Postdoctoral Position in Bioinformatics and Plant Paleogenomics at the University of Bern
Postdoctoral Position in Bioinformatics and Plant Paleogenomics
at the
University of Bern
, Switzerland.
This two-year, fixed-term postdoctoral opening is hosted at the
Institute of Plant Sciences
and the
Oeschger Centre for Climate Change Research
within the SNSF Consolidator grant project
ARIaDNA
. The project focuses on
bioinformatics
,
plant paleogenomics
,
ancient DNA
,
paleoecology
,
population genetics
, and
vegetation modelling
.
ARIaDNA aims to reconstruct how key European tree species responded to past environmental changes by analysing genetic data from ancient plant remains preserved in lake sediment archives. The successful candidate will lead bioinformatic analyses of ancient plant DNA datasets, develop and adapt pipelines for individual-based aDNA, sedaDNA metabarcoding, and metagenomics, and integrate paleogenomic data with population genetic models to study postglacial range expansion, demographic change, genetic diversity through time, and adaptation to climate change.
Eligibility highlights:
PhD in bioinformatics, computational biology, biology, or a related field; substantial experience with NGS data analysis and ancient DNA; programming skills in Python and R; command-line and HPC experience; strong analytical and communication skills; excellent English; publication record expected. Knowledge of population genetics, paleoecology, molecular biology, or vegetation ecology is an advantage.
Funding and conditions:
80-100% employment, fixed-term for two years, with conditions following University of Bern and SNSF standards.
Application deadline:
1 December 2026. Apply by sending a single PDF with motivation letter, CV with publication list, academic transcripts, PhD diploma, reference letter, and PhD supervisor contact details to Prof. Christoph Schwörer at [email protected].
