Conducting research for a changing society: This is what drives us at Forschungszentrum Jülich. As a member of the Helmholtz Association, we aim to tackle the grand societal challenges of our time and conduct research into the possibilities of a digitized society, a climate-friendly energy system, and a resource-efficient economy. Work together with around 7,600 employees in one of Europe’s biggest research centers and help us to shape change!

The Bioinformatics Division of the Institute of Biological and Geosciences (IBG-4) processes and develops methods and algorithms to achieve a fundamental understanding of high-dimensional data and processes in the bioeconomy in particular. Bioinformatics at Forschungszentrum Jülich plays a leading role at the international level, for example in the field of plant and microbial data management, in the evaluation of new methods of genome analysis, in the integration, interpretation, and visualization of high-dimensional omics data from the field of bioeconomics, and in the modeling, simulation, and engineering of biomolecular systems, including enzymes. Apply your data science skills to real-world challenges! At the Helmholtz School for Data Science in Life, Earth and Energy (HDS-LEE), we train the next generation of data scientists to tackle key global issues in domain sciences, such as life, earth, or energy. Learn more at www.hds-lee.de.

We offer a
PhD Position - Co-Regulation Structures for Large-Scale Single-Cell Transcriptomics - within the HDS-LEE Graduate School
Developing methods and workflows to construct robust co-regulation networks from large single-cell and spatial transcriptomics datasets
Integrating ontologies and metadata (e.g., tissue, cell type, developmental stage, treatment) to build tissue- and context-specific co-regulation networks
Designing and implementing clustering and integration approaches (e.g., network-based and subspace clustering)
Using co-regulation networks for gene function and protein-protein functional relationship prediction (guilt-by-association) and benchmarking them against existing bulk co-expression resources
Comparing and optimizing the developed methods on real biological datasets; working closely with experimental partners for interpretation and validation of results
Contributing to the integration of the developed methods into open-source software tools and data portals of the institute
Collaborating with internal and external, as well as national and international, project partners
Presenting your results at national and international conferences
Preparing scientific publications and project reports

Genuine interest in data science and one or more of its application domains: life and medical sciences, earth sciences, energy systems, or material sciences
A master’s degree with a strong academic background in mathematics, computer science, physics, material science, earth science, life science, engineering, or a related field
Proficiency in at least one programming language (Python, R, C++, Julia, etc)
Good analytical skills with a sound understanding of data evaluation
Prior experience with single-cell data analysis, network analysis, or machine learning is a plus
Good organisational skills and ability to work both independently and collaboratively
Effective communication skills and an interest in contributing to a highly international and interdisciplinary team
Motivation for academic development, supported by bachelor’s and master’s transcripts and two reference letters
Working proficiency in English for daily communication and professional contexts (TOEFL or equivalent or exemption required)
Knowledge of German is beneficial
We work on the very latest issues that impact our society and are offering you the chance to actively help in shaping the change! This HDS-LEE PhD position will be located at Forschungszentrum Jülich, HHU Düsseldorf and Aarhus. We offer ideal conditions for you to complete your doctoral deg...