Universities of Wisconsin · 2 weeks ago
Scientist III — Wastewater Virome Genomic Surveillance
United States
Full-time
Remote
Senior Level, Lead/Staff
$95K/yr - $95K/yrThe Universities of Wisconsin is seeking a PhD-level Advanced Scientist to lead genome-resolved characterization of the wastewater and environmental virome in the O’Connor Lab. The successful candidate will manage project timelines, supervise staff, and develop methodologies for detecting and characterizing viruses from low-biomass samples.
Higher Education
No H1B
Responsibilities
Attends and assists with the facilitation of scholarly events and presentations in support of continued professional development and the dissemination of research information
Identifies, writes, or assists in developing grant opportunities, grant applications, and proposals to secure research funding
May supervise the day-to-day activities of a research unit and staff and resolve routine personnel issues
Leads genome-resolved metagenomic characterization of the wastewater and environmental virome, including ultra-deep untargeted (shotgun) sequencing and targeted probe-capture/hybrid-capture enrichment of priority and emerging viruses, and develops and validates the associated low-biomass nucleic-acid recovery and sequencing-library workflows
Identifies research problems and develops highly complex research methodologies and procedures. Publishes and presents results to help advance research
Serves as scientific and project-management lead for the wastewater virome-surveillance program — coordinating sample logistics and timelines across partner sites and funders, and supervising and mentoring a Research Specialist and junior scientific staff
Serves as an institutional subject matter expert and liaison with key internal and external stakeholders providing expert level information and representing the interests of a specialized research area
Collects and analyzes highly complex research data, conducts experiments and interviews, and documents results according to established policies and procedures
Partners with the lab’s bioinformatics group and external collaborators (including the ORCHARDS team and multi-campus wastewater-surveillance networks) to co-develop and implement improved methods for low-input viral recovery, sequencing, and downstream analysis, and establishes SOPs, QC, and standardized data-return systems
Conducts literature reviews, prepares reports and materials and, disseminates information to appropriate entities
Qualification
Required
Demonstrated expertise in genome-resolved metagenomics / metaomics of complex microbial or viral communities, including assembly, binning/classification, and genome-resolved interpretation of high-throughput sequencing data. The successful applicant will likely have a track record of characterizing at least 5,000 novel viruses from complex samples. Applicants who have not characterized at least 1,000 novel viruses will likely not be competitive for this position
PhD in microbiology, virology, molecular biology, genetics/genomics, environmental microbiology, or a closely related field, with an outstanding track record of peer-reviewed first- or corresponding-author publications, preprints, and conference presentations
Demonstrated expertise in genome-resolved metagenomics / metaomics of complex microbial or viral communities, including assembly, binning/classification, and genome-resolved interpretation of high-throughput sequencing data
Documented experience developing, benchmarking, and validating both untargeted (shotgun metagenomic) and targeted (probe-capture / hybrid-capture enrichment) high-throughput viral sequencing workflows from low-biomass or environmentally derived samples and using computational tools to assess these benchmarking experiments
Demonstrated experience developing or substantially adapting bioinformatic pipelines for pathogen detection and characterization in HTS data, including programming in Python and/or R and working in Linux / high-performance computing (HPC/HTC) environments
Experience with wastewater-based epidemiology or environmental pathogen surveillance, including sample concentration and viral-recovery methods
Demonstrated independent project leadership: coordinating multi-step laboratory and computational workflows, managing large sample sets, and meeting funder/stakeholder deliverables on defined timelines
Experience supervising or mentoring junior scientists, technical staff, and/or students
Track record of securing or substantially contributing to competitive research funding (e.g., lead or co-author on funded grant proposals)
Excellent written and verbal communication and strong organizational skills
Preferred
Experience with One Health or multi-pathogen genomic surveillance (e.g., SARS-CoV-2 variant tracking, influenza A) across multi-site or multi-campus networks
Experience establishing or maintaining LIMS or sample-tracking systems, QC frameworks, and standardized data-return/reporting formats for partner sites and funders
Demonstrated cross-institutional collaboration to co-develop and implement improved laboratory and analytical methods
Teaching, peer-review, or formal mentoring experience
Benefits
Benefits such as generous vacation, holidays, and sick leave
Competitive insurances and savings accounts
Retirement benefits
Company
Universities of Wisconsin
13 universities. 1 mission. To make Wisconsin...Future Ready. For All.
Founded in 1971
10001+ employees
Funding
Current Stage
Late StageTotal Funding
$7MKey Investors
Alfred P. Sloan Foundation
2019-01-01Grant· $7M
Leadership Team
Renée Wachter
Interim President
Recent News
2026-05-12
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