"Post Doctoral Research Scholar"

The position will be co-mentored by Dr. Jeffrey Dunne and Dr. Amanda Hulse-Kemp and will collaborate directly with multiple University and USDA-ARS breeding groups. The position is ideal for a candidate interested in career development and building extensive leadership experience at the interface between crop plant breeding and analysis of large genomic datasets in specialty crops. North Carolina State University is a Research 1, land-grant university, one of three major research universities in the vigorous, multi-sector, Research Triangle. NC State has strong programs in plant breeding, genetics, and bioinformatics.

We are seeking Postdoctoral Research Scholars to join a multidisciplinary team working in bioinformatics striving to implement fundamental changes in the applied breeding of specialty crops within the Department of Crop & Soil Sciences at North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina. Breeding of specialty crops has lagged behind the major crops, but these specialty species together have equal economic value to the major crops and provide much of human nutrition. Breeding Insight (BI; https://www.breedinginsight.org/) is a national-scale project striving to combine genomics, phenomics, and informatics to accelerate genetic gains in specialty crops. A partner effort called BI OnRamp led by Dr. Amanda Hulse-Kemp has been set up to streamline commodity-specific success and build new technologies; this position will be a primary leader in the BI OnRamp project and efforts. The position will work towards the development of integrated software pipelines to analyze large sets of breeding data and build technology platforms for phenotypic data collection as a part of a national initiative to extend the application of advanced breeding methods.

Demonstrated leadership and interdisciplinary group collaboration skills with scientists from diverse disciplines and backgrounds, including good interpersonal and clear English communication skills, both orally and in writing reports and publications, effective work habits, and the ability to work as part of a team and in a self-directed manner. Curation and project management experience is a plus. Ability to work independently, prioritize and manage a variety of tasks, and shift priorities rapidly. The postdoctoral associate will also be expected to make presentations regarding his/her research at relevant conferences and to publish the original results of research in peer-reviewed scientific journals. PhD Degree in genetics, bioinformatics, computational biology, crop science, horticulture, or similar.

a Ph.D. in genetics, bioinformatics, computational biology, computer science, engineering, or related discipline, with experience in computational analyses and analyzing plant breeding or similar data. Experience in data processing and analysis on large data sets and biostatistics is essential. Strong knowledge of operations in breeding programs (experience in specialty crop programs a plus). Proficiency in high-throughput bioinformatic analyses in at least some components of the following: streamlining genome assembly and annotation, integrating phenotypic and genomic data, machine learning/artificial intelligence to extract plant data, or deployment of analysis pipelines through applications. Must have a background in database utilization and/or management/development. Strong knowledge of informatics tools such as Linux, linkage mapping software, Perl, Python, SQL, or other databases, and/or R-statistical analysis software scripting is required.