Research Associate: Sr. Biocurator (Thaxton)

A global higher education leader in innovative teaching, research and public service, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill consistently ranks as one of the nation's top public universities. Known for its beautiful campus, world-class medical care, commitment to the arts and top athletic programs, Carolina is an ideal place to teach, work and learn.

One of the best college towns and best places to live in the United States, Chapel Hill has diverse social, cultural, recreation and professional opportunities that span the campus and community.

University employees can choose from a wide range of professional training opportunities for career growth, skill development and lifelong learning and enjoy exclusive perks for numerous retail, restaurant and performing arts discounts, savings on local child care centers and special rates on select campus events. UNC-Chapel Hill offers full-time employees a comprehensive benefits package, paid leave, and a variety of health, life and retirement plans and additional programs that support a healthy work/life balance.

Our mission is to improve the health and well-being of North Carolinians and others whom we serve. We accomplish this by providing leadership and excellence in the interrelated areas of patient care, education and research.

Patient care: We promote health and provide superb clinical care while maintaining our strong tradition of reaching underserved populations and reducing health disparities across North Carolina and beyond.

Education: We prepare tomorrow`s healthcare professionals and biomedical researchers from all backgrounds by facilitating learning within innovative and integrated curricula and team-oriented interprofessional education to ensure a highly skilled workforce.

Research: We develop and support a rich array of outstanding health sciences research programs, centers and resources. We provide infrastructure and opportunities for collaboration among disciplines throughout and beyond our university to support outstanding research. We foster programs in the areas of basic, translational, mechanistic and population research.

The Research Associate/ Senior Biocurator position will support ongoing curation efforts underway for the Clinical Genome Resource (ClinGen) research program directed by Dr. Jonathan Berg. Curation support will entail assisting the ClinGen working groups and expert panels with the data collection and analysis from literature curation to enable assessment of the relationships between genes, variants, and clinical diagnoses. This individual will be expected to participate in local meetings of the research groups and conference calls with international domain experts. Successful job performance will require learning and implementing the curation framework and protocols developed by ClinGen. The Research Associate- Senior biocurator will track the progress of their curation projects and will also provide feedback on curation toolsets.
Major responsibilities of this position include translating and integrating genetic information from primary literature and data from online genetic databases into biocuration databases to support genomic medicine research.

Relevant post-Baccalaureate degree required (or foreign degree equivalent); for candidates demonstrating comparable independent research productivity, will accept a relevant Bachelor's degree (or foreign degree equivalent) and 3 or more years of relevant experience in substitution. May require terminal degree and licensure.

A Master's degree in genetics, molecular biology, biochemistry, or a related field is required.

Relevant background for this position will depend on prior experience. PhD in genetics, molecular biology, biochemistry or related field is preferred.
The selected candidate should have the ability to lead/contribute to preparation of publications and/or reports, make presentations within department and/or at professional conferences, and contribute to and lead exchange of research information through demonstration and instruction.
The ideal candidate should be well-versed in genetics and genomic medicine.
Candidates should have previous experience in management of small development groups or possess the interpersonal skills to supervise other junior members of the team.

Ideal candidates should have the ability to comprehend and apply complex curation processes to various projects. He/she should also have the ability to read and critically evaluate the research literature to assess the state of knowledge about a genetic relationship, and to evaluate the strength of evidence provided. The selected candidate should have the ability to work independently while maintaining strong communication with the UNC-based curation task force as well as external collaborators. Also, the selected candidate should have knowledge of the scientific principles of biology, specifically the central dogma of genetics and a basic understanding of physiology and disease. Knowledge of online genetic databases such as OMIM, ClinVar and LOVD and familiarity with basic excel and database usage is preferred.

Qualified candidates should also demonstrate effective verbal and written communication, excellent analytical and problem-solving skills, attention to detail, and hold high professional standards for their own work and that of others.

The University is an equal opportunity employer and welcomes all to apply without regard to age, color, gender, gender expression, gender identity, genetic information, national origin, race, religion, sex, or sexual orientation. We encourage all qualified applicants to apply, including protected veterans and individuals with disabilities.