Research Assistant / PhD Studentship (Fixed Term)

A Research Assistant/PhD Student position is available from 1st October 2026 for up to 40 months, in the Bivalve Transmissible Neoplasia Group at the Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge. This Research Assistant position would allow the post holder to undertake a postgraduate course (PhD) at the University in the Department of Zoology, located in Central Cambridge.

The RA/PhD Student will work on understanding the causes and consequences of extreme chromosomal instability and karyotypic variation in bivalve transmissible cancers. They will be part of a team of researchers with complementary expertise in bioinformatics, cell biology and evolutionary biology, with opportunities for collaboration across the project while also pursuing their own objectives. They will have a dedicated training budget and a supportive and engaged supervision team.

This work will be undertaken as part of a grant on the genetics and evolution of marine transmissible cancers, and will directly contribute towards the Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) studies that the successful candidate will be enrolled in at the Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge.

Duties will include:

• Development of species-specific protocols
• Running experiments in the laboratory
• Data collection, analysis and interpretation
• Preparation of manuscripts for publication
• Continuing to update knowledge and develop skills
• Co-supervision of project students working on related topics
• Collaboration with team members

Essential skills include:

• Strong background in computational and mathematical biology
• Demonstrable proficiency in scientific coding in Python and R, including manipulation of large biological data sets
• Demonstrable experience in computational analysis of allele segregation, duplication and recombination dynamics
• Demonstrable experience in computational analysis of chromosome missegregation dynamics
• Demonstrable experience in analysis of somatic mutation data, including modelling of variant allele fractions and mutational spectra
• Demonstrable experience in genome annotation, pan-genome analysis and network analysis
• Demonstrable experience in epidemiological modelling of host pathogen interactions in relation to clinical outcomes
• Demonstrable knowledge of modelling methods including Markov chain Monte Carlo, clustering and generalised linear mixed models
• Demonstrable knowledge of the transmissible cancer field and enthusiasm about translating mechanistic insights

For more information, please refer to the Further Particulars document.

An offer of employment will be conditional upon the candidate being formally accepted onto the PhD programme in Zoology. Candidates should apply for the PhD programme in Zoology via https://www.postgraduate.study.cam.ac.uk/courses/directory/blzopdzoo

Deadline for applications is midnight (GMT) on 15 May 2026. Interviews are due to be conducted during the week commencing 1 June 2026 (subject to change).

Fixed-term: The funds for this post are available for up to 40 months in the first instance.

Once an offer of employment has been accepted, the successful candidate will be required to undergo a health assessment.

We particularly welcome applications from women and candidates from a BME background for this vacancy as they are currently under-represented at this level in University.

Click the 'Apply' button below to register an account with our recruitment system (if you have not already) and apply online.

Informal enquiries are welcomed and should be directed to: Dr Adrian Baez-Ortega ab2324@cam.ac.uk

If you have any queries regarding the application process, please contact Paulina Lasocka or Anastasia Nezhentseva hr@zoo.cam.ac.uk

Please quote reference PF49560 on your application and in any correspondence about this vacancy.

Key information

• Department/location: Department of Zoology
• Salary: £33,002-£35,608
• Reference: PF49560
• Category: Research
• Date published: 30 April 2026
• Closing date: 15 May 2026