Doctoral Student

BackgroundOur research group (Genomics, Pre-Breeding and Bioinformatics) at Centre for Crop and Food Innovation (CCFI)/ State Agricultural Biotechnology Centre, Murdoch University, aims to deliver solution to the evolving needs of the Australian agriculture and horticulture industry using high-end genomic tools and advanced molecular biology technologies. Our research work spans developing de novo genome assemblies, pangenomes, haplotype catalogues, spatial transcriptomics, trait discovery, predictive breeding, database management, and the integration of AI and machine learning to support pre-breeding and crop research. Our lab has a strong track record of publications of research outputs in top-class journals including Nature journals, Genome Biology, Plant Biotech Jour, The Plant Genome as well as integration of research outputs in crop improvement programmes in Australia and globally. We are seeking highly motivated, hard-working, passionate and enthusiastic students, who are interested and capable of contributing to a multi-disciplinary and culturally diverse team to develop their career in agriculture industry and international agriculture. Our research group has TWO fully funded positions (including tuition fees and PhD stipend) available in the field of Bioinformatics and Computational Genomics (ONE) and Genomics and Pre-Breeding (ONE). Domestic students or candidates with permanent residency in Australia are desirable. For PhD in Computational Genomics and Bioinformatics:1. Honours degree from Australia or Master’s degree in Bioinformatics, computational biology or related discipline with demonstrated research experience (e.g. project for 6 months or some publications). 2. Good grasp of computing and statistics, sufficient understanding of molecular biology and genetics.3. Proficient in any one of the programming/scripting languages: Python, Perl, R, Shell.4. Experienced in working on Linux and high-performance computing clusters.5. Demonstrated experience in different genomics analysis such as genome assembly, annotation, variant calling, pangenomes, haplotype analysis and transcriptome analysis. For PhD in Genomics and Pre-Breeding1. Honours degree from Australia or Master’s degree in Genetics, Genomics, Plant Molecular Biology, Biotechnology or related discipline with demonstrated research experience (such as a project for 6 months or some publications) in the relevant field.2. Experience of working in the genomics/ plant molecular biology lab3. Experience of working in the field/green house for trait phenotyping/trait evaluation and trait introgression. ESSENTIAL for BOTH positions:Fluency in spoken and written English is essential. Australian nationals are preferred. If applying from overseas, candidates should have cleared an English Eligibility test. Without a valid IELTS/ TOEFL score, candidature will not be considered. Interested candidates are encouraged to send their CV with academic transcripts and a cover letter outlining research experience and motivation to Prof Rajeev Varshney, Director, Centre for Crop and Food Innovation, MU at Rajeev.Varshney@murdoch.edu.au as soon as possible.