Bioinformatician in the USDA Forest Service

Position Announcement: Bioinformatician in the USDA Forest Service Rocky Mountain Research Station, Wildlife and Terrestrial Ecosystem’s Program, National Genomics Center for Wildlife and Fish Conservation.

Location: Missoula, MT.

Responsibilities: We are seeking a permanent bioinformatic scientist capable of managing and analyzing complex genomic data sets for the management of species of conservation concern by the National Forest System and other partners. The bioinformatician will be an integral part of a larger research team comprised of scientists, professionals, technicians, IT staff, and administrative staff as well as potentially collaborate with other USDA research stations and programs.

The position will require the design, creation, and maintenance of complex databases to manage population, environmental, and genetic data for species of conservation concern. This candidate should be scientifically curious about wildlife ecology and excited to engage in creative problem solving for species lacking existing ecological and genomic resources. The bioinformatician will support ongoing research by providing technical advice both for designing new projects and leveraging existing data and sample resources for new inferences. This candidate will develop de novo solutions to large data challenges that may include the development of new programs, software, and bioinformatic pipelines. The mission statement of the research group is to “Provide scientific leadership, reliable ecological understanding, and management tools for the conservation and management of wildlife populations and their habitats.” Thus, a strong commitment to conservation, land management, and the preservation of fish and wildlife is necessary.

Qualifications: M.Sc. or Ph.D. in a discipline related to computational biology including genomics, bioinformatics, ecology, and/or conservation biology. Post Ph.D. experience in conservation biology or computational biology is preferred. The candidate should demonstrate creative problem solving for species of conservation concern including those lacking existing ecological and genomic resources. Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively in both leadership and support roles with a diverse research team is essential.

Salary: GS-12

Applications: This is not the formal application announcement. It is an outreach notice. The formal announcement will appear on USAJOBS as a “Biological Scientist”. Please look for the formal announcement starting November 2022. The formal announcement is broad and will be used to hire multiple database and bioinformatics specialists. The position will be open for 5 days (administrative regulation for this position). All interested applicants should send a letter of interest and a CV to Taylor Wilcox at taylor.wilcox@usda.gov. Please place “Bioinformatician” in the email header.

A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Learn more about federal benefits at: https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/working-in -government/benefits/.