Principal Bioinformatician

CANCER RESEARCH UK; Cambridge; Hybrid; GBP 62,000 - 68,000; Full time

Job summary

An established industry player is seeking a Principal Bioinformatician to lead their computational strategy at the Functional Genomics Centre. This role offers an exciting opportunity to work on large-scale genetic perturbation screens, contributing to groundbreaking cancer research. You will collaborate with diverse teams, leveraging cutting-edge techniques and your expertise in computational biology to drive innovative therapeutic strategies. Join a mission-driven organization dedicated to advancing cancer treatments and enjoy a supportive work environment with a generous benefits package.

Benefits

Up to 12% Pension Contribution

Income Protection

Career Development Opportunities

Flexible Working Hours

Wellbeing Support

Qualifications

• Proven experience in leading scientific projects and teams.
• Deep expertise in computational biology and drug discovery.

Responsibilities

• Lead computational strategy for genetic perturbation screens.
• Manage and mentor bioinformaticians in cross-disciplinary teams.

Skills

Computational Biology

Bioinformatics

Data Analysis

Programming (R, Python)

NGS Data Analysis

Machine Learning

SQL

Scientific Leadership

Education

PhD in Bioinformatics

Equivalent Drug Discovery Experience

Tools

R

Python

SQL Databases

Job description

200 staff. Limitless Potential. One team - Cancer Research Horizons.

Principal Bioinformatician (Under the leadership of Alex Kalinka)

Starting salary in the range of £62K to £68K, dependent on experience plus benefits (includes up to 12% pension contribution and income protection)

Reports to: Group Leader

Directorate: Research & Innovation

Contract: Permanent

Hours: Full time 35 hours per week

Location: Cambridge, Functional Genomics Centre, Biomedical Campus (Limited flexibility 3-4 days per week on site)

Closing date: 12 May 2025 23:55

This vacancy may close earlier if a high volume of applications is received or once a suitable candidate is found, therefore we strongly recommend that you apply early to avoid disappointment. Please let us know if there is anything about the recruitment process that you would like to discuss, in particular if there are any changes or adjustments that would make it easier for you to apply. Please contact or 020 3469 8400 as soon as possible.

Visa sponsorship: Cancer Research UK can consider visa sponsorship for this vacancy. If this applies to you, please ensure that this is clearly marked on your application.

Recruitment process: Screening call followed by competency-based interview and pre prepared presentation

At Cancer Research UK, we exist to beat cancer.

Cancer Research Horizons are looking to recruit a passionate individual to lead and drive our computational strategy for the analysis of large-scale genetic perturbation screens at the Functional Genomics Centre (FGC). This is an exciting opportunity and time to join us as we enter the next phase of our renewed FGC collaboration with AstraZeneca, housed in their Discovery centre (DISC) building on the biomedical campus in Cambridge.

About Cancer Research Horizons

As the world's biggest medical research charity, we've helped bring eleven new cancer drugs to market. However, there is still an urgent need to bring more effective treatments to patients faster.

We have recently developed a new approach to driving therapeutic innovation through the creation of Cancer Research Horizons (CRH). We have brought together Cancer Research UK's established drug discovery teams under one organisation and leadership team, combining our unique pipeline of cancer biology expertise and access to CRUK's world-class academic network, cutting edge technology platforms and clinical expertise to 1) bring new treatments to patients faster and 2) tackle the biggest challenges in discovering cancer drugs by seeking out more radical ideas and embracing risk in our bid to achieve success.

Based at sites in Cambridge, the CRUK Scotland Institute in Glasgow, the Francis Crick Institute in London, and Newcastle University, Cancer Research Horizons employs ~200 staff from both industrial and academic backgrounds

What will I be doing?

Our new strategy sets out to bring deeper mechanistic understanding at the molecular and cellular level to all stages of projects, from idea to pre-clinical Candidate. Reporting directly to the Leader of our Quantitative Biology team, you will line manage 1+ Bioinformaticians setting the vision and leading our computational strategy for the analysis of large-scale genetic perturbation screens, helping to identify and implement quantitative approaches to address key biological questions.

As our Principal Bioinformatician, you will be a creative and solution-oriented scientist with a proven record of bringing your knowledge of computational biology to impact on functional genomics projects preferably in a drug discovery context. You will be a confident scientific leader, able to represent the department across a broad range of long and short terms projects both internally and through external collaborations (both academic and commercial). You will strengthen our computational approaches working in a cross-disciplinary environment alongside bench scientists, software engineers, and project managers. A significant element of the role will involve matrix leadership; you will also play a pivotal role in training and developing colleagues.

This is a great opportunity to leverage cutting-edge techniques such as CRISPR single-cell perturbation screens (Perturb-seq) and in vivo CRISPR screenings to analyse gene function. Furthermore, we actively encourage our colleagues to celebrate our science, by attending conferences, presenting posters, giving talks at events and publishing papers. In this role you will become an integral part of the Cancer Research Horizon Drug Discovery team helping to progress novel cancer targets towards patient benefit.

What are you looking for?

We are seeking an accomplished scientific leader who can set and drive our functional genomics strategy to help discover novel therapeutics in the oncology space.

• PhD in bioinformatics, data science, or equivalent drug discovery experience
• Proven scientific leadership, including both line and matrix management
• Deep expertise in computational biology preferably in a drug discovery context.
• Experience with end-to-end NGS data analysis and interpretation of the results in a functional-genomics framework.
• Experience in data analysis, including large and complex datasets.
• Programming experience with tools such as R and Python.
• Experience of querying data in SQL databases.
• Significant experience of scientific delivery in cross-disciplinary teams and highly collaborative environments.
• Proven experience of leading strategy and implementing change.
• Ability to describe complex science in an engaging and inclusive manner.
• Ability to influence multiple stakeholders and collaborate across projects and sites.
• Track record of external presentation and publication in peer-reviewed journals.
• Experience of applying machine-learning or AI tools to derive novel insights from complex datasets would be an advantage.

Our organisation values are designed to guide all that we do.

Bold: Act with ambition, courage and determination

Credible: Act with rigour and professionalism

Human: Act to have a positive impact on people

Together: Act inclusively and collaboratively

We're looking for people who can believe in and embody these organisation values and can use them to drive forward progress against our mission to beat cancer.

If you're interested in applying and excited about working with us but are unsure if you have the right skills and experience we'd still love to hear from you.

What will I gain?

We create a working environment that supports your wellbeing and provide a generous benefits package, a wide range of career and personal development opportunities and high-quality tools. Our policies and processes enable you to improve your work-life balance, take positive steps in your career and achieve your personal wellbeing goals.

You can explore our benefits by visiting our careers web page.

How do I apply?

We operate an anonymised shortlisting process in our commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion. CVs are required for all applications; but we won't be able to view them until we invite you for an interview. Instead, we ask you to complete the work history section of the online application form for us to be able to assess you fairly and objectively.

For more information on this career opportunity please visit our website or contact us.

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