The KU Leuven Biomedical Sciences Group, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Oncology invites applications for a full-time faculty position in the area of computational cancer biology. The Department of Oncology consists of basic, translational, and clinical cancer research groups that are strongly integrated within the University (KU Leuven), University Hospitals (UZ Leuven), Leuven Cancer Institute (LKI), and Flanders Institute for Biotechnology (VIB). 

Applications are sought from candidates with an excellent track record in research and an engagement in education and collaboration.

The Department of Oncology wishes to expand the breadth and depth of data science and build on several recent advances in biomedical sciences, including technologies that are driving generation of massive datasets, exponential growth of publicly available data, and revolutionary approaches in statistics, machine learning and artificial intelligence that are changing data analysis. Structured collaborations with the KU Leuven Institute for Artificial Intelligence (Leuven.AI) and the Department of Engineering & Mathematics (ESAT) are being set up to support this.

You will lead an impactful scientific program addressing basic and translational cancer research. You will develop AI-based methods, deep learning, machine learning, graph-based and data integration approaches on single-cell multi-omics datasets to uncover the dynamic and spatial context of carcinogenesis, tumor progression and metastasis in various cancer types, and relate it to treatment outcomes. You will collaborate with our labs for the purpose of validation of the findings, and seek opportunities to translate findings into potential industrial applications.

You will build bridges between existing groups on basic, translational, and clinical cancer research, computational biology, and artificial intelligence at the University (KU Leuven), University Hospitals (UZ Leuven), Leuven Cancer Institute (LKI), and Flanders Institute for Biotechnology (VIB), as well as with other (inter)national academic centers. You will collaborate with laboratory-based scientists, clinical investigators, biostatisticians, data scientists, programmers and computational biologists.

You will strive for excellence in your research: publish at the highest academic level, initiate national and international collaborations, obtain competitive research funding, attract and supervise doctoral students. You will endorse the international research strategy and contribute to the further strengthening of the scientific reputation of the Department of Oncology.

Education
You are willing to provide high-quality teaching in the Bachelor and/or Master programs of the KU Leuven Faculty of Medicine, in the field of oncology, cancer research, cancer AI, and computational cancer biology. You will also contribute to the educational activities of the Cancer Program of the Doctoral School, and to the university's pedagogical project by supervising master's theses and as a supervisor of PhD candidates.

You will develop your teaching in accordance with the KU Leuven vision on pro-active, research-based instruction and you will make use of the opportunities offered by the university to further professionalize your teaching.

Service
You are willing to provide scientific, social and internal services. KU Leuven expects enthusiastic participation in committees related to research and education within the Department of Oncology, the Leuven Cancer Institute (LKI), and the Biomedical Sciences Group. You will actively be involved in the organization of seminars, symposia, and conferences related to cancer AI and computational biology, and create visibility of KU Leuven and UZ Leuven.

Profile

• You have a PhD degree in (Bio-) Medical Sciences or another field that provides excellent preparation for the requested research and education program.
• You need to be selected for or already have a position as Group Leader within VIB-KU Leuven Center for Cancer Biology.
• You have a strong research profile within the aforementioned research domain and the quality of your research is proven by publications in international leading journals and conferences. You have a relevant and strong research track-record on AI and computational biology. Experience in the fields of single cell sequencing modalities, including spatial Omics data, is a plus, as well as experience abroad and the prospect of research funding.
• You possess organisational skills and have a cooperative attitude. You also possess leadership capacities within a university context.
• You have qualities related to academic education. Teaching experience is an advantage.
• A good command of English is required. KU Leuven provides courses in academic English. The official administrative language used at KU Leuven is Dutch. If at the time of recruitment, you have no or insufficient knowledge of Dutch, KU Leuven will provide you with a training program to learn Dutch to the required level.

Offer
We offer a full-time faculty position in an intellectually challenging environment. KU Leuven, ranked (Reuters) as the most innovative university of Europe, is a research-intensive, internationally-oriented university that performs both basic and applied scientific research. The university is strongly inter- and multidisciplinary focused and strives for international excellence. You will be employed in Leuven, a historic, dynamic and lively city in the heart of Belgium, 20 minutes from Brussels, the capital of Europe, and less than 2 hours from Paris, London and Amsterdam.

Interested?
For more information please contact Prof. dr. Baki Topal, tel.: +32 16 32 60 89, mail: baki.topal@kuleuven.be or Prof. dr. Chris Marine, tel.: +32 16 33 03 68, mail: jeanchristophe.marine@kuleuven.be. For problems with online applying, please contact solliciteren@kuleuven.be. 

You can apply for this job no later than August 31, 2021 via the online application tool

KU Leuven seeks to foster an environment where all talents can flourish, regardless of gender, age, cultural background, nationality or impairments. If you have any questions relating to accessibility or support, please contact us at diversiteit.HR@kuleuven.be.