Postdoc in Statistical Genetics - Casale Group

Build the science that shapes the future of human health.
Application closing date: Visualizzare il telefono su nature.com

Join a place where ambitious science thrives

Human Technopole (Milan) is a rapidly expanding life science institute where international researchers and cutting-edge technologies converge to accelerate biomedical discovery. Our mission is to transform bold scientific ideas into advances that improve human health.

Within this mission, the Casale Group in the Health Data Science Centre develops AI methods that transform population-scale human data into mechanistic models of disease. Our research integrates large-scale human genetics with molecular and clinical data to generate testable hypotheses that accelerate biological discovery and therapeutic innovation.

We are recruiting an ambitious Postdoc in Statistical Genetics to shape our strategy for using human genetics as a causal anchor to understand disease mechanisms across biological scales.

Your mission

As Postdoc in Statistical Genetics, you will develop computational methods that connect human genetic variation to biological function. Using population-scale human genetics together with single-cell, spatial, and multimodal molecular data, you will identify the cells, cellular states, and biological programs through which genetic variation influences disease.

Your work will sit at the intersection of statistical genetics, machine learning, and mechanistic biology, with opportunities to lead methodological innovation and drive high-impact biological discoveries. 

The role will give you access to population-scale human genetics, rich multimodal molecular and clinical datasets, and world-class AI and experimental research environments. This combination provides a unique foundation for ambitious research and enables biological questions to be explored at unprecedented scale.

As part of Human Technopole’s interdisciplinary AI ecosystem, you will engage closely with the European AI community, including through collaborations with Helmholtz Munich and connections to the ELLIS network. Your work will benefit from interactions with computational, biological, and clinical groups across the institute, alongside opportunities for international collaboration, research exchanges, interdisciplinary training, and engagement with industry.

You will also draw on the group’s established network across leading academic institutions and industry partners in Europe and North America, helping you build collaborations, broaden your expertise, and accelerate the impact of your research.

Grow your skills
You will enhance your scientific and professional skills by:

• Developing next-generation methods integrating human genetics and multimodal biology.
• Driving biological discovery across population-scale, molecular, and clinical data.
• Building an internationally recognized research profile through top publications and conferences.
• Shaping the future of AI for science across academia, industry, and entrepreneurship.

What you'll bring

Essential

• PhD in Statistical Genetics, Computational Biology, Bioinformatics, Biostatistics, Machine Learning, or a related quantitative discipline, or expected to be completed within the next six months.
• Strong publication record in leading computational biology, genetics, or biomedical journals. Ideally, your work has focused on developing computational methods motivated by biological questions using population-scale human genetics or multimodal molecular data.
• Excellent programming skills in Python.
• Strong foundation in statistical genetics and quantitative methods for analysing large-scale genetic and molecular data, with familiarity with modern machine learning approaches.

Preferred

• Experience with GWAS, biobanks, or population-scale genetics.
• Experience with single-cell, spatial transcriptomics, or functional genomics.
• Experience developing research software for large-scale genomic or molecular datasets
• Background in Bayesian statistics, causal inference, or probabilistic modelling.
• Familiarity with modern AI architectures and foundation models.

Organizational and social skills

• Strong analytical thinking and scientific curiosity.
• Ability to work independently while thriving in an interdisciplinary and collaborative environment.
• Excellent communication and scientific writing skills.
• Creativity, intellectual humility, and enthusiasm for tackling challenging biological questions.
• Self-motivated, proactive, and eager to take ownership of ambitious research projects.

Why Human Technopole
HT offers an international and dynamic workplace, competitive welfare provisions, flexible working policies and relocation support. Researchers moving to Italy benefit from attractive tax benefits. We promote work–life balance and provide parental support initiatives.

How to apply
Submit:
• CV
• Motivation letter
• Contact details of two referees    

This is a fixed-term 3-year contract, offered under CCNL Chimico Farmaceutico, level B2.

Salary: up to € 43k.
The position is based in Milan, Italy, within our vibrant international campus.

We strongly encourage applications from candidates belonging to protected categories (L. 68/99).

The Foundation reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to extend, suspend, modify, revoke, or cancel this job posting without giving rise to any rights or claims whatsoever in favor of the candidates; the Foundation reserves, however, the right not to proceed with the awarding of the above-described assignment due to the effect of supervening regulatory provisions and/or obstructive circumstances.

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