VHIR-MSCA Predoctoral Fellowship

Fundació Hospital Universitari Vall d'Hebron- Institut de recerca; España; On-site; PHP 2,179,000 - 2,614,000; Full time

Job summary

The Respiratory Viruses Unit at Fundació Hospital Universitari Vall d'Hebron- Institut de recerca invites a Doctoral Candidate to contribute to the DETECTIVE MSCA programme. The project develops new data-driven methods to anticipate and respond to viral threats using genomics, AI, and real-time data sharing.

Within Vall d’Hebron Research Institute (VHIR) in Barcelona, you will collaborate across virology, epidemiology and computational biology to deliver an end-to-end epidemic-intelligence

Qualifications

• Master’s degree in bioinformatics, computational biology, genomics, data science, epidemiology or virology.
• Experience with genomic analysis, AI/ML and data visualisation is highly beneficial.
• Strong interest in infectious disease research and emerging pathogens.
• Excellent communication in English (CEFR C1/C2) and teamwork in a multidisciplinary setting.

Responsibilities

• Harmonise genomic workflows and integrate AI for variant detection and outbreak forecasting.
• Build secure, interoperable and FAIR cloud platforms for real-time genomic data exchange.
• Create interactive dashboards showing genomic trends, variant emergence and geographical spread.
• Translate genomic findings into public-health actions through educational materials and reports.

Skills

Genomic analysis

Bioinformatics workflow

Phylogenetics

Phylodynamics

AI/ML

Data visualization

English proficiency

Education

Master's in bioinformatics or related

Job description

Organisation/Company Fundació Hospital Universitari Vall d'Hebron- Institut de recerca Department Research Department Research Field Biological sciences Researcher Profile First Stage Researcher (R1) Positions PhD Positions Application Deadline 8 Oct 2026 - 00:00 (Europe/Madrid) Country Spain Type of Contract Temporary Job Status Full-time Hours Per Week 37.5 Offer Starting Date 1 Mar 2027 Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme? Horizon Europe - MSCA Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure? No

Offer Description

The Respiratory Viruses Unit is seeking a highly motivated bioinformatician to study the genetic features, diversity, and evolution of respiratory viruses and other viral agents from a bioinformatics perspective.

The Marie Skłodowska-Curie Predoctoral Fellowships (MSCA) are part of the Horizon Europe programme and support predoctoral researchers in developing an original research and innovation project through international mobility.

DETECTIVE (Data driven Excellence in Training of Epidemiological, Clinical, Technological and Innovative Virus Experts) is an EU-funded MSCA training programme aimed at developing new, data-driven methods to anticipate, detect and respond to emerging viral threats at an earlier stage than before. Coordinated by Prof. Dr. Heli Harvala, Professor of Virology at the University of Turku in Finland, the network brings together 8 academic institutions and 14 associated partners from across Europe.

Within DETECTIVE, researchers will develop innovative methods used to detect emerging pathogens earlier, understand who is most at risk, and translate the complex multi-source data into real-time, evidence-based decisions and clinical applications. The project's overall goal is to establish a unified, end-to-end epidemic-intelligence framework, enhancing Europe’s capacity to respond to threats quickly and in a coordinated manner. This will be achieved by an integrated approach combining virology, evolutionary genomics, epidemiology, diagnostics and AI-based analytical methods.

Emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases represent one of the greatest threats to global health and societal stability in the 21st century. The COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated with unprecedented clarity how quickly novel pathogens can spread, overwhelm healthcare systems, and disrupt economies.

This doctoral project will develop a genomic platform for securely, proactively and in real time-sharing data on a European scale, with the aim of facilitating the early detection of potential increases in the circulation of certain viruses. Furthermore, work will be undertaken to improve and harmonise the different bioinformatic analysis methods for genomic data at a European level.

Main responsibilities and duties:

At the Vall d’Hebron Research Institute (VHIR), Vall d’Hebron University Hospital (Barcelona, Spain), DETECTIVE is looking for a Doctoral Candidate (DC) to work on Work Package 3. As DC11, your research objectives are to:

• Harmonise genomic workflows and integrate AI for variant detection and outbreak forecasting
• Build secure, interoperable and FAIR cloud platforms for real-time genomic data exchange
• Create interactive dashboards showing genomic trends, variant emergence and geographical spread
• Translate genomic findings into public-health action through educational materials, policy briefs and reports
• Hold a master’s degree in bioinformatics, computational biology, genomics, data science, epidemiology, virology or related fields.
• Have a strong interest in infectious disease research and emerging pathogens.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills in English (minimum C1/C2 CEFR level).
• An interest in self-development and working in a multidisciplinary research group.
• Have not resided/carried out work or studies in Spain for more than 12 months in the 36 months immediately before the March 1st, 2027.

Experience and knowledge:

Required:

• Experience with genomic analysis, bioinformatics workflow development, phylogenetics or phylodynamics, AI/ML and/or scientific data visualisation highly beneficial.
• Previous laboratory experience in infectious disease research.

Research Field Biological sciences

Additional Information

VHIR embraces Equality and Diversity. As reflected in our values we work toward ensuring inclusion and equal opportunity in recruitment, hiring, training, and management for all staff within the organisation, regardless of gender, civil status, family status, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, religion, age, functional diversity or ethnicity.