PhD position

University of Canterbury

There is an open PhD position to study bioinformatic approaches to characterising non-coding RNAs at the University of Canterbury in New Zealand.

The successful candidate will be involved in analysing a wealth of data generated by new sequencing technologies. The research group has a broad range of interests including but not exclusive to the bioinformatic characterisation of novel RNA families, genome annotation of ncRNAs, RNA evolution, RNA pseudogenes and the analysis of gene expression data.

Candidates will be encouraged to contribute to public databases such as Rfam and Pfam and develop any corresponding Wikipedia entries. In the early months of the PhD project this work will help the candidate gain invaluable experience while developing their own research program. Once proficient in these skills the candidate will be encouraged to develop tools for classifying RNAs based upon homology, motif complements, pseudogene status and/or experimental evidence.

The bioinformatics team at the School of Biological Sciences is a new and dynamic group interested in the free and rapid dissemination of research discoveries. They collaborate widely, including with groups in the UK, Denmark, US, Sweden, Germany and beyond.

For further enquiries please contact:
Paul Gardner (paul.gardner@canterbury.ac.nz)

Required background:
An honours or masters degree in a biological or mathematical discipline such as biochemistry, genetics, molecular biology, maths, statistics, physics, computer science or equivalent and a demonstrated interest in developing bioinformatic skills.

Closing date:
26 August, 2011.

A PhD stipend of up to $25,000 NZD including fees.

The funding is provided by a Rutherford Discovery Fellowship from the NZ government and is administered by the Royal Society of New Zealand.

Regulations regarding the PhD program at the University of Canterbury can be found here:
http://www.canterbury.ac.nz/courses/grad_postgrad/phd.shtml

Application:
Please email a CV, cover letter and the names of at least two referees to: paul.gardner@canterbury.ac.nz