Bioinformatics Support Specialist
Position: Bioinformatics Support Specialist
Site: MaRS Centre, Toronto
Department: Informatics & Bio-computing
Reports To: Manager, Sequencing Production Bioinformatics
Salary: Commensurate with level of experience
Hours: 35 Hrs/week
Status: Permanent Full-time
The Ontario Institute for Cancer Research (OICR) is seeking a Bioinformatics Support Specialist for the Sequencing Production Bioinformatics team. The Bioinformatics support specialist is an intermediate technical computing role requiring an individual with an interest in biology and dedicated to supporting a multidisciplinary team of scientists, laboratory technicians, and informatics professionals.
The support specialist will provide support and administration for a Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS). This critical software system is rapidly evolving and consists of a core vendor solution. It is highly customized to meet the needs of OICR’s Cancer Genomic Laboratory.
In addition, the support specialist will provide support for the management of next- generation sequencing data and the operation of the production sequencing data analysis pipeline.
The Bioinformatics Support Specialist will have the opportunity to work with software systems in a 3000+ core HPC computing environment.
This is not a software development role, although proficiency writing code for the purpose of software system integration is required.
The responsibilities include:
• Ensure the production LIMS system is operational and meeting the day-to-day needs of the research laboratory team;
• Ensure the NG sequencing software pipeline is consistently, reliably, efficiently and correctly processing data;
• Provide support and training to end-users (research laboratory staff, remotely located collaborative users) of the LIMS system;
• Work with 3rd party software vendors to characterize and resolve problems with production software systems;
• Automate processes to the extent possible, simplifying necessary manual steps;
• Ensure the integrity of data managed by the LIMS system. Regular backups must be made and periodically verified;
• Ensure that pipeline data is managed efficiently, securely, and without loss or corruption from the instrument to long term storage and ultimately destroyed;
• Develop scalable processes that optimize the flow, management, and resource utilization of NG sequencing data from the instrument to long term storage or destruction;
• Responsible for documenting and communicating pipeline processes and knowledge base;
• Perform initial stage analysis on next-generation sequencing data transforming data from sequence to information meaningful for biologists.
QUALIFICATIONS
• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in related discipline, with demonstrated experience in the skill set requested;
• Must have advanced skills in Unix shell programming environment;
• Competence with some Unix based scripting language (Perl, Python etc.) required;
• Experience with general purpose software development languages such as C, C++, Java desirable;
• Must have excellent communications and interpersonal skills;
• Willingness to be accessible and respond to production pipeline issues outside of normal working hours;
• Experience supporting a high availability production software environment;
• Experience providing end-user software support, diagnosing and resolving end-user issues;
• Experience working in a multidisciplinary team environment;
• Experience with the Solexa GA, Applied Biosystems SOLiD platforms (software/data management) highly desirable.
OICR is an innovative new cancer research institute located in the MaRS Centre in the Discovery District in downtown Toronto. OICR is addressing significant challenges in cancer research with multi-disciplinary, multi-institutional teams. New discoveries to prevent, detect and treat cancer will be moved from the bench to practical applications in patients. The OICR team is growing quickly. We are innovative, dedicated professionals who bring expertise to each of our roles. We are looking for individuals interested in being part of a culture of excellence that will result in Ontario being recognized internationally as a leading jurisdiction for cancer research.
Launched in December 2005, OICR is an independent institute funded by the Government of Ontario through the Ministry of Research and Innovation.
For more information about OICR, please visit the website at www.oicr.on.ca.
POSTED DATE: June 16, 2010
CLOSING DATE: July 2, 2010
Interested candidates may apply here.
http://www.recruitingsite.com/csbsites/oicr/JobDescription.asp?JobNumber...
OICR has a diverse workforce and is an equal opportunity employer.
The Ontario Institute for Cancer Research thanks all applicants. However, only those under consideration will be contacted. Candidates will be expected to provide their current employer as a reference.
Resume Format: If you elect to apply, you will need a text or HTML version of your resume so that you can cut and paste it into the application box provided. Before you submit the completed application, you will be asked to attach one or two files to your application. Please attach your resume as a .doc file.
