Bioinformatician - Goel Laboratory
MELBOURNE, VIC, AU, 3000
At Peter Mac we aim to continuously improve cancer care, research and education across all cancers and for all people affected by cancer: changing lives, breaking new ground. Everything we do is underpinned by our core values, Excellence, Compassion and Innovation. Welcoming people from a wide variety of different backgrounds and experiences is critical to fostering innovation, cultivating compassion, attracting and retaining top talent and providing the best possible cancer care for our patients.
YOUR ROLE IN OUR FUTURE
Bioinformatician - Goel Laboratory
- 2-year fixed term, full time position (with potential to extend dependant on funding)
- 80 hours per fortnight with monthly ADOs
- Attractive salary packaging options are available
About the role
Reporting to A/Prof Shom Goel, this position requires a hands-on bioinformatician to co-discover biology, not just analyse data. In the Goel Lab, you will sit shoulder-to-shoulder with postdocs, students and research assistants to turn sequencing readouts into mechanistic insight that guides the next experiment and, ultimately, patient care.
Our work spans cell-cycle control and therapy-induced senescence, epigenetic reprogramming, cell death pathways and tumour–immune crosstalk in breast cancer. You’ll be involved from experimental design through to figures and text for manuscripts and grants—helping decide what the numbers mean and what to test next.
This position is responsible for but not limited to:
- Own end-to-end analyses for bulk and single-cell datasets (alignment/quant → QC → DE/peak calling/trajectory → integration across omics and models).
- Interpret biology, not just plots: draft short “what this means/what next” memos; propose validation experiments (e.g., CRISPR knockouts, inhibitor combos, time-course sampling).
- Co-design studies with experimentalists: advise on batch structure, power, confounders; plan sequencing and metadata up-front.
- Use/build reproducible workflows (Nextflow or similar) using Git and containers on HPC (SLURM or equivalent).
- Create clear figures and narratives for papers and grants; present at lab/program meetings; contribute to methods sections.
- Upskill the team: run mini clinics on QC, stats and data handling; review analyses; keep repos tidy and re-runnable.
The lab is well-resourced (Snow Fellowship; DoD grant), highly collaborative across Peter Mac, and committed to translating robust science to the clinic.
For more information please see the position description, if you are a philomath who enjoys learning biology, is excited by science please contact us for a confidential discussion, we are happy to discuss.
This position is:
- Fixed term, full time
- Onsite presence essential at 305 Grattan Street, Melbourne, VIC 3000
- Basic salary range: $89,992.97 to $115,527.48 AUD (1RA4-1RA10)
- Advertising from 24 September 2025 to 23 October 2025
Our benefits
We offer a range of benefits which support our people both personally and professionally, including:
- Up to $11,660 in salary packaging to increase your take home pay
- Discounted health insurance and eye care
- A comprehensive health and wellbeing program
- Public transport options at our doorstep and end of trip facilities for cyclists
- Onsite eateries and coffee shops and inviting rooftop garden spaces
- Pathways for professional development and new career opportunities
- Five weeks annual leave, 17.5% leave loading, purchased leave options & monthly ADOs
- Flexible, hybrid working practices
Join us!
If you feel this role is right for you we warmly invite you to apply, and encourage your early application. All appointments are made subject to a satisfactory police check and may include vaccination requirements. Should you need assistance or require any adjustments or accommodations to fully participate in the application or interview process, you are welcome to reach out to the contact person listed. We acknowledge that not all applicants will meet the full list of selection criteria outlined, and wherever possible we will consider applications where relevant experience can apply.
Applicants to this role should provide a covering letter outlining relative key skills and experience to assist us with our assessment.
For further information about this opportunity, click Apply to be redirected to the Peter Mac Careers page where you can review the position summary. Alternatively, please contact us using the information below for a confidential discussion.
Hiring Manager: Zoe Gordon
Contact Number: 03 8559 5934
Email: Zoe.Gordon@petermac.org
Applications Close: 23 October 2025
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Position Summary
This position requires a hands-on bioinformatician to co-discover biology, not just analyse data. In the Goel Lab, you will sit shoulder-to-shoulder with postdocs, students and research assistants to turn sequencing readouts into mechanistic insight that guides the next experiment and, ultimately, patient care. Our work spans cell-cycle control and therapy-induced senescence, epigenetic reprogramming, cell death pathways and tumour–immune crosstalk in breast cancer. You’ll be involved from experimental design through to figures and text for manuscripts and grants—helping decide what the numbers mean and what to test next.
The lab is well-resourced (Snow Fellowship; DoD grant), highly collaborative across Peter Mac, and committed to translating robust science to the clinic.
The biology you’ll dive into
You won’t need to arrive knowing all of this—curiosity and judgement matter most—but here are the kinds of questions you’ll help answer:
- Cell cycle & CDK inhibition: How do CDK4/6 and CDK2 inhibitors reshape E2F/RB programmes?
- Therapy-induced senescence (TIS): What distinguishes transient vs entrenched senescence? How does the SASP evolve, and which signals recruit or repel immune clearance?
- Epigenetic reprogramming: Which chromatin changes (e.g., accessibility, enhancer rewiring, histone marks) lock in drug response or resistance?
- Tumour–immune interactions: How do interferon signalling, antigen presentation and T-cell states shape treatment outcomes?
You will learn this in context—by pairing analyses with perturbations in cell lines and transgenic mouse models, and by joining the project meetings where we pressure-test mechanisms together. Examples of work conducted by Dr Goel that exemplify the efforts of the lab can be found in the publications: Dietrich C et al 2024 Cancer Discovery, Watt AC et al 2021 Nature Cancer, Goel et al 2017 Nature, and Goel et al 2016 Cancer Cell.
What you’ll do (day-to-day)
- Own end-to-end analyses for bulk and single-cell datasets (alignment/quant → QC → DE/peak calling/trajectory → integration across omics and models).
- Interpret biology, not just plots: draft short “what this means/what next” memos; propose validation experiments (e.g., CRISPR knockouts, inhibitor combos, time-course sampling).
- Co-design studies with experimentalists: advise on batch structure, power, confounders; plan sequencing and metadata up-front.
- Use/build reproducible workflows (Nextflow or similar) using Git and containers on HPC (SLURM or equivalent).
- Create clear figures and narratives for papers and grants; present at lab/program meetings; contribute to methods sections.
- Upskill the team: run mini clinics on QC, stats and data handling; review analyses; keep repos tidy and re-runnable.
Enterprise Agreement
Allied Health Professionals Enterprise Agreement
Classification or Salary Range
Level A: 1RA4 - 1RA10
Immunisation Risk Category
Category C: Position within a non-clinical setting
Key Relationships
| Internal | All Peter Mac Staff in particular:
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| External |
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Education
Skills
| Essential Requirements |
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| Desireable Requirements |
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Certifications, Licenses & Registrations
Key Accountabilities
| Key Accountabilities | Demonstrated By / Key Performance Indicators |
| 1. Conducts rigorous, valid and ethical research both independently and as part of the laboratory team |
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| 2. Communication of research outcomes |
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| 3. Input into the administrative and management functions of the laboratory, including supervision of staff and students |
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| 4. Foster a good working relationship with colleagues |
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Key Accountabilities (Contd..)
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For further information about this opportunity, click Apply to be redirected to the Peter Mac Careers page where you can review the position profile. Alternatively, please contact us for a confidential discussion.
Peter Mac is a child safe organisation and has a commitment to child safety and wellbeing.
WHY WORK FOR PETER MAC
- Peter Mac offer a range of benefits which support our people both personally and professionally.
- Our staff benefits include award winning facilities, professional development and events, a health and wellbeing program, flexible work practices and policies and financial benefits such as salary packaging.
- We encourage applications from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, all members of the LGBTQI community and people with a disability.