Post-Doc Research Associate (Liu Lab)

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 nation's 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.

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 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 prepare tomorrow`s healthcare professionals and biomedical researchers from all backgrounds by facilitating learning within innovative and integrated curricula and team-oriented interprofessional education to ensure a highly skilled workforce.

Research: We develop and support a rich array of outstanding health sciences research programs, centers and resources. We provide infrastructure and opportunities for collaboration among disciplines throughout and beyond our university to support outstanding research. We foster programs in the areas of basic, translational, mechanistic and population research.

The Liu Lab at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is seeking a highly motivated Postdoctoral Research Associate to investigate the evolutionary mechanisms that shape the pathogenicity and drug resistance of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) and nontuberculous mycobacteria ( NTM). This position will focus on identifying the genetic determinants that drive bacterial adaptation to the host environment and contribute to antimicrobial resistance and persistence during infection.

The successful candidate will leverage large-scale longitudinal clinical cohorts and bacterial isolate collections obtained through collaborations. The research will involve developing and applying novel population-genomic and statistical frameworks to detect non-canonical forms of natural selection, adaptive convergence, and bacterial traits associated with transmission, virulence, and treatment outcomes.

This position will require integration of multi-dimensional datasets including genomic, transcriptomic, phenotypic, and clinical metadata to elucidate how bacterial evolution influences disease progression and therapeutic response. The postdoc will have the opportunity to collaborate closely with computational biologists, microbiologists, and clinicians, and to contribute to the design of follow-up functional validation experiments.

Ph.D. in microbiology, genetics, computational biology, or a related field.

Ph.D. or all but dissertation for Ph.D.

The ideal candidate will have a strong background in microbial genomics, evolutionary biology, bioinformatics, or computational biology, with an interest in translational applications that connect bacterial evolution to clinical impact. Experience in bacterial genomics or evolution is preferred.

For information on UNC Postdoctoral Benefits and Services click here

If you experience any problems accessing the system or have questions about the application process, please contact the University's Office of Postdoctoral Affairs at (919) 962-9982 or send an email to opahr@unc.edu.

Please note: The Office of Postdoctoral Affairs will not be able to provide specific updates regarding position or application status.

The University is an equal opportunity employer and welcomes all to apply without regard to age, color, gender, gender expression, gender identity, genetic information, national origin, race, religion, sex, or sexual orientation. We encourage all qualified applicants to apply, including protected veterans and individuals with disabilities.