UC San Diego Health · 1 day ago
Sequencing Research Associate - 137577
San Diego, CA
Contract
Onsite
Mid Level
$70K/yr - $112K/yrUC San Diego Health is a leading institution dedicated to advancing patient care through research and innovation. They are seeking a Sequencing Research Associate to optimize and execute a targeted next-generation sequencing workflow for drug-resistance profiling of Mycobacterium tuberculosis, ensuring data integrity and collaboration across clinical and data teams.
Health Care
Responsibilities
Optimize and execute a proprietary targeted next-generation sequencing (tNGS) workflow for culture-free Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) drug-resistance profiling using novel low complexity chemistry
Process clinical research specimens per standard operating procedures (SOPs)
Prepare indexed libraries
Perform bead clean-ups
Run library QC (qPCR)
Pool libraries
Operate benchtop sequencers (e.g., Illumina iSeq100)
Complete basic run-level QC with handoff to the bioinformatics team
Maintain meticulous written documentation
Manage reagent/primer inventory
Perform routine equipment maintenance and calibration
Contribute to SOPs and training materials
Interface with clinical and data teams to ensure collaboration, turnaround time, and data integrity for a multi-site domestic study
Qualification
Required
Hands-on experience with multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR)
Routine instrument maintenance and calibration; ability to follow service schedules, document activities, and minimize downtime
Experience with sequencing library preparation and quality control: electrophoresis gels and qPCR; ability to interpret yield and melt-curve results
Experience with primer-pool balancing and coverage-uniformity troubleshooting (identify dropouts/over-representation; adjust primer concentrations, or clean-up conditions)
Sequencing run-level quality interpretation: read per-amplicon depth tables/plots, percent reads mapped, control behavior, and basic coverage metrics; organize outputs for bioinformatics review
Meticulous documentation in a lab notebook; accurate reagent/lot tracking, instrument IDs, deviations, and corrective actions
Clear written and verbal communication; ability to follow standard operating procedures (SOPs), escalate anomalies promptly, and collaborate with bioinformatic, clinical, and data teams
Strong organizational skills to manage multiple project components on fixed timelines; ability to support occasional evening/weekend runs to meet turnaround goals
Problem-solving mindset with attention to detail; ability to anticipate consumable needs, stage materials, and maintain readiness in a high-throughput environment
Reagent/primer inventory management and lot-qualification workflows (receiving checks, certificates of analysis, storage logs, expiration control)
Spreadsheet skills for QC tracking and per-amplicon trend logs; comfort importing/exporting run metrics and generating simple charts/tables
Preferred
Design and execution of small, structured optimization experiments (e.g., limited factorial “DoE-lite” for annealing/extension and bead ratios); ability to summarize findings with accept/reject recommendations
Familiarity with primer design and assessment tools (e.g., Primer3, BLAST, IDT OligoAnalyzer) for basic in-silico checks (specificity, dimer/hairpin risk)
Biosafety Level-2 (BSL-2) biosafety cabinet practices with potentially infectious human materials; compliance with Environment, Health & Safety (EH&S) requirements and personal protective equipment (PPE) use
Proficiency operating Illumina benchtop sequencers (e.g., iSeq100): run setup, loading, basic monitoring, and shutdown
Experience with laboratory information systems (e.g., laboratory information management system—LIMS) or structured file/metadata handoffs; attention to data integrity
Experience with Mycobacterium tuberculosis diagnostic reference testing, genomics of resistance, clinical samples
Company
UC San Diego Health
UC San Diego Health is the only academic health system in the San Diego region.
Founded in 1966
10001+ employees
H1B Sponsorship
UC San Diego Health has a track record of offering H1B sponsorships. Please note that this does not
guarantee sponsorship for this specific role. Below presents additional info for your
reference. (Data Powered by US Department of Labor)
Distribution of Different Job Fields Receiving Sponsorship
Represents job field similar to this job
Trends of Total Sponsorships
2025 (308)
2024 (261)
2023 (232)
2022 (223)
2021 (131)
2020 (105)
Funding
Current Stage
Late StageTotal Funding
$0.2MKey Investors
The Beryl InstituteThe Conrad Prebys Foundation
2025-10-31Grant
2023-06-26Grant· $0.2M
Leadership Team
Christian Dameff
Medical Director of Cybersecurity
Sandip Patel
Professor
Recent News
2025-11-08
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