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Associate Professor/Senior Lecturer in Bioinformatics P000844 (Re-advert)

Listing reference: nwu_002454
Listing status: Under Review
Apply by: 8 March 2024
Position summary
Industry: Education & Training
Job category: Others: Education and Training
Location: Potchefstroom
Contract: Permanent
Remuneration: The annual total remuneration package will be commensurate with the level of appointment as advertised and in line with the NWU policy guidelines.
Introduction
AN EXCITING OPPORTUNITY AWAITS AT THE NORTH-WEST UNIVERSITY (POTCHEFSTROOM CAMPUS) FACULTY OF NATURAL AND AGRICULTURAL SCIENCES WITHIN THE ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES AND MANAGEMENT UNIT FOR AN ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR/SENIOR LECTURER (POSITION NUMBER: P000844), GRADED AT PEROMNES GRADE: A6/A7. THE PURPOSE OF THE POSITION IS TO COORDINATE, MANAGE, AND SUPPORT BIOINFORMATICS RELATED TO SEQUENCING AND NEXT GENERATION SEQUENCING ACTIVITIES IN THE UNIT FOR ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES AND MANAGEMENT.
Job description

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:
 
Research and Innovation
  • Independent research activities.
  • Develop independent research program within area of expertise and interest.
  • Raise funds for own research program.
  • Collaborate with internal and external collaborators.
  • Develop software, coding pipelines and applications for scientific or technical use.
  • Create novel computational approaches and analytical tools as required by research goals.
  • Keep abreast of new chemistries, instrumentation, or software by reading scientific literature and attending professional conferences.
  • Improve user interfaces to bioinformatics software and databases.
  • Collaborate with software developers in the development and modification of commercial bioinformatics software.
  • Design and apply bioinformatics algorithms including unsupervised and supervised machine learning, dynamic programming, or graphic algorithms.
  • Manipulate publicly accessible, commercial, or proprietary genomic, proteomic, or post-genomic databases.
  • Test new and updated bioinformatics tools and software.
  • Communicate research results through conference presentations, scientific publications, or project reports.
  • Analysis of high throughput screening data and perform structure activity analyses to generate predictive correlations.
 
Teaching, Learning and Training
  • Curriculum development and teaching postgraduate level.
  • Coordinate the content of the Bioinformatics Modules in the School for Biological Sciences B.Sc Hons program.
  • Providing hands-on training for postgraduate students to generate sequencing and NGS data.
  • Training of UESM and other students in principles of analysing sequencing data using computational tools
  • Teaching post graduate students to develop software libraries and implement the best coding practices to build and continually improve the computational capabilities and workflows.
  • Supervise PhD, M.Sc and B.Sc Hons students.
  • Develop, coordinate, and manage short courses in Bioinformatics and Computational tools.
 
Administration and Management
  • Prepare and manage budgets for the operation of the core facility.
  • Prepare and manage service level agreements for provision of sequencing and bioinformatics support activities.
  • Prepare and present reports on the activities of the core facility for Unit Director and Dean of Faculties.
  • Apply for and manage external (national and international) funding for development of infrastructure of the Core Facility. Maintain software, hardware and the network in a bioinformatics setting (Budget and manage the budget).
  • Supervise regular updates and recommends state-of-the-art enhancements in bioinformatics hardware and software.
  • Direct the work of technicians and information technology staff applying bioinformatics tools or applications in areas such as required for services and collaborations within the University and external partners.
 
Social Responsiveness and Community Engagement
  • Assist with or prepare training material and assist with or present training workshops for neighbouring universities.
  • Prepare material and present workshops for high school students and community members.
 
Compliance and data management as well as Occupational Health and Safety
  • Ensure compliance with all existing safety standards in the area of responsibility.
  • ·Responsible for data management taking into account laws, regulations and directives and evaluate potential risks of the research activities.
  • Ensure compliance with University Ethics Policies and POPI Act.
KEY FUNCTIONAL/ TECHNICAL COMPETENCIES:
  • Able train students and staff to prepare sequencing reactions independently, using standardized workflows.
  • Able to evaluate sequencing data and to perform quality control independently.
  • Able to train staff and students to troubleshoot independently.
  • Able to train staff to prepare the Sanger Sequencing and NGS equipment for long term storage/standby.
  • Must develop an archive of sequencing records to be made available to clients should it be required for future purposes using appropriate data management tools.
  • Must be able to prepare and transfer sequencing data to high performance computing facilities.
  • Must be able to clean-up sequences and to do basic bioinformatics analysis using open-source software and programming languages such as R or Python.
  • Ability to manage bioinformatics and sequencing staff in the UESM and related schools and research teams.
 
ENQUIRIES REGARDING JOB CONTENT MAY BE DIRECTED TO:                   Prof CC Bezuidenhout: 018 299 2315
ENQUIRIES REGARDING RECRUITMENT PROCESS MAY BE DIRECTED TO:  Miss T Baloyi: tirhani.baloyi@nwu.ac.za
CLOSING DATE:                                                                                                   08 March 2024
PLANNED COMMENCEMENT OF DUTIES:                                                        As soon as possible
 
 

Minimum requirements

  1. A PhD (NQF Level 10) in Bioinformatics or Biochemistry or Microbiology.
  2.  A minimum of 5 years’ experience in the use of PC, Mac and/or UNIX operating systems, R, python and other relevant languages.
  3. A minimum of 5 years’ experience in various sequencing platforms used for short read as well as long read platforms.
  4. A minimum of 5 years’ experience or evidence of post-graduate student training and graduating up to doctoral level.
  5. Published articles in DHET accredited journals with Scopus references.
  6. Evidence of oral presentations at national and international conferences.


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