Marco Galardini
06 November 2025
After a rather long hiatus we are hiring again!
We are looking for a candidate to fill a computational PhD student position,
with the main task of better understanding which genetic elements (“genes”)
make bacterial pathogens such as E. coli, K. pneumoniae, P. aeruginosa, and E. faecium
virulent and resistant to antibiotics. We have in fact developed methods (here
and here)
to sift through large numbers of bacterial genomes for this exact purpose (see here,
here,
and here), and it will be the job
of the candidate to use and improve these methods so that they can be applied to
an even larger number of genomes. We are also particularly interested in implementing
more machine learning methods and to integrate molecular phenotypes such as gene expression
and proteomics.
Our lab is part of the RESIST excellence cluster at
Hannover Medical School (MHH),
and we are part of a collaborative project with Susanne Häussler
and Meike Stiesch to identify genetic determinants of pathogenicity
and virulence in life-threatening bacterial infections.
We are looking for a candidate with a strong computational background and relevant technical skills:
- Strong background in computational biology, bioinformatics, computer science, or a related field.
- Experience with programming languages such as Python and workflow management systems such as Snakemake.
- Familiarity with machine learning techniques and libraries (e.g., scikit-learn, TensorFlow, PyTorch).
- Knowledge of bacterial genomics and related bioinformatic tools.
- Experience with high-performance computing (HPC).
- Experience with version control systems (e.g., git) and software development best practices.
- Experience with statistical analysis and data visualization.
We offer a fully-funded PhD position for a little longer than 3 years, to begin in February 2026.
The student will be enrolled in the Biomedas graduate program,
which offers curriculum specifically designed for
computational biology students.
The lab is located at Twincore, embedded in a large scientific campus that include Hannover Medical School,
and the Center for Individualized Infection Medicine (CiiM); we are also part of the
Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI), which offers lots of opportunities
for collaboration.
Hannover is the capital of Lower Saxony, in northern Germany, and is
an affordable
and vibrant city.
Please apply as soon as possible by sending the following documents to Marco Galardini at marco.galardini@twincore.de:
- Your CV
- A short motivation letter
- The link to a software portfolio (e.g., your GitHub account)
- Contact details of two references
