Data Steward / Bioinformatician, E13 TV-L, 100%

Within the context of the research data management initiative German Human Genome-Phenome Archive (GHGA) a research position as

DATA STEWARD / BIOINFORMATICIAN
is available at the University of Tübingen (scientific staff, E13 TV-L, 100%).

GHGA is part of the national program for research data infrastructure (NFDI) and acts as a national node within the federated European Genome-phenome Archive (EGA) and the European Genomics Data Infrastructure (GDI). As a key component within the German research infrastructure landscape, GHGA develops and operates software tools for secure data and metadata storage, interactive data portals with data visualization, and streamlined data deposition and acquisition solutions. GHGA is also a key infrastructure provider for the German National Genome Sequencing project genomDE / MV GenomSeq.

We are looking for a Data Steward / Data Manager with a bioinformatics background to operate the data management system within GHGA, GDI and the MV GenomSeq. As part of the role, you will take responsibility to moderate day-to-day activities on the data portal, interact with customers/data submitters and users, optimize and extend existing operation protocols, and also guide the product development by incorporating user feedback for new versions of the GHGA toolset. The successful candidate will be part of an interdisciplinary research and data management team developing and applying a diverse range of state-of-the-art methodology to implement and maintain bioinformatics workflows in a cloud compute environment. The role will involve close cooperation with other partners in the GHGA network, within GDI and the MV GenomSeq.

As a recently launched project, GHGA offers its employees room to shape the project implementation from the start. Your input will help GHGA reach its mission to make omics data in Germany more accessible and help drive German genome research forwards, nationally and internationally. Your expertise will define standards within Germany and allow Germany to be a strong player within international efforts.

Your responsibilities:

• Identification of suitable datasets and analysis of their potential for data sharing
• Quality control of datasets and preparation of data and metadata for submission
• Development and implementation of data security concepts, including risk management
• Development and implementation of SOPs for data management of human omics data as part of the GHGA infrastructure
• Strategy and processes for data ingest, metadata validation and quality control of data
• Handling of data access requests and managing the necessary legal processes
• Presenting and disseminating data management concepts within the consortium and at (inter)national conferences
• Establishment of data-driven quality control strategies
• Closely follow the field of secure data handling and sharing and interaction with international initiatives such as the Global Alliance for Genomics and Health (GA4GH)

Your possibilities:

• Get exposed to a plethora of fields ranging from AI-guided clinical decision making to modern web development technologies
• Work with an interdisciplinary team of experts bringing state-of-the-art biomedical research closer to clinics and patients
• Take part in international organizations such as the Global Alliance for Genomics and Health (GA4GH), the European Genome Phenome Archive (EGA) and ELIXIR shaping the future of genomics across borders
• Widen your expertise with extensive possibilities of training programs, seminars and conferences
• Enjoy a flexible work environment with the opportunity to work from home part-time, balancing office presence and remote work

Requirements:

• Master's degree or equivalent qualification in bioinformatics, computational biology, biological science, computer science, physics, mathematics, engineering, or other fields, possibly with a PhD degree
• Demonstrated experience and expertise in the development of data management / data curation concepts is expected
• Expertise in NGS, (human) omics data, data security and data privacy is beneficial, as is communicating results and ideas to colleagues and (inter)national collaboration partners
• Proficiency with UNIX-based systems and relevant programming languages such as Python or R is a prerequisite
• Experience with the development and implementation of structured metadata using modeling languages such as LinkML and JSON Schema is beneficial
• Expertise in software development and cloud computing is beneficial
• Excellent collaboration and communication skills in English

The ideal applicant should have demonstrated the ability to work independently and creatively. The candidate should have excellent communication skills and be able to articulate clearly the technical needs, set clear goals and work within an interdisciplinary setting, communicating with other partners.

The University of Tübingen is committed to equity and diversity and actively promotes equal opportunities. The University seeks to raise the number of women in research and teaching and therefore urges qualified women to apply. Equally qualified applicants with disabilities will be given preference.

Applications will be accepted until 16.03.2025, and should include a motivation letter, CV, and academic records. Please send informal inquiries as well as your application (as a single PDF) via email to

Julia Leimeister (julia.leimeister@uni-tuebingen.de), Tel. +49 7071 29 70460

The employment will be carried out by the administration of the University of Tübingen and is initially limited until 31.10.2026 with possibilities for extension.

Earliest Possible Start Date: 01.05.2025