Your duties will include:
- Constructing a semi-automated pipeline to analyse next-generation sequencing (NGS) data to identify RNA biomarkers of infectious disease, with a particular emphasis on host-encoded microRNAs
- Evaluate and implement feature selection algorithms appropriate for biological data
- Construction, optimisation, and benchmarking of supervised machine learning models for classification of disease states
- Develop tools for the automation of bioinformatic data analysis, interpretation, and visualisation
- Provide and receive constructive feedback with wet-lab colleagues to strengthen analysis tools and aid the translation of outputs to molecular diagnostic tests
- Build a portfolio of data for publication/patents
- Other duties as directed
Location: Geelong, VIC
Salary: AU$105k to AU$114k pa + up to 15.4% super
Tenure: 3 year specified term
Reference: 91115
To be considered you will need:
- A PhD (or an equivalent combination of qualifications and research experience) in a relevant field such as bioinformatics, machine learning, molecular biology, or microbiology.
- Extensive experience in one or more coding languages (e.g. Python or R)
- Demonstrated experience in building, testing, and optimising feature selection and machine learning algorithms.
- Experience constructing data analysis pipelines
- Demonstrated ability to undertake original, creative and innovative research by generating and pursuing novel ideas and solutions to scientific research problems.
- A demonstrated publication history of authorship on scientific papers in peer reviewed journals and/or reports, grant applications or inventorship on patent applications.
Desirable
- Experience analysing next-generation sequencing data
- Familiarity with Linux command line tools and / or high-performance computing systems
- Experience in research involving microRNAs or infectious disease diagnostics
For full details about this role please review the Position Description
Eligibility
Applications for this position are open to all candidates. Visa sponsorship may be provided to eligible candidates. Appointment to this role is subject to provision of a national police check and may be subject to other security requirements.
Flexible Working Arrangements
We work flexibly at CSIRO, offering a range of options for how, when and where you work.
Diversity and Inclusion
We are working hard to recruit people representing the diversity across our society, and ensure that all our people feel supported to do their best work and feel empowered to let their ideas flourish.
About CSIRO
At CSIRO Australia's national science agency, we solve the greatest challenges through innovative science and technology. We put the safety and wellbeing of our people above all else and earn trust everywhere because we only deal in facts. We collaborate widely and generously and deliver solutions with real impact.
CSIRO is committed to values-based leadership to inspire performance and unlock the potential of our people.
Join us and start creating tomorrow today!
How to Apply
Please apply on-line and provide a cover letter and CV that best demonstrate your motivation and ability to meet the requirements of this role.
Applications Close
26 March 2023, 11:00pm AEDT