Post-Doc Research Associate (Furey Lab 1)

Department:

Genetics - 423501

Posting Open Date:

07/31/2025

Open Until Filled:

Yes

Position Type:

Postdoctoral Scholar

Position Title:

Post-Doc Research Associate (Furey Lab 1)

Vacancy ID:

PDS004612

Full-time/Part-time:

Full-Time Temporary

Hours per week:

40

FTE:

1

Work Location:

Chapel Hill, NC

Hiring Range:

$62,000 - $66,000

Proposed Start Date:

01/05/2026

Estimated Duration of Appointment:

12 Months

Be a Tar Heel!:

A global higher education leader in innovative teaching, research and public service, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill consistently ranks as one of the nations top public universities and is among is the top ten research universities in the nation for federal research expenditures as well as for federally funded social and behavioral sciences research and development.Here at Carolina, our highly skilled postdocs play a vital role in our research enterprise and towards our overall commitment to research excellence. Across many disciplines, postdocs contribute to the intellectual vitality of the University. They provide innovative ideas and perspectives, foster a stimulating research environment and advance knowledge within their fields. Postdocs are crucial members of our scientific research workforce, contributors to our research outputs and an important reason why Carolina is one of the leading public research institutions in the country.UNC-Chapel Hill offers postdocs comprehensive medical and vision coverage , paid leave, and benefits and services that support professional development and a healthy work/life balance. Chapel Hill regularly ranks as one of the best college towns and best places to live in the United States, a reputation guided by the diverse social, cultural, recreation and professional opportunities that span the campus and community.

Primary Purpose of Organizational Unit:

The UNC School of Medicine has a rich tradition of excellence and care. Our mission is to improve the health and wellbeing of North Carolinians, and others whom we serve. We accomplish this by providing leadership and excellence in the interrelated areas of patient care, education, and research. We strive to promote faculty, staff, and learner development in a diverse, respectful environment where our colleagues demonstrate professionalism, enhance learning, and create personal and professional sustainability. We optimize our partnership with the UNC Health System through close collaboration and commitment to service.
OUR VISION
Our vision is to be the nations leading public school of medicine. We are ranked 2nd in primary care education among all US schools of medicine and 5th among public peers in NIH research funding. Our Allied Health Department is home to five top-ranked divisions, and we are home to 18 top-ranked clinical and basic science departments in NIH research funding.
OUR MISSION
Our mission is to improve the health and well-being of North Carolinians and others whom we serve. We accomplish this by providing leadership and excellence in the interrelated areas of patient care, education, and research.
Patient Care: We will promote health and provide superb clinical care while maintaining our strong tradition of reaching underserved populations and reducing health disparities across North Carolina and beyond.
Education: We will prepare tomorrows health care professionals and biomedical researchers by facilitating learning within innovative curricula and team-oriented interprofessional education. We will cultivate outstanding teaching and research faculty, and we will recruit outstanding students and trainees from highly diverse backgrounds to create a socially responsible, highly skilled workforce.
Research: We will develop and support a rich array of outstanding health sciences research programs, centers, and resources. We will provide infrastructure and opportunities for collaboration among disciplines throughout and beyond our University to support outstanding research. We will foster programs in the areas of basic, translational, mechanistic, and population research.

Position Summary:

The laboratory of Dr. Terry Furey, PhD in the Department of Genetics seeks a post-doctoral fellow to participate in his inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD)-focused computational genomics research program, part of a collaboration with Dr. Shehzad Shiekh, MD, PhD, faculty in the Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology. Dr. Furey and Dr. Sheikh, collaborators for over 10 years, aim to uncover the mechanistic linkages between the genome (DNA sequence variants), epigenome (chromatin accessibility, histone modifications), and the environment (metabolome, intestinal microbiome) in the onset and progression of the complex diseases. We have performed multiple functional genomics experiments (ATAC-seq, RNA-seq, scRNA-seq, Cut-N-Run ChIP-seq, miRNA-seq, metabolomics) in tissue samples and individual cell types from colons and ileums of genotyped adult and pediatric IBD patients and controls. We are looking for a post-doctoral fellow to lead the computational analysis and interpretation of these data to further understand the molecular basis of this disease. In particular, the candidate will lead our investigations into chromatin, epigenetic, and transcriptional alterations associated with disease phenotypes. The successful candidate will gain experience in several cutting-edge computational genomics analyses techniques and gain knowledge and expertise in diagnosis and treatment of IBD. Importantly, these projects have great potential to become independent research projects that would further ambitious, motivated post-doctoral careers. In addition to research, the post-doctoral fellow will be actively involved with writing scientific papers and presenting talks at scientific meetings. There is also an opportunity to be involved in experiments in the Sheikh lab.

Minimum Education and Experience Requirements:

PhD in Computational Biology, Bioinformatics, or a related field.

Required Qualifications, Competencies, and Experience:

Experience in computational biology research

Preferred Qualifications, Competencies, and Experience:

Candidates applying should be proficient in one or more of the following programming languages: Python, Perl, R, Java, C. Candidates must be familiar with the functional genomics experiments indicated above and have experience analyzing data from these experiments using robust computational, mathematical, and computational techniques. Experience leading and conducting these genomics experiments and performing research in inflammatory bowel diseases, intestinal, or immune-related diseases is highly desired. Candidates should have strong communication and analytical skills.

Special Instructions:

For information on UNC Postdoctoral Benefits and Services click here