Biology Phd - Scientific Coder

Mercor; San Francisco (CA); Hybrid; GBP 63,000 - 94,000; Full time

Job summary

Mercor is seeking a Biology PhD Coding Expert for a remote contract. Compensation is $70/hour with a 6-week duration and a commitment of 20+ hours per week.

Start date is immediate, and the role involves developing research problems from papers or open datasets, writing prompts, and calibrating tasks against frontier models. Required are strong Python or R skills, familiarity with Git/GitHub and Docker, and depth in at least two subdomains like ecology, biochemistry, or genetics.

Qualifications

• PhD in biology or closely related field required.
• Depth in at least two subdomains: ecology, biochemistry, genetics.
• Proficiency in Python, R, or other relevant programming language.
• Comfortable with Git/GitHub and Docker.

Responsibilities

• Source material from published papers, Kaggle datasets, or open-source repositories to create research problems.
• Write scientific prompts and develop grading criteria for correct answers.
• Calibrate tasks against frontier models, ensuring strong models fail more often than they succeed.
• Utilize Python, R, or other programming languages for scientific computing.
• Work with Git/GitHub and Docker for code execution and quality checks.
• Collaborate asynchronously and independently to meet deadlines and improve AI model performance.

Skills

Python

R

Git/GitHub

Docker

Education

PhD in biology or closely related field

Tools

GitHub

Docker

Job description

About the job

Mercor connects elite creative and technical talent with leading AI research labs. Headquartered in San Francisco, our investors include Benchmark, General Catalyst, Peter Thiel, Adam D'Angelo, Larry Summers, and Jack Dorsey.

Position: Biology PhD Coding Experts
Type: Contract
Compensation: $70/hour
Location: Remote
Duration: 6 weeks
Commitment: 20+ hours/week

Role Responsibilities

• Source material from published papers, Kaggle datasets, or open-source repositories to create research problems.
• Write scientific prompts and develop grading criteria for correct answers.
• Calibrate tasks against frontier models, ensuring strong models fail more often than they succeed.
• Utilize Python, R, or other programming languages for scientific computing.
• Work with Git/GitHub and Docker for code execution and quality checks.
• Collaborate asynchronously and independently to meet deadlines and improve AI model performance.

Qualifications

Must-Have

• PhD in biology, biological sciences, biochemistry, genetics, ecology, or a closely related field.
• Depth in at least two subdomains: ecology, biochemistry, genetics.
• Proficiency in Python, R, or another relevant programming language.
• Comfortable with Git/GitHub and Docker.

Preferred

• Publications in peer-reviewed journals.
• Prior scientific software or research engineering experience.

Start Date

• Immediate

Interview Process

• 25-minute conversational interview covering your background, experience, and motivations.
• Follow up within a few days with next steps and onboarding.

Resources & Support

• For details about the interview process and platform information, please check: https://talent.docs.mercor.com/welcome
• For any help or support, reach out to: [e-mail]

PS: Our team reviews applications daily. Please complete your AI interview and application steps to be considered for this opportunity.