Bioinformatics PhD - Toolkit Specialist

About the job

Mercor connects elite creative and technical talent with leading AI research labs. Headquartered in San Francisco, our investors include Benchmark , General Catalyst , Peter Thiel , Adam D'Angelo , Larry Summers , and Jack Dorsey .

Position: Bioinformatician
Type: Contract
Compensation: $60–$85/hour
Duration: 2-week engagement

Role Responsibilities

• Review representative problems from your assigned problem class to understand the data shape and expected output.
• Specify a complete toolkit including Python /R packages and system tools, each with a brief rationale.
• Validate the final toolkit to ensure it solves specific classes of computational biology problems.
• Shape how frontier models approach real scientific problems through your tool selections.
• Work independently and collaboratively to meet project deadlines.

Qualifications

Must-Have

• PhD or Master's degree in bioinformatics, computational biology, genomics, or a closely related field.
• Hands-on experience with at least 3 of the following: protein structure analysis, variant effect prediction, RNA-seq/expression analysis, ChIP-seq/epigenomics, single-cell analysis, CRISPR screen analysis, molecular docking, or cheminformatics.
• Deep familiarity with the standard tool ecosystem for your subdomain (e.g., Rosetta , FoldX , DESeq2 , MAGeCK , AutoDock Vina , HOMER , scanpy ).
• Proficiency in Python and/or R for bioinformatics workflows.
• Familiarity with command-line bioinformatics tools (e.g., samtools , BEDTools , BLAST ).

Interview Process

• Short screening questionnaire to assess subdomain expertise and tool familiarity.

Application Process (Takes 20–30 mins to complete)

• Upload resume
• AI interview based on your resume
• Submit form

Resources & Support

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PS: Our team reviews applications daily. Please complete your AI interview and application steps to be considered for this opportunity.